[Jessica Gelineau]

I typically use the brands Remo and West Music. I find these brands high quality, durable, I enjoy the timbre, and I feel as though they are visually and aesthetically appealing to clients as well.

[Jessica Gelineau]

In my practice, as soon as a child starts to show signs of agitation or discomfort (or if a parent tells me they are becoming agitated), I pull back musically. This could mean I play slower, sing softer or remove an instrument from the therapy space. I think it is important to also educate parents that just because the child is playing the drum, it is okay if they play it in a non traditional way. I find a lot of parents use hand over hand methods to try to show children how to play the “correct” way, versus allowing the child to explore the music in their own way.

[Jessica Gelineau]

Five words that describe the music experiences in Spouting Melodies 2 are: playful, surprising, spontaneous, energetic and free.

Five sentences that can be used with children in Sprouting Melodies 2:
“It was so wonderful to see your child exploring the therapy space while listening to the music!”
“That was wonderful to see how your child started to shake the maraca.”
“I notice that your child is walking very close to the beat of the music, what an amazing impact the music has on them.”
“During Wiggly Jiggly Car your child looked at me to anticipate the next part of the song, its great that they are starting to understand the cause and effect relationship of this song!”
“Look at how much independence your child is gaining through music!”

Sprouting Melodies 2 Plan:
Instrument Play and Exploration
Gathering: Sing Hello to each child
Bonding: Sing Wiggly Jiggly Car while explaining to parents how they can leave musical space and rests within the music to help children anticipate when they will be bounced.
Songs About Me: Sing Just Like Me while leaving room for children to point to their body parts. While singing the song, the MT leading group can encourage parents to not point to one body part to see if the child will point to their own body part.
Instrument Song: Sing Dancing in the Middle with a gathering drum placed in the center of the circle. Encourage children to tap the drum, or come to the center of the circle.
Movement Song: Sing March With My Baby and allow caregivers and parents the choice to model marching or jumping and encourage their children to imitate, or help their children move to the beat of the music while moving their child’s body.
Goodbye Song: Sing Thank You Very Much as the group ends, model the sign for “thank you” as children are saying goodbye to other peers.

[Jessica Gelineau]

Music experiences in Sprouting Melodies 1 are: meaningful, novel, exciting, engaging and beautiful.

When speaking with parents about musical responses of their children, the following sentences can be used:
“Wow, it was so wonderful to see your child smile at you during the hello song!”,
“Did you notice how your baby reached out to touch your face during our scarf song playing peek a boo? How beautiful!”
“Your baby clapped patted their legs during the song! What a lovely musical response”
“I noticed that your baby was babbling during our cool down song, and that was so lovely to hear their voice”
“That is so wonderful your child is looking right at you while you’re singing the lap song, that is so valuable and precious to see”

Plan for Sprouting Melodies 1:
Instrument Exploration: Set up the room to allow for instrument exploration. Have two to three instruments/ props throughout the room that are appropriate for this age.
Hello song: Sing to each child and encourage the caregiver to give light squeezes and gentle touches when their child’s name is called.
Body Percussion: Using the song Just Like Me, have parents give a gentle touch to their babies as the song is sung to provide sensory input and tactile stimulation.
Lap Ride/ Tickles: Using the song Wiggly Jiggly Car, have each parent turn their child to face them, and bounce them lightly on their lap.
Instrument play: Using the song In My Little Hand, parents can use a shaker to grab their child’s attention visually. This can be very important as babies can look side to side and up and down.
Gross Motor Movement: Using the song Pick Your Hands Up High, parents can have their babies sit in their lap (or stand), as they raise their child’s hands up and then down. They can also move their hands side to side.
Cool Down: Using the song Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, vocalize on different vowel sounds while using the melody. Allow the musical dynamics to reflect the desired purpose of the song: to help infants self soothe/ calm down.
Goodbye Song: Sing goodbye to each child and their caregiver. Have parents face their babies to other group members, and sway their children to the beat of the music.

[Jessica Gelineau]

Community based music therapy experiences are a wonderful opportunity for parents and caregivers to come together as a group, and support the well being and development of their child. It is also a great opportunity for parents to support one another in an accepting and warm environment. In my clinical experience, I find that parents are able to come together through the wonderful power of a music and experiences that we provide them as music therapists. Parents often feel very comfortable sharing challenges they are going through, and families and caregivers can all come together to problem solve, and come up with unique ways they can support their children.

[Jessica Gelineau]

One experience I distinctly remember while working with this age level, is a co- treatment with a physical therapist for a three month old. I had been brought in since the young child would become distressed when the PT did the stretches with him. I provided very soft, piano guitar music. I kept an ostinato rhythmic pattern on guitar, and added light vocal accompaniment when appropriate. I matched the melodic contour of the music to the stretches the PT performed, changing musical dynamics depending on if the stretches were static vs. dynamic.

[Jessica Gelineau]

I work in early intervention. The families that I work with have various needs, but not limited to: money for food, extra clothing, diapers, resources for child care, resources for groups/ peer interaction and transportation needs. If families are not able to provide adequate resources for their children, it is really hard to focus on meeting their developmental needs, and being able to work on different strategies or songs given to them. Helping families and being able to connect them with adequate resources is such an important and valuable part of the job that I have. Another need that is very prevalent and growing among the families I work with is the need for ASD diagnostic clinics/ ASD services. it is very hard to get a diagnosis for ASD; the waiting lists are sometimes 12-18 months long within certain areas. Once getting a diagnosis, children within more rural areas sometimes spend months waiting for ABA or additional services. It is much harder to support families through this challenge, because there is not a lot that we can do within early intervention besides advocate for the child.

