[Laura Pruett]

5 words:
1. Playful
2. Anticipation
3. Variety
4. Trust
5. Exploration

5 Sentences:
1. Kids at this age are not developmentally expected to clap on their own, but you can help your child clap by putting their hands on top of yours! (and physically show how to do this)
2. Give your child at least 3 seconds to stop, it’s ok if they don’t stop right away.
3. You see how your child is reaching for you to wrap your arms around them? Let’s help them feel more secure. (and start singing “Wiggly Jiggly Car”)
4. Look how much your child loves jumping with you! Make sure their feet firmly plant on the ground on each jump.
5. See how your child is making faces at you, even from so far away? They are secure in their trust of you, knowing that you are still there for them.

Session Plan:

1. “Hello” as people are walking in and adjusting to the space (low energy)

2. “Hey! Hey! Come and Play!” to gather the kids together (high energy)

3. “Wiggly, Jiggly, Car” (low energy then high energy)

4. “Hold On Tight” (low energy then high energy)

5. “Can You See Me?” (mid energy, not to low, not too high)

6. “Sit With Me and Shake” (high energy)

7. “I Like This Song” (lower energy)

8. “March With My Baby” (HIGH energy)

9. “All Of This Is Me” (low energy)

10. “Music Time Is Over” (low energy)

11. “Goodbye” (mid energy)

12. “Thank You Very Much” (mid energy) as they walk out the door

[Laura Pruett]

Use 5 words to describe the music experiences in Sprouting Melodies 1.

Gentleness
Calmness
Rocking
Closeness
Bonding

Write 5 sentences you can use when speaking with parents about musical responses of children in Sprouting Melodies 1.

1. Your child is exploring the instrument by dropping it.
2. Your child responds best when they hear your voice.
3. It’s ok to play with the music – start slower, go faster, end slower, make it a game.
4. It’s ok that your child is asleep. You can both be connected through music today: Adjust and slow down your movements to match their breathing.
5. Sitting (or holding) your child right there is perfect – they can see you best at that distance.

Create a plan for songs and music experiences to use in a Sprouting Melodies 1 session

1. Good Morning – to help transition from non-music to music
2. Today’s a Beautiful Day – encourage parents to gently press their baby’s chest while their name is being sung to reinforce that the group is acknowledging them
3. My Eyes Are On My Face – and have parents tap or move gently the body parts sung in the song, and instead of feet stamping on the second verse, we could sing, “My feet are on the bottom. I’ll move them just a little” or “My feet are on the bottom. I’ll tickle them just a little”
4. Row It Faster – encourage the parents to move as fast as their child can stand without overstimulating them
5. In My Little Hand – “round and around” instead of “up and down”
6. Pick Your Hands Up High – have the parents seat or stand the child in front of them, or on their legs so they can move the child’s arms up and down
7. All Of This Is Me – have parents emphasize the lyrics by tapping or moving the body parts that are being sung
8. Music Time Is Over – to cue the child we are almost done
9. Time To Go – to ease transition out of music

[Laura Pruett]

I don’t know exactly what to say that hasn’t already been said. I agree with what Meredith and Beth had to say in the videos for this week. I appreciated the distinction that these classes are not formal music therapy treatment, as there is no assessment, progress note, or termination note for participants. I also appreciated the emphasis on the title of the group facilitator as the “Music Therapist”, not the “Teacher”.

I have heard some music therapists say that any work a music therapist does is music therapy, simply because the one performing the work is a music therapist. For example, if a music therapist is teaching a music lesson, that music lesson is music therapy because the one leading the lesson is a music therapist. I don’t agree with that logic, because if a music therapist is teaching a music lesson, the emphasis is on music learning, not on music therapy goals/objectives. And while music learning can be incorporated into music therapy, I don’t think a music lesson is automatically a music therapy session just because the one leading it is a music therapist.

I bring this up because I think it’s important to really understand what we’re doing and why, and music therapy in community based settings is still music therapy, in my opinion. The emphasis is on non-musical learning goals, like bonding with their babies and young children. As Beth and Meredith pointed out, as people become more wellness oriented, they are more open to using music as a preventative and nourishing element in their lives.

[Laura Pruett]

I don’t have much experience with babies 0-9 months old. I don’t have kids of my own, although I have nieces, nephews, and friends with kids. However, I haven’t spent much time with babies. When I have the occasional doula music therapy client, I’m there when the baby is born. I don’t interact with the babies very much, however, as I’m not there for very long once the baby is born (an hour or 2 at most, and then for another hour or two during the post partum visit within the first week), and when I am around, I encourage the parents to hold and interact with their baby. I just completed another CMTE about using MT in the perinatal period, and that CMTE as well as this one is reinforcing the need for gentle tone, affect, and transitions with this age group.

