Introducing a kid to good music

[Kimbell175113]

I never really paid critical attention to music until a year or two ago; I was just one of those people who listened to whatever was on the radio and was content with it. Now I get a lot of pleasure out of good bands, well-written lyrics, etc. and I can't imagine living without some of my favorite songs.

So, I have some younger siblings (the ones I'm talking about here are 5 and 8 y/o) who are basically in the same position I was. They are intelligent, critical, and would recognize quality music if they were exposed to it and developed their tastes. I'd like to help them out, to see that they're introduced to the good stuff earlier than I was. (Our mom is no help: she's an aerobics instructor and just listens to those awful sped-up techno covers of pop songs that are used in her classes).

But I don't really know how to go about it. I would feel weird just handing my 8 year-old sister an Arcade Fire cd and saying 'listen to this,' for example. Would it be better to start with older, influential stuff, or... well, I don't know, that's why I'm asking you guys. Is there a standard plan of education for this kind of thing? If you met an extraterrestrial or an Amish person or a kid and wanted to introduce him/her to the spectrum of modern music, how would you go about it?

cliff notes: just read the last sentence, or the thread title