[Laura Whitlow Schell]

Karli- I agree, sometimes its really difficulty to put in your plug for music therapy. I’ve been fortunate enough to have other people do the advocating for me and hopefully SM groups will potentially do the same. Maybe after they love the groups they will inquire about clinical MT as well.

[Laura Whitlow Schell]

I’m definitely more confident in sharing my knowledge with parents groups that I am involved in. I had a rough idea about when milestones were and such but now have a more concrete understanding about when red flags should go up and such. I’m excited to get started with groups and letting other parents come so I can share my knowledge and fun as well.

[Laura Whitlow Schell]

I haven’t had the opportunity to work with children of this age so this was very helpful and informative about how to do so not just with SM groups but also in my clinical work. Karli, I also like your idea about using this information to use for working with families.

[Laura Whitlow Schell]

Emily I like your idea of giving a sympathetic smile to acknowledge the parent and child who is having a meltdown. I think that can be reassuring that they are still welcome and doing what they should do. Katherine I also like your idea of passing out instruments!

[Laura Whitlow Schell]

Some of the strategies I have used with older groups probably wouldn’t work as well with this age range. Something that would probable work though would be to change the pace of the songs when need be to draw the children in though music. I worked with one group early in my career once where I kept stopping every time someone started to have a meltdown. I really struggled with it and trying to help everyone but it was suggested to me to keep going and see if I could get the client back through the music. It was actually pretty successful minus a few major incidents.

[Laura Whitlow Schell]

I really look forward to working with younger children especially since I haven’t been able to in the past working mostly with Medicaid. I feel more educated about this age range too from this training where in the past I was not as comfortable even if I were given the opportunity.

[Laura Whitlow Schell]

Ah ok, I got it now thanks! It seems like this is what sets SM apart from our other work as a music therapist. We are looking at data trying to get children to reach a certain goal of shaking a maraca 7 times in a session or whatever but instead encouragig the natural development of their skills.

I agree Emily- sometimes even in our other work it seems like a song we are doing is cute but it’s actually purposeful!

[Laura Whitlow Schell]

I’m honestly not very clear on what the difference is but I will give it my best shot. Music for development would be songs that are developmentally appropriate and challenging such as babies learning how to balance and walk. So we would have the care givers hold the baby so their feet touch firmly on the floor and really get grounded. Music for skill building would be like what was discussed in SM 3 of having the children shake your hand and then greet a peer. They are learning social skills more than just doing what is developmentally appropriate. I may be totally off here though!

[Laura Whitlow Schell]

I think the biggest challenge would be what we discussed before about the difference between being engaging but not over stimulating. You want to engage the older children but not over stimulate the younger ones. I think there’s also a huge potential for everything to be pretty chaotic too with some babies crying and older children running around so as a facilitator we have to accommodate everyone and have our focus on a million different things.

[Laura Whitlow Schell]

SM 3
Words- flexible, opportunities, creative, welcoming, interactive
Plan- Hello- Not as varied with dynamics and such if theres younger kids so more like SM 1 hello
Bonding songs- Now not as much with caregivers but really facilitate interactions with peers. Model first and then to peers.
Songs about me- chanting is really great for caregivers who don’t want to sing. caregivers model but let child do it on their own instead of hand over hand. Really great age to have kids make choices and point out themselves and isolate body parts
Instruments- Can now use two handed instruments. Give lots of opportunities and chances to be creative. Can really vary dynamics and beats now
Movement- Can now jump but may have difficulty with it so really emphasize compression and release. Now marching to beat. Can use tone bells if the group has been very active to calm them down or anything that adds harmony.
Goodbye- use transition beforehand so they know its coming. Same goodbye song

Family Spouts
Words-consistent, sharing, support, minimal talking, joyful
Plan- Hello- Can use guitar and vary dynamics
Bonding songs- Can really be great for siblings instead of just with caretakers. Since theres different ages-still keep anticipations and dynamics not as big and long. Great opportunity to work on sharing
Songs about me- May still do hand over hand if pointing to body parts depending on ages. Good for parents to see older kids as separate from younger ones. Have older kids point out stuff on babies too.
Instruments- Have to be ready for any ages. So mostly one handed instruments but some two for older ones.
Movement- Find movements all kids can do. Give older kids opportunities to lead and be creative but still where younger ones can participate but may be hand over hand with care giver
Goodbye- Use same goodbye song and be consistent each week

[Laura Whitlow Schell]

Emily- I like your thoughts on repetition to help them not be overstimulated and be able to predict what’s coming. Even if it seems boring to us, it’s not to them. My son can play peek a boo or listen to the same song for hours and enjoys the predictability.

[Laura Whitlow Schell]

Sounds good!

[Laura Whitlow Schell]

I don’t currently work with kids at this level and my instruments are probably not very friendly for this age besides the few chiquitas and small maracas that I have. That is something I will have to look into when I start groups.

[Laura Whitlow Schell]

This is something I struggle with my own child with as well as clients! Its definitely a balancing act. You want to make sure the kids are engaged and not bored or they will find things to entertain themselves. My child will often go to things he knows he can’t have- like a phone charger- if he isn’t stimulated enough. If they get overstimulated they often get frustrated and may even cry. It seems like at this age 2 choices is enough and anymore can get overwhelming for most things.

[Laura Whitlow Schell]

5 words- energy, anticipation, varied, exploration, authenticity
5 sentences- Make sure your child is facing out to the group to see everybody. It’s ok if your child wanders as long as they know where you are. It’s ok with another child comes to you or if your child goes to another adult. Look for your child to anticipate certain things in songs (after a couple of weeks of the same song). Your child is still learning and taking everything in even if they seem like they are hiding or exploring something else.
Plan- Hello- can use guitar now.
Bonding songs- its ok if they explore. Can be playful yet maintain a sense of calm. can slowly build timbre and build it over weeks.
Songs about me-Can do lots of to help them develop a sense of self and also so parents can see them as their own person. Can start to do some pitch matching
Instrument- chiquitas and maracas work very well. may start with slowly shake and then just give one shake. Over the weeks they can really hold it and give good shakes. Allowed to even have multiple instruments
movement-Make sure they still have the instrument so they don’t want to be picked up and are still engaged and able to move. Can really move around
Goodbye- can really be used well to have them respond to each other to shake hands. Use as a transition to the other room. Make sure they are with their caregiver so its safe to leave the room since they are usually very fast and mobile at this point.

[Author]

Posts