[Laura Pruett]

I just wanted to give a funny update. I have been using the “Are You Ready for Music?” song in my preschool groups as a transition song (“Are you ready for instrument?” or “Are you ready for dancing?”) and one preschooler always said, “No.” when I sang, “Are you ready for…?” But then he always engaged in the next part, once the song was over. It made me giggle, so I thought I’d share.

[Laura Pruett]

Erika – thanks for sharing your insights and experiences! That makes sense that families of special needs kids would want their kids to be in groups with other neuro-typical kids. And I love that Sprouting Melodies is so inclusive! I bet the families love that, too.

[Laura Pruett]

Oh, I wanted to comment on something you said in the other post, Alison, that I think fits in well with this discussion. You mentioned thinking of the 5 developmental levels as also 5 levels of relationship building between the child and their parent and/or caregivers. Taking that approach can maybe help us (the providers) educate parents/caregivers on how to better relate to their child, and hopefully help them have patience and understanding for their child. It makes me think especially of families with adopted children. I know a lot of people who have adopted children, or are in the process of adopting, and could greatly benefit from MT groups to better bond with their child. I wonder if Sprouting Melodies classes would be too overstimulating for some adopted kids, though? Maybe they would do better in a Special Needs class..? I guess it would depend on the child (obviously).

[Laura Pruett]

I kind of feel like I serve two different communities in my general geographic area. There are the kids I see at the schools on the Native American reservations, outside of Phoenix, and then the families I see in the Phoenix metro area. And their needs are very different.

Of the families I work with in the Phoenix area, I don’t see any child younger than 5. But I know some of them have younger siblings. Those families’ needs are similar to the needs expressed by Alison and Kimberly above. The parents are well educated, and want to spend time with their kids in a meaningful way. Although, sometimes, they want some time away from their kids, too, haha. In many of the photos and videos we’ve seen of Sprouting Melodies groups so far, it has been the mothers that come to groups with the kids. I am guessing it is usually the mother who stay at home or work at home with the kids, and the kids’ other parent is away at work during the day when Sprouting Melodies groups occur. But I wonder if there is a desire for dads (or lesbian partner? Or gay couple?) to join in the music groups. There was talk in a few of the doula groups I take part in about starting a dad support group. A few attempts were started, but it never took off. I don’t know why exactly, but I’m wondering if Sprouting Melodies groups would feel safer for dads to participate in than a dad support group.

Of the kids on the reservations, their needs are many. One of the social workers who co-leads some groups with me says that the kids need their parents or caregivers to talk to them more. For example, a child in one of my kindergarten groups had a speech delay. She lived in a group home, where I can’t imagine she was getting the attention she needed to fully thrive. I don’t know her back story, but I know a lot of the kids are in and out of group homes, bouncing from home to home when family is able to take them back in. I honestly don’t know how to meet the many needs of this community outside of providing services at the schools, but I know the families would benefit so much if they were present in the groups. If I could tap into some community resource funding or government grant to provide Sprouting Melodies groups for families with 0-5 year olds, that would be amazing. I don’t yet know how to make those connections though.

[Laura Pruett]

I also appreciated that, Alison, of hearing from that mom’s interview how MT’s bring enthusiasm and energy to the groups. It seems obvious to me, because I do that each session, so I hadn’t considered that would be out of the ordinary. The enthusiasm that mom experienced probably helped her feel more comfortable engaging in the music with her daughter.

And Kimberly, yes! Your point 1 and 2 also seem so run of the mill to me that I didn’t even think of those things. But they definitely help set us apart! I love how you phrased your 4th point: “We are able to provide specific strategies for parents to use outside of the session so that they are paying for more than an hour a week, they are paying for tools that they can implement in daily life.” That is great marketing talk =)

[Laura Pruett]

(Blagh, I tried to edit again and it deleted my comment altogether. I’m so glad I have a Word document where I type things out first, that was a great suggestion, Erika, thanks!!)

Some of the things I initially thought of were things that any child development professional (like preschool teachers, day care workers, other professionals who provide services to young children) can do. Things like:
*ability to notice and point out possible delays
*ability to notice and point out what is/is not developmentally appropriate
*education on child development

And honestly, I don’t know that much about early childhood development, other than what I’m being taught in this course. I took one child development class in college, but not much has stuck in my brain. I’ll have to review the book and slides from this course on a regular basis to make sure I retain what I’m learning, and then go learn some more in research and books, etc.

