How are you planning on sharing this information with colleagues, administrators and families?

[Meredith Pizzi]

[Lauren Roberts]

Colleagues: I would definitely recommend this course to other music therapists, especially those interested in the early childhood population. Whether or not they plan on becoming a Sprouting Melodies provider, I feel the information regarding development alone is well worth it.

Administrators: (I am interpreting this as the administrators of facilities where I may want to introduce Sprouting Melodies, such as daycares and preschools.) I would be very interested in giving a presentation at these locations on music and child development! At the moment I imagine myself emphasizing that Sprouting Melodies would enhance the overall quality of their programming. It would be approached from the standpoint of the developmental benefits, and not just a “Yay, music is fun!” (although, it is!). Having quality programming may be a determining factor in parents choosing their daycare as well, and so it could be a boost to their budget as well.

Families: In a way, I feel as this goes hand-in-hand with the administrators. Continuing with the daycare scenario, while administrators may be looking more at budget and cost of a program, parents are looking at the value of services they are getting for their money. Therefore, I would also emphasize developmental benefits of Sprouting Melodies in any information presented to parents, but even more importantly the “why is Sprouting Melodies unique.” I know for me personally, if two daycares were going to cost me the same amount of money, what services I would be getting for that money would be the deciding factor. And then, even if both offered music time, it would go down to the quality of the music service being offered. Parents need to know that the Sprouting Melodies name means their child is receiving a unique and high quality service. While this may primarily translate into printed materials such as brochures, I feel it would also be beneficial for parents to experience what their child would be receiving firsthand, and could perhaps provide a demonstration group/class when a connection is made with a daycare facility for parents to attend with their child. Parent response and interest may then convince administrators to add Sprouting Melodies to their programming.

[Barb Blackburn]

I’m not sure at this juncture, with my current career change. I would highly recommend this training to all music therapists, I think it’s a phenomenal service to offer alongside your therapy sessions. I would love to possibly send out some flyers and share the information with my community. The community in which I live is not the same area that I am currently working in. I live in Castle Rock, CO (working in Colorado Springs, about 45 mins away) and it is a very family oriented little town. I think I could easily grab people’s attention and interest in Sprouting Melodies if I am able to begin offering classes.

[Ann Dardis]

I took this course primarily to learn about early childhood development and music development. It was fantastic. I highly recommend it to others. I’m especially glad to have the textbook so that I can easily go back & review things as situations come up in class with the little ones. The program I am currently using, Making Music Praying Twice, does have a set curriculum of songs to use. However, how I use the songs is up to me and I am welcome to supplement as I see fit. The information about song categories will help me determine how each song fits into the class to meet different needs. With my newly acquired knowledge comes an increased confidence in talking with parents about their child’s development and how music is supporting their growth.

[Lauren Caso]

I think it is important to offer to provide a free in-service about the program details to potential clients, facilities and administrators, as well provide applicable brochures and literature. Also, maybe offer free or discounted attendance for the first session. The more exposure, the better! Attending local conferences, and setting up a table or giving a presentation, can also help get the word out to colleagues and industry peers. Because our field is heavily based on research, it is important to be able to site applicable studies. However, since live music is a very visceral and experiential activity, a live demonstration or video footage can leave an impactful imprint!

[Kristen Crouch]

I would recommend this training to colleagues interested in early childhood. I found the information very beneficial and agree that it helps to fill some gaps in our training as music therapists. Having a better understanding on the growth and development of children 0-5, especially in regards to music development, helps me provide a better service to my clients which impacts families and administrators. I typically do yearly trainings for other professionals on the use of music in early childhood and will be incorporating this information in those trainings, as well as researching more about Music and Literacy. As always, I will also continue to educate parents and families.

[Amy Dunlap]

How are you planning on sharing this information with colleagues, administrators and families?

I believe that Sprouting Melodies is the most well-rounded and informed early childhood music program that I have heard of. I will not hesitate to recommend the training to any MT-BC interested in working with this population, or in community music therapy programs. I think that establishing a presence (booth, table, etc.) at community fairs, farmers markets, educational events would be a really great way to spread the Sprouting Melodies name. Hanging fliers in community spaces (churches, libraries, grocery stores, coffee shops, etc.) is another good way to get the name out there, which is what will be very important in the first few months/years of developing a program. Additionally, having a presence on as many websites and social media sites as possible will help greatly to educate and attract families.

[Elizabeth Schwartz]

Thank you to all for the encouraging words about the Sprouting Melodies training. Meredith and I will continue to be here for you as you grow your practice and your career. I just wanted to remind everyone to visit us on the web each month on the Sprouting Melodies blog and the Raising Harmony blog. Please share the sites with colleagues and especially families. There are a number of new songs and I will keep sharing them with you through the blogs.
Keep in touch!
Beth
Elizabeth@RaisingHarmony.com

[Brandy Jenkins]

**Late Entry as I am Catching Up on Posting**

I can imagine approaching the school I am with now. I am doing a graduate practicum with them and they are talking about a grant after my time is up to offer a paid position. The part I have a hard time explaining is that this is a community music therapy based program and not clinical music therapy. I think they are fine with that because they want music incorporated with all the classes. I find I don’t really know how to reconcile the two because it was drilled in my head through my education that clinical music therapy with all the documentation is the only form…etc. I feel differently. I think this program would be wonderful and I can keep general session notes regarding development. I have the same concerns when speaking to colleagues or families. I just don’t know how to verbalize well.

[Caitlin Kauffman]

How are you planning on sharing this information with colleagues, administrators and families?

I appreciated this program and the information offered within it greatly. I would absolutely recommend this to any colleague who owns, or is considering owning, their own business – and to anyone interested in early childhood, of course. With administrators and families, I would encourage them to consider Sprouting Melodies by accentuating the focus on the whole child and the qualifications of the SM providers. In our phone conversation, Meredith and I talked about how important it is to be confident in sharing this information with families – and that we have valuable information to share with them. I would meet with administrators and offer demonstration sessions if needed. I think a good way to get information to families is through fliers and maybe even something like a meet-and-greet at a coffee shop where people can drop in and ask questions. These days, with social media, I think that word can spread quickly (for better or worse, I suppose) so having a positive presence in your community is KEY!

[Bernadette Skodack]

I actually have already shared a little of this information with my clinical director! She is excited about my idea to incorporate family music programming with military families at a venture that my company is involved with. My company has a newsletter that we publish bimonthly that goes out to staff, clients, their families, external team members, and others in the community…so there’s a possibility that I can include an article and information in there when things really start to get going. My company currently doesn’t do a lot with children, so finding ways to incorporate the training and talk about it are my main goals right now.

[Sarah Gagnon]

Looking forward to first signing up to become a sprouting melodies provider. Then I’m considering using some of the marketing tools discussed in the call and moving forward with a couple of groups in the next six months.

I’m already working with EI and spoke with Meredith regarding bringing in my skills to the EI for groups. Will be moving carefully through this because I want to use the SM name but only if they are ready.

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