[Coleen Shanagher]

I like what you’re saying Keeley about the differences between clinical applications of music therapy and community programs. Over the summer I organized a Sensory Friendly Concert working with The Musical Autist. They are huge advocates of community music therapy and I think this mirrors what you are saying. These concerts are put on by music therapists and they are in the process of trademarking the term so that only music therapists can facilitate concerts by this name. At Tempo, we put on inclusive open mic nights and other events which utilize the specialty of the therapist but are not clinical in nature. But I also know that there are ways to be doing clinical work within a community setting. I think the most important part of what we are talking about here is that there is a role in the community for the music therapist to be the authority on certain populations, health and wellness.

[Coleen Shanagher]

The biggest contribution I give to families is either a plan- something they can look for or do at home- or confirmation that they’re already doing the right thing. I see so much head nodding and “oooohhh”s throughout the day because parents always want to know if they’re doing the right thing. They bring their children to activities and specialists because they want to feel like they’re doing whatever they can to help them develop. And by encourging them, and giving them a session’s worth of break time from being the leader, they are more ready to tackle the demands of the day.

[Coleen Shanagher]

Hello from the middle of the video! I think I’d like to answer your question the way you posed it in the video. First I think that music therapists have the knowledge base to provide the best services because of the sheer amount of knowledge that we have gained. Every experience with music- and imagine how many we’ve all had- has taught us about the relationship between humans and music. And every experience with clients has taught us about human psychology, development and disability. Each day and session brings in a new combination of those circumstances and relies on a different skill set. I think individually I bring passion, understanding and dedication to my clients which is why I am confident I could provide the best services to parents. Ok! back to the video.

[Coleen Shanagher]

I think that in the past I’ve always included these elements, but now that I know how they develop I can use them in a more intentional sequence. I typically start with singing and use that to address goals of language and then move toward different instrument experiences for different domains. I particularly liked the reference to “head, shoulders, knees and toes” since I may be guilty of using it inappropriately too!

[Coleen Shanagher]

I have a group this weekend and while it is for older children I already know they are going to love these songs! I’m really excited to use some of the songs as gathering songs and if I change the words here and there they will be age appropriate for instrument play. I’ll let everyone know how it goes.

[Coleen Shanagher]

Because New Jersey is such a melting pot of cultures it is hard for me to describe a cultural category of music that would be specific to my area. The traditional music would really just be traditional American sing-along songs or patriotic songs. Oh, but of course I doubt I am the first New Jersian to admit that Bruce Springsteen was played in my house enough to warrant it’s own genre. I say that only partially in jest, because I think what might be telling about a culture that adores Springsteen is the popularity of the “working man’s song.” In northern NJ there is a sense of pride in the hustle of the work day before coming home, putting on some Sinatra and having a big meal for a big family. I can’t say that is everyone’s experience but I know of many many families which would describe this as our culture.

[Coleen Shanagher]

I first want to say how much I enjoyed the concrete nature of today’s lectures! I feel like I really learned a lot. I am currently working for a private practice that has music together, so I have seen a lot of group music for young children and it was really interesting for me to look back and think about which children would have fallen into which stages. As I mentioned before, what I’m really looking for from this training is specificity and a set of intervention skills. So knowing which stage a child is in is so helpful. I had a new client the other day who was super adorable. He is four years old and developmentally delayed. I believe he is in the control stage. He was doing a lot of spontaneous vocalization, which I assured the mother was his way of moving toward verbal communication. She said she was relieved to hear that because it sort of drives her crazy. I also noticed he was still feeling me out as I played at the piano. I was playing chords toward the low end of the piano and when he came over I would play a quick high cluster. At which point he would run back to mom. What started out (As I saw it) as him working on independence, became a game as he then came over and took my hand to the piano for me to play the high cluster. I think knowledge of his developmental state helped me to know where to focus my intervention and adapt my methods within the session.

[Coleen Shanagher]

I realized this week the importance of understanding typical developmental goals and milestones because it will give me a specific and concrete comparison when understanding a-typical behaviors. I have a new client starting and much of the information I have been provided uses terminology such as “global delays” etc, so it will be my task to figure out what areas need to be addressed. And the only way I can make logical goals and objectives is to base them on the typical developmental scale.

[Coleen Shanagher]

I think what struck me during this weeks lecture was the specificity of developmental goals. It was so great to be reminded that each small growth is really a developmental step. This stuck out to me when I heard that children will come to understand the use of prepositions. It hit me that we are not born with the understanding that “on the piano bench” is different than “under the piano bench.” And these milestones could be missed if I didn’t know to watch for them.

[Coleen Shanagher]

Hi everyone! Sorry I’m getting a little bit of a late start this week but I’m so excited to learn from everyone. My name is Coleen Shanagher. I am a music therapist working as a private contractor around new jersey. I finished school in 2012 and was so thrilled with my internship in hospice care. I love working with older adults and I loved the intensive training which comes with an internship. When I began working with children with special needs I realized that, while I’d taken the courses and read the books on special needs and young children, I missed that hands-on specific training that comes with immersing one’s self in a specific program. I thought this might give me concrete examples of music and interventions to use with young children which I can adapt for my individual and group clients.

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