But then I thought of some other things that Music Therapists specifically are good at, like:

*noticing and pointing out what the child is successfully doing
*providing reassurance to parents
*providing support for child development
*modeling and teaching positive reinforcement, redirection and replacement
*providing opportunities for parents to bond with their children
*providing a community of other parents and children
*providing music to be integrated into everyday life

Music can be so great for our brains, especially little young developing brains! Having that Board Certification as a Music Therapist is what sets us apart from any other non-MT music group for early childhood. While music can be so awesome, it can also be overstimulating, so knowing what is appropriate and what is not is the HUGE value we provide as Music Therapists. I can’t believe it took me 4 paragraphs to come to that conclusion. It sounds so obvious, but it took me a while to get there.

[Laura Pruett]

At the beginning of the school year, the emphasis for the preschoolers was on movement. As they have grown and matured, my emphasis is now on listening. There are a lot of impulse control issues, besides being 4 or 5 years old. We obviously also do singing, playing instruments, and movement but a lot of my emphasis lately has been on listening. I have been playing catch up with this CMTE over the past few days, so I have not had a chance yet to implement any changes. However, with the last few weeks in school, I plan to spread the emphasis a little more evenly between each category.

[Laura Pruett]

I also was confused by what was being asked, so thanks for sharing your thoughts everyone!

Singing
Awareness: Pitched vocalizations when cooing or crying
Trust: Can match pitches about half the time, may startle at surprise element of singing
Independence: Sing to their dolls or cars
Control: Puts on a show to sing their song
Responsibility: Plays around with pulse and meter in familiar songs, resulting in some syncopation

Playing Instruments
Awareness: Mouth or lick an instrument
Trust: Uses fists or open hands on drums in random patterns or 1-3 beat patterns
Independence: Uses a single finger to play a key on the piano
Control: Plays two-handed instruments
Responsibility: Keep a steady beat with others

Movement
Awareness: Slow instinctual rhythmic movements in response to sedative music
Trust: Pat knees in response to music
Independence: Intentionally moves body parts
Control: Jumps along to music
Responsibility: Learns sequence of movements to music

Listening
Awareness: Turns head toward familiar timbres of singing
Trust: Looks where music had been when it stops
Independence: Increases vocalizations or movements when a familiar song starts
Control: Adjusts the speed of movements to match the tempo of the music
Responsibility: Able to listen and wait for their turn to play within a group

[Laura Pruett]

Reading through these levels, I had to remind myself not to look at it too academically. I found myself imagining a child “graduating” from one level to the next, and never returning to a previous level. Then I remembered one client I see, a 9 year old with several developmental, physical, and mental delays. He frequently goes back and forth between the awareness stage, trust stage, and occasionally the independence stage. When he is in an awareness stage, he looks towards the source of music. When he loses interest, he looks away, his eyes wandering around the room. When the music changes, he returns his attention to the music. He sometimes vocalizes along to lively music on an “eee” sound. His response to unexpected changes depends on his mood; sometimes it is a crying sound, and sometimes it is laughter, which is more of a response from someone in the independence stage. He sometimes grunts or hums in short bursts to more sedative music, but it rarely matches a pitch in the music. After reading Jen’s response above, I realized I also often speak to him in a higher pitched voice. He’s not an infant, but his level of functioning is infancy.

And I would like to echo the sentiment a few of you have already expressed – it is awesome to read about your moments! Music is wonderful, music therapy is powerful, and music therapists are amazing. =)

[Laura Pruett]

Most of the kids I work with are in schools, and the only schools I go to are on Native American reservations (outside of Phoenix). I’m honestly not sure how much exposure the kids have to their cultural music. I’ve heard some kids refer to the language of the reservation as Spanish (it’s not Spanish, it’s O’otham), which is not too surprising considering many of them also have Hispanic heritage. We sang Silent Night in O’otham last Christmas program, with lots of coaching for me from a culture teacher. Everyone speaks English, and many of the kids know very little O’otham or Spanish. I imagine the kids get some exposure to their cultural music in their culture classes at school. If they attend any community events, perhaps they would be exposed to their cultural music there as well. We used to do more drumming, but many kids were overstimulated by having several drums being played at once. A lot of the kids know and sing the songs they hear on the radio (pop, hip-hop, and some country), as well as songs from movies they see (usually cartoons). I think the biggest thing I am taking away from this is I need to educate myself more on Pima O’otham music!

[Laura Pruett]

And thanks, Beth, for letting us know there are songs we can access on the blog page! I kept hearing you and Meredith say in the videos that we have access to these songs, but I missed that it was available on the blog.

[Author]

Posts