Share some strategies you have used to assure every child in your groups is successful.

[Meredith Pizzi]

[Stacy Reno]

Planning is so important in regards to this! For example when using a book (my groups are run with an SLP, ages 0-3) we make sure that we have available: visuals, the actual items for the children to hold on to, ACC devices- what ever we need so that each child/parent group can participate and feel apart of the experience. Using a variety of communication supports has been beneficial for parents to see that there are many ways to communicate. Knowing your group, planning, being comfortable with the music so you can adapt on the spot are keys for me!

[Petra Paukova]

I never did music for early childhood groups, but I took Music Together classes with my son when he was small and learned a lot about kids and group dynamics just by being there…. I am looking forward to start my own Sprouting Melodies groups and will definitely use many strategies I learned here in the course.

[Coleen Shanagher]

In addition to many of the things we’ve talked about and seen in the lectures, I think the most valuable thing to do is to just check in with each parent and show them that you are paying attention to the individual child. This means reflecting to the group what a child is doing, “See what Sally is doing over there lets all play like that.” Or “This is a perfect time to talk about what to when we see instrument throwing.” That way, each parent sees that their child’s needs are being met but also the other parents benefit from that learning experience.

[Keeley St Clair]

I want to echo Coleen with the parental communication. The Sprouting Melodies trainings have stressed throughout that verbalizing and reinforcing the responses and interactions of the little ones help the parents to understand and generalize into day to day life. Observation of each child paired with a gentle yet playful approach can help to ensure their engagement and growth. This, paired with the use of interesting, varied music and experiences with plenty of repetition can help to assure success for every child.

[Elizabeth Schwartz]

We hear again and again from parents that they are so grateful for the support and information they get from Sprouting Melodies providers. In the Sprouting Melodies Provider manual, there are pages and pages of short sentences and phrases that you can use when talking to parents – we call them ‘Sprouting Melodies Sayings”.

[Toni]

Like others, I determine what supports are needed to ensure success. I make sure to engage with each child at his/her level. I provide educational moments for the caregivers. And, I provide opportunities for exploration and discovery.

[Lauren Stoner]

I agree that planning is significant; however, I believe that knowledge of music, developmental levels, and music therapy will help to assure that each child can be successful especially when this information is shared with the parent and is applied when needed during the group. Consistent modeling of positive behavior for the child and appropriate interaction for the parent can also be helpful in making sure people are safe and successful.

[Erin Spring]

I have not run a lot of young child music groups. I think for me focus on communicating with the parents/caregivers and working as a team with them will be key to ensuring each child’s success in my Sprouting Melodies groups.

[Kathryn Opher]

I ensure success by balancing structure and freedom. Children feel most successful when they discover things on their own so we need to allow for that. Beth–I like your sayings–parents need confidence and letting them know how their kids are succeeding is a big part of that!

[Shannon Kiley]

I like what Kathryn said about structure & freedom– I was going to say something similar. In structure, giving multiple levels of opportunities for engagement is important, and giving the children the freedom to engage in the music in the way that feels natural to them, while still giving clear boundaries on what behavior is *not* ok.

[Sarah Tree]

In addition to adequate preparation, flexibility, and communication, I feel reflection plays a large part in assuring each child is successful. Taking a moment after each session to say, “what worked, what didn’t work, and why did it work for this child but not that one” can be really beneficial for each of those individual children, as well as for us as professionals. I find that thinking about what happened, and how I approached it this time vs. how I might approach a similar situation next time has been a strategy which has been very helpful for me.

[Jennifer Sokira]

I think that communication and support with/for the parents, reflecting what I am seeing to include children, and being consistent with expectations and boundaries are helpful in ensuring success. Following up and using my clinical radar going also!

[Kehlen Bushatz]

As an itinerant preschool special ed. teacher I see often how important communication is between parents and other teachers is. I like how much SM utilizes and encourages parents to help their children learn and develop. I also like the flexibility it allows and doesn’t demand that every child be doing the same thing. Lastly, I really like the clear structure that every session has!

[Andrea U]

I definitely agree with Sarah about reflecting. Sometimes in the whole scheme, I forget to just stand back and reflect on what worked and what didn’t. I have to sometimes remember that it’s not just the children learning and developing, but us too as music therapists, especially one that has just started in the field.

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