[Jessica Gelineau]

Hi Amy, I really love that point that you bring up about being able to educate parents about even the smallest achievements through music. It is so nice to be able to see the joy on parents faces when you highlight the child’s strengths, and how we can build upon those strengths as music therapists.

[Jessica Gelineau]

I work with a lot of new parents within my community. I think one of the most valuable things we can provide as music therapists, is being able to bring in instruments or interventions that set the child up for success, so that the parent can see how their child is responding in a positive way to the music. Even if their child is not meeting “developmental milestones” based on their chronological age, they can still respond to music. Parents can still see their children explore through music, and they may even see their child accomplish goals and milestones they may not reach in other forms of therapy. Another value that music therapists provide to families is that we get to encourage parent child bonding. One of my favorite things to do is show parents and caregivers how they can be silly and playful with their children to strengthen their bond with them. It is so true that children do not want to hear our voices- they want to hear their parents voices. Being able to educate parents that just because they do not have “musical training”, does not mean they cannot still sing with their child.

[Jessica Gelineau]

Hi Aliza, I love the idea of playing the instruments in the same way the children play them when they are exploring. I have done this a handful of times as well, and I find that it is highly effective! It definitely helps our little ones to feel validated and comfortable with exploring their creativity. Also a great opportunity to start to look for beginning signs of communication through the music.

[Jessica Gelineau]

I use singing each day in my practice. Most recently, I used singing to facilitate expressive communication with a client who is 18 months old with a speech delay. Using Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, Mom and I sung the song while creating a lot of space at the end of the song for my client to fill in the phrase using a word or gesture. She filled in each word, and was singing a pitch that was relatively close to the correct pitch!
I used playing last week during a group. Each client had rhythm sticks. While I was singing a song, I encouraged clients to explore playing the sticks in different ways. We practiced rubbing the sticks together to feel the sensory input from the ridges on the side. We practiced playing the sticks on the floor as well as on our feet to feel how it created a different sensory experience.
I used moving during an individual session. I am working with a client with an overall language delay who is 26 months. We have been working on the Hokey Pokey, and she is now able to follow the entire sequence of the song, and use all of the correct body parts throughout the song.
I use listening within my practice during groups. Most recently, during Halloween. I played the Itsy Bitsy Spider in a minor key, and it allowed each of the children to have a different musical experience. They were able to differentiate between the song in the major key in which it is written, and the minor key which had much more dissonance.

[Jessica Gelineau]

When singing, children in the awareness stage will use a pitch when vocalizing during a song. Children in the trust stage will start to match select pitches within the song correctly about half the time. Children in the independence stage will start to babble during the song. Children in the control stage will follow the melodic contour of the song, and they will start to anticipate certain musical responses. Children in responsibility stage will sing the majority of the song with correct rhythm and pitch, even if they are not able to accurately reproduce the correct rhythms and pitches throughout the whole song.

When playing, children in the awareness stage will turn their head or wiggle their feet when an upbeat song is played. Children in the trust stage will reach out to grab an instrument for a brief period of time and may use it for a few seconds. Children in the independence stage will grab an instrument and use it intentionally, they may strike out to bang a drum for a longer amount of time. Children in the control stage will stop playing their instrument when there are pauses in the music. Children in the responsibility stage are able to maintain a steady beat when playing a drum or shaker.

When moving, children in the awareness stage may coordinate their sucking movements to the tempo of a song. Children in the trust stage may pat knees to a song that is upbeat. Children in the independence stage may clap pat their head, they will isolate body parts to move rhythmically. Children in the control stage will imitate hand movements/ finger play in music. Children in the responsibility stage will correctly use musical movements/ hand motions in a sequence within a familiar song such as Wheels on the Bus or Open Shut Them.

When listening, children in the independence stage will turn their head towards a singer or speaker who has the same familiar timbre as their caregiver or parent. Children in the independence stage will recognize familiar melodies, and may smile. Children in the independence stage may start to recognize familiar vs unfamiliar melodies. Children in the control stage will pause when they hear a song that they enjoy indicating preference. Children in the responsibility stage will listen when others play or sing.

[Jessica Gelineau]

I work for an early intervention company which serves 15 communities. There are many different cultures within the communities and the families I work with include Latino, Arabic and Eastern European families. Most of the music used within the families I work with is not culture specific, and my families typically use traditional or modern children’s songs since that is what they find engages their children the most. Some of the families I work with (mainly Latino), have played religious songs in Spanish that their children enjoy listening to as well. When working with families from other cultures, I always ask if they would like to work on songs during sessions in English, or their first language if it is a bilingual household.

[Jessica Gelineau]

I have a client who I currently work with in the control stage of music. Within sessions, one of her goals has been to increase impulse control while taking turns. Using a piggyback song including the melody to Wheels on the Bus, we would sing about her turn vs. mom’s turn. We have gotten to a point within sessions where she will sit on Mom’s lap, play the guitar for a verse, and then wait quietly while mom has her turn!

[Jessica Gelineau]

Throughout this week and last week I have had the opportunity to use the song Car on My Knee. I used it with one of my clients with a shaker instead of a car. We practiced putting the shaker on our head, knee, toe and belly, we even practiced putting it on her mom and sister! She really enjoyed this song. Although it is not a song, I also used the phrase “delicious” that was discussed within the videos. I used the phrase while using a vocal glissando, crescendo and ascending melodic line. I use this while tapping on a lollipop drum to give an added visual. The clients that I have used this with have been absolutely loving this silly phrase! Such a great opportunity to increase joint attention and encourage fun and silly play as well as vocalizations.

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