[Debbie Merideth-Zantout]

I typically use small maracas or chiquitas, large frame drums, and gathering drums with children in this developmental level. I usually stay away from anything that can be put into the mouth and swallowed, and stay away from tambourines and bells with bright timbres. I gravitate towards instruments that are sturdily built and easy to clean. I typically buy Remo drums as I like how they are built and how they sound/feel. I do not use anything with a mallet as fine motor skills are typically not ready and instead encourage gross motor movements with my instrument choices.

[Debbie Merideth-Zantout]

I have found that the amount of stimulation is person specific. I have clients who have low arousal levels and others who are very easily overstimulated. It our job as therapists to be able to observe our clients signals such as lethargy, eye blinking, suckling, head banging, escape behaviors, etc. to provide the correct level and types and of stimulation they need to be the most successful. This includes the timbre of your voice, how fast your slow your movements are, the timbre of instruments, volume of voice and instruments, florescent lighting, traffic sounds, ceiling fan noises… I always say every behavior is communication especially when working with individuals who are unable to voice their wants and needs. Music is a wonderful medium to meet all sensory needs including auditory, visual, tactile, and proprioceptive. We must identify all of the sensory input that a client is receiving to fully adapt the environment to meet their needs in the moment.

[Debbie Merideth-Zantout]

I completed my internship in Madison Wisconsin at the Central Wisconsin Center!

[Debbie Merideth-Zantout]

Most of my experience with children in the awareness level is personal. I have two babies that have not developed in what is considered to be a “typical” maner. I was able to breast feed my babies through this developmental period. We rocked, sang to, and carried our babies on our bodies to increase the bonding experience. My oldest was three months old when his grandparents watched him. My youngest did not leave my side as I stayed home to be with both of them and help them through their developmental challenges. Music and movement were key to bridging communication gaps, behaviors, and to calm and soothe them.

I also worked with this age group in a home schooling preschool group that I was a part of with my boys. I provided one to two music groups a month for this group as we all took turns providing lessons for our children. It was often very difficult to meet the needs of all the children musically as the group was birth to 5. I realized then that I wanted to pursue additional training to meet the needs I was seeing in this group.

Overall, I have observed that music needs to be a little quieter, sessions a little slower, and repetition is key for both children and their care givers. Everyone who has littles of this age needs more grace and understanding. I don’t think I ever left the house when I planned to when my boys were this age. I saw many moms who were frazzled and just needed someone to say “It’s O.K. We are glad you are here.” You don’t realize how important sleeping and showering are until you haven’t for days because your baby is colicky or teething.

[Debbie Merideth-Zantout]

Music therapy can play a big role in community based settings. Music classes can be based on a music therapy model to support healthy development for all children. These classes can promote growth through caregiver education, building social skills, and building a community for families. These classes can become a safe space for caregivers to ask questions, feel supported, and help children build their skills in a developmentally appropriate environment.

[Debbie Merideth-Zantout]

The families of young children that I serve are often overwhelmed. They have just recently received a diagnosis and are trying to juggle a myriad of new doctors, therapists, school, health issues, and other family obligations. They often just need to talk and know that they have support.

[Debbie Merideth-Zantout]

Music therapists are able to develop a safe place for parents to ask questions and experience their child’s developmental abilities without judgement. Music therapy groups for young children are a wonderful way for families to connect with others. Often times, parents with young children feel isolated and need to reach out to develop bonds with other parents. We have that ability to create those safe spaces for them.

[Debbie Merideth-Zantout]

Very good points! I was a professional music therapist specializing in pediatrics for 6 years before I had my first child. I still felt like I didn’t know what I was doing! I felt even more lost when I added a second child with different needs from the first. Parenting is difficult and so having people who are knowledgeable about childhood development outside of yourself is incredibly helpful especially when that child is not developing typically.

[Debbie Merideth-Zantout]

Music therapists have such unique and wonderful skill sets. We have the ability to help our families recognize developmental growth as well as nurture musical skills. I believe the the greatest thing we have to offer is parent coaching. A behavior may be developmental, but that doesn’t mean it is not difficult for our care givers to deal with. We can provide ideas and solutions to help our families through the different stages of development. Just recently I had a client’s mother voice her concerns about her child’s current developmental behaviors. I was able to calm her concerns and discuss strategies that would work for my client and her family. My client’s mother was able to move from a state of concerned frustration to calm awareness of her child’s current developmental needs. I believe this is our greatest super power. I remember when my son’s therapists did this for me and the gratitude I felt towards them.

[Debbie Merideth-Zantout]

It was very interesting learning about the four music developmental sequences of singing, playing instruments, moving, and listening. I have previously thought of them in the terms of verbalization, fine motor, gross motor, spatial awareness, sensory processing, and auditory processing. I enjoyed thinking of these developmental milestones in this manner. Today, I utilized the piano to help a client visualize his voice moving up and down the keyboard, and also moving through vowel sequences to practice oral motor skills to form these vowels. I utilized marching to a beat and patting knees to help a client organize his sensory system when he became disorganized. I utilized arm movements combined with breathing and calming music to help a client breath through her anxiety regarding Oral Placement Therapy techniques. I also had a client that demonstrated active listening when I sang/hummed preferred songs to encourage active participation in Oral Placement Therapy activities. I often utilize movement songs to provide sensory/spatial awareness input for clients. When I worked as solely a music therapist, I often utilized movement to help develop gross and fine motor skills. There is research that supports using movement to develop expressive communication skills. I am excited to think about these four areas of music development in a new way to utilize in my practice.

[Debbie Merideth-Zantout]

Combining and utilizing so many different kinds of music under the umbrella of classical music sounds so fascinating.

[Debbie Merideth-Zantout]

I found it very interesting to work on the concepts of you and me with my client with this song. The client I used it with required moderate tactile assist to alternate hands and feet, but still exhibited pleasure by smiling and asking for more with sign language.

[Debbie Merideth-Zantout]

I used “You Have Two Eyes” switching it to hands and feet with a client who has no vision. She responded with what seemed like joy exhibiting smiling and mouth movements. She often touches my hands/pants/shirt so I was able to also sing “You have a shirt/pants…” We are working on vocalizing/verbalizing to sound and silence and hope as she becomes more familiar with the song she will start “filling in the blanks” and vocalizing more. It was interesting to see she exhibited frowning when I sang the end of the song with the rising thirds.

[Debbie Merideth-Zantout]

I have had the pleasure of working with many clients in the developmental level of trust. I had one client in particular that I served for many years. When she was upset, I would sing her favorite lullabies and she would alter the tone of her crying and over time calm and join me playing by reaching out to touch preferred vibrotactile objects such as a drum or rain stick. She would demonstrated pleasure of hearing a familiar song by smiling and closing her eyes to better enjoy the experience. She bounced on an exercise ball to the beat of familiar preferred songs especially when they sung verbally. We were able to utilize her joy in preferred music to work on eye contact and initiate vocal responses at the end of phrases during silence.

[Debbie Merideth-Zantout]

Awareness: turn eye gaze toward the source of singing, calm to familiar melodies, alter movements in response to the sound of an instrument.
Trust: make purposeful pitched vocalizations in response to music, show pleasure to familiar music, repeat a series of simple interval patterns.
Independence: babble using melodic intonation, use vocal glissando, use simple word sounds in familiar songs.
Control: sing two words in phrases using pitched intervals, use ascending and descending intervals when singing, adjust quality of vocalizaitons to match the mood of the music.
Responsibility: coordinate breathing, posture, and muscle tone to sustain sound, regulate vocal quality to match the dynamics of the music, participate in musical “call and response” with an adult.

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