[Elana Dietz-Weinstein]

I plan on looking into possibilities in my area to set up a Sprouting Melodies class. I also share information with the parents of the children I work with whenever possible, letting them know about their growth and what they have been doing.

[Elana Dietz-Weinstein]

This training has provided me with valuable information about development, as well as giving me so many new ideas and wonderful material to incorporate into my work. It has also provided me with great ways to communicate with parents and teachers about the behavior and progress of the children. I am more aware of musical responses and now feel much better equipped with songs and interventions to address the developmental needs of the children I work with. Thank you!

[Elana Dietz-Weinstein]

I use similar strategies to Carolyn and Alison, and also build on the strengths of each child to further engage them in the group process. I also use a lot of verbal acknowledgement/redirection and provide choices whenever possible.

[Elana Dietz-Weinstein]

I am looking forward to facilitating joyful musical relationships between the children and their caregivers, as well as helping to aid in the development of the children in the groups.

[Elana Dietz-Weinstein]

I love working with this age group because their growth and development is so amazing from week to week. You can really see the difference in how much they’re growing from one class to the next. I also have experienced that even if the babies are a little apprehensive in the beginning of the sessions, by the time a few sessions pass they are more comfortable and ready to engage in whatever way they are able to, whether moving, smiling, shaking, or anything else.

[Elana Dietz-Weinstein]

I would explain to parents that music for development involves using the music for non-musical goals, such as socialization, language, cognitive development, and gross motor movement. Music for skill building is used to learn specific skills within music, and music for development is intended to be carried over to the child’s functioning in the world around him/her.

[Elana Dietz-Weinstein]

The challenges of multi-age groupings include incorporating all different ages and functioning levels, however I believe that the beauty of many of the songs is that they are able to address so many different needs of the group participants simultaneously. Of course we would need to be mindful of the energy level and make sure that the little ones are not startled by music that would be more specifically tailored for the older children. However, most of the songs can speak to children on various developmental levels – whether it be developing cognitive, emotional, social, physical and language skills, or just heightening the awareness of a young infant, or anything in between. Also, there are other ways to incorporate and provide opportunities for the older children, by modeling, being “helpers,” generating ideas for the songs, etc.

[Elana Dietz-Weinstein]

5 words for SM3: Independence, active, intention, acceptance, emergence
5 words for Family Sprouts: Shared, engaging, support, cooperation, joyful

Plan for SM3: Greeting: Sit Down With Me
Bonding: Row It Faster
Songs About Me: All of This Is Me
Instruments: One One Play the Drum
Movement: Pick Your Hands Up High
Goodbye: Sprouting Melodies goodbye song
Plan for Family Sprouts: Greeting: Sprouting Melodies hello song
Bonding: Horsey, Carry Me
Songs About Me: Can You See Me?
Instruments: In My Little Hand
Movement: I Can Move Around and Make Some Music
Sprouting Melodies goodbye song

[Elana Dietz-Weinstein]

I use chiquitas, small lollipop drums, Remo gathering drums, and an assortment of small hand-held percussion instruments (Nino makes a lot of great children’s instruments – shakers in the shape of fruit and animals, etc.), and of course maracas!!

[Elana Dietz-Weinstein]

I agree with everyone’s posts. It’s about balance, and assessing the energy in the room to know if there needs to be a calming song, or an uplifting song, or something in between, framed within a hello and a grounding goodbye song. All energetic, uplifting music is over stimulating and will probably lead to chaos, and all calming music will be too sedate and probably not match the energy level of the little ones, who need to move around.

[Elana Dietz-Weinstein]

5 words: playful, free, energy, spontaneous, discovery, engaging, exploration

5 sentences: 1. We want them to move around and explore 2. Children love to observe at this age – they are absorbing everything. 3. Children love to explore at this point in their development and will come back and forth to you, the safe base. 4. We want the children to be as independent as possible. 5. It’s okay if they don’t exactly follow the direction, it’s about making choices.

Session Plan 1. Hello 2. Can You See Me? 3. In My Little Hand 4. Wave Your Scarf (to the tune of Edelweiss) 5. Goodbye

[Elana Dietz-Weinstein]

Words to describe SM1: Calm, gentle, soothing, nurturing, bonding

Things to say to parents: 1. There are no right or wrongs here 2. This is your time to enjoy just being with your child 3. We are going to keep the music soft and soothing for the babies 4. The more you sing to your babies the better! 5. I encourage you to sing all our songs at home.

Create a plan: Hello song
Bonding: Row it Faster or Tick Tock (baby placed on your lap and rock from side to side on “Tick tock, tick tock, I’m a little cuckoo clock/ tick tock, tick tock, now I’m striking one o’clock/ Cuckoo!! (lift child up)
Songs About Me: Just Like Me
Instrument song: I like doing a blues shake with egg shakers, very simple blues progression singing about shaking the eggs, incorporating the children’s names
Movement: I like the old standard Happy and You Know It, for movement of arms, legs, clapping, stomping, and learning body parts. Plus there are an infinite amount of movements, sounds and words you can incorporate.
Goodbye

[Elana Dietz-Weinstein]

I agree completely! As music therapists, we are able to offer an enriching musical experience to all children, regardless of functioning level. I really like the wellness-based model, promoting healthy development for all children through carefully thought out, mindful musical interventions that keep the developmental stages in mind.

[Elana Dietz-Weinstein]

I work in a special needs pre-school, so although I don’t work directly with the children’s families, I do have communication with them about their children’s progress and what they are doing in music therapy sessions. Roughly 40% of the families of the school children live in poverty and are first generation immigrants, so I feel very blessed to be able to provide the children with music therapy sessions, as they would probably not be able to afford private sessions or “music classes” because they are too busy and do not have the resources needed to provide their children with enrichment classes and therapy.

[Elana Dietz-Weinstein]

Music therapists bring compassion, understanding, insight, and clinical knowledge to the families we work with. We understand music and relationship on a deep level, and our work reflects our knowledge and training. Not only are we musicians but we are clinicians who train extensively in creating therapeutic relationships.

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