[Kayla Lyles]

Singing is pretty hard not to do and I use it to primarily increase communication and vocalization in clients. I love instrument play and since starting the course I do allow the clients to take the lead more to create that conversational aspect. As a former dancer, I love to incorporate movement into sessions as much as possible. Even with my pre-teens, I love doing sequencing type activities using the boomwhackers and rhythm sticks just to get them up and active, especially if they are struggling with gross motor skills. With music listening (I typically always use live music) experiences I really use this for attention, especially if I give instructions which really requires clients to listen.
I’ve really enjoyed reading how you all incorporate these into your practice daily!

[Kayla Lyles]

One of my most valuable takeaways from this particular week was learning more about all the different developmental stages and again realizing that I have the power to inform the parent with my own unique knowledge and skill set. That was something I really needed and it came at a really great time.

[Kayla Lyles]

Singing
Awareness – Use varied dynamics in vocalizing and crying
Trust – Sing descending intervals
Independence – Imitates short vocalizations
Control – Use both ascending and descending intervals when singing
Responsibility – Recall and reproduce learned songs

Instrument Playing
Awareness – Uses arms to reach out toward source of sound
Trust – Explore instruments with hands and mouth
Independence – Bangs two objects together
Control – Uses familiar instruments functionally
Responsibility – Sing and play at the same time

Moving
Awareness – Move entire body
Trust – Move entire body rhythmically in response to music
Independence – Imitate clapping hands in response to music
Control – Stop movement when music stops
Responsibility – Create sequence of novel movements in response to music

Listening
Awareness – Tolerates different types of music
Trust – Looks towards the face of the singer
Independence – Demonstrate musical preferences and dislikes
Control – Watch others as they make music
Responsibility – Accept music suggestions of others

[Kayla Lyles]

I absolutely loved the songs presented in the video – so much so that I used them this past Saturday for a family group that I do once a month at the practice where I work. It was amazing to see the response. The parents were so actively involved in singing “Hold on Tight” and once the bike ride came along it was all smiles and laughter. I also did “All of This Is Me” and just continued with the repetition and the children joined in following my movements and repeating “me”. I’ve also been using a lot more improvisation with the gathering drum and it’s amazing to see the creativity come to life.

[Kayla Lyles]

Before my work with children now, my only real taste of early childhood was during internship when I had the opportunity to provide music therapy during an ABA summer camp in the mornings. Most of the children had mild to moderate developmental delays and a favorite memory I had was when a deaf child joined the group. While he couldn’t necessarily hear the musical experience, through seeing and translating ASL, he was able to gain my trust over the course of the weeks and join in instrument play, movement to music, and make choices about what he wanted to participate in. His peers were also very welcoming during the musical experiences so all around it was just something I’ll always remember.

[Kayla Lyles]

I am lucky enough to be back working in the area where I grew up. Growing up, my town was predominantly Caucasian (I’m African American – to provide some context), but now we have a larger Hispanic population and families from other cultural backgrounds which is really great to see. Now more and more, we are seeing festivals which are celebrating their heritage and culture, so of course that involves music from their culture. Of course, when broken down, everyone’s musical taste is different, but as a whole, if you were to attend local events in the community you’d hear mostly country music and classic rock. Classical and church music also has its place as well, as we have numerous churches from various denominations in the community and local chorales and orchestras.

[Kayla Lyles]

I absolutely loved all the information from this week! I believe I could bring my creativity and love of play to early childhood music therapy. I hadn’t touched on childhood development to this extent in a few years, so to have this overview was incredibly helpful. Being so young and without a child, I also felt reassured that I can use this information and confidently talk to parents about developmental stages and phases.

[Kayla Lyles]

Hi everyone! My name is Kayla Lyles and I recently became board certified a month ago. I am a graduate of Shenandoah University and work at a private practice in Frederick, MD (Noteable Progressions Music Therapy Services) alongside Darcy Lipscomb and Megan Dewing. We are currently in the process of reaching out to different early childhood programs, preschools, etc. in the area. When we roll out our early childhood and family groups this summer, we want all of our therapists to be taking the same approach and believe Sprouting Melodies can really help with that. As a new professional, most of my experience lies in adolescent psych and some early childhood (ABA) from internship, so I’m incredibly excited to dive right into this training! I’m looking forward to learning over these next ten weeks and getting to know each of you!

[Author]

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