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Kevin – you know when children ask for something week after week, it’s a hit! It is so rewarding to learn about our students’ musical tastes. I know I have been really surprised by some of them too. I love when a 10 year old kid says they’ve been listening to a lot of “Dylan” lately, or asks if we can incorporate Herbie Hancock into our improvisation!!
ParticipantErika – in response to your question about developmental level for the child I described- absolutely, awareness level for sure.
ParticipantI LOVE Elizabeth’s You and Me Makes We songbook! I use it quite often in my work with children of all ages. Of the ones that were presented in the videos, there were 4 that I use more frequently than others. The “Good Morning” has become a wonderful song to start my sessions with a small trio of young boys on the autism spectrum disorder, one of whom is also visually impaired. I like to start the song with the door open as he is walking down the hall towards the music therapy room so that the music can also be a sound localization for him as he uses his cane to maneuver his way into the room. I hope that it helps him feel welcome, supported, and trust that the familiarity of the song is something that he can predict and prepare him for the music that we will be making together. I have observed these particular trio coming into the room a bit disregulated and upon hearing this song, will alert towards the piano and particularly when I insert their names into the B section. I love the comment Elizabeth made about this piece being in the Mixolydian mode and how it provides a sense of security and wonder. I also use “In My Little Hand” frequently. I love the walking bass line and also love emphasizing the “la la la” section where so many of my students will spontaneously vocalize along. I have also changed up the lyrics a bit when using this song by singing “in my little hand I have something to TAP” and the children will find something upon which they can tap (or scrape, or shake), or share their own ideas about what we could do. I also sometimes sing “in my little hand I have my favorite one,” and the children will select an instrument that they are enjoying at that moment. “I Can Move Around & Make Some Music” is another favorite of some of my students. I love to change up where I suddenly stop the music – I may start by putting the sudden silence in more predictable places at the end of phrases, and then gradually put a sudden silence in an unpredictable place, which usually results in lots of giggles! I have also used “I’ll Go Marching” with my students and used a drum to accompany. We enjoy experimenting with different movements as well as tempos. I enjoyed singing “I Like This Song” after the video and can’t believe that I haven’t been using this song! I can imagine using this with many joyful children who love exploring their own sounds on various instruments. I also enjoyed the “Car on My Knee” and have a special student in mind for this song – the lyrics will need to be about a train though.
ParticipantThe community where I work is extremely diverse. We are located in a suburb just north of Chicago where over 40% of the residents were born outside of the US. We have a very large number of languages and dialects spoken in our community. As a result, many of my students come from households where English is not the primary language. I have learned much about the cultures of my students. I like to ask families what music their children are exposed to in the home and what preferences they demonstrate to that music. When appropriate, I like to incorporate music from my students’ cultures into sessions, or into recommendations for the teachers with whom I work in terms of how to embed music in their classroom throughout their day. With a group of high school students, we have worked into our routine to do a warm-up with rhythm sticks to a different genre song each week. We then sing about our opinions in terms of who liked the song and who didn’t like the song and complete a visual poll. I try to use music from my students’ cultures and preferences for this familiar activity, as it is wonderful to see the students light up and respond to “their” music. I have a young man with Down Syndrome who comes alive in a way I have never seen before when I played his treasured Bosnian song for our rhythm stick warm-up. He rocked in his chair, intoned with the melody, smiled, and disappeared into the music for a few minutes. Another of my students responds to Bollywood music, which is played in her family home. Her teacher plays this preferred music for her at times during her school day for arousal, comfort, and familiarity.
ParticipantAt my work in a therapeutic day school, I have a student (“T) of high school age with a contagious smile. He has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair for mobility. T has difficulty keeping his head upright for long periods of time. This particular day, T had gazed towards a metallic head tambourine. I approached him with the tambourine gently singing and tapping. His eyes kept fixated on the tambourine, clearly tracking the sound of the instrument coming towards him. After providing several repetitions of my singing and tapping, I placed the instrument on T’s wheelchair tray at an angle so that his fist could make contact if he outstretched his arm. You could see him working so hard to get his arm moving and to his great delight, there it was! The contact of his fist on the head of the shiny tambourine, resulting in a resounding jingle to which he smiled, clearly aware of the cause and effect of his movement and the resulting sound. My singing continued and his thrusting fist continued, with great pauses of motor planning in between. Being a part of awareness experiences is one of the greatest joys of my work, as celebrating each new discovery together with my students is like seeing the world for the first time through their eyes.
ParticipantAWARENESS: 1) Demonstrate preference for consonance (e.g., may turn head away upon hearing dissonance). 2)Tolerate the feel of the vibration of an instrument on her hand. 3) Demonstrate repetitive movement structure
TRUST: 1) Recognize familiar melodies. 2) Locates sounds from a distance 3) Reach out to touch an instrument
INDEPENDENCE: 1) Babble with inflection. 2) Shake a bell or maraca. 3) Move body rhythmically
CONTROL: 1) Stop and start their body with music. 2) Isolate one finger to play an instrument. 3) May create spontaneous songs
RESPONSIBILITY: 1) Sing an entire song. 2) Maintain his/her own part within a group. 3) Better ability to match a pitch center.ParticipantHaving seen you do a similar intervention with a child at our school, I can picture firsthand how beautifully the scenario you described above went!
ParticipantJeanne – I agree that these checklists will be so valuable to refer back to in our work!
ParticipantRegarding what I personally bring to early childhood music therapy-based programs, I believe I bring a sense of authentic joy, enthusiasm, and humor. I truly love early childhood populations and experience great joy in being in music with children of this age. I find I can be my most authentic self when working with this population and can easily become part of their imaginary world. I enjoy bringing humor and playfulness and sharing in the excitement and discovery with the children. I love to celebrate the small things and see the world from the eyes of the littles. I find early childhood music therapy to be refreshing and a privilege!
ParticipantHi there. This week was a nice reminder of child development. My most valuable takeaway was probably the image of the 2 paths and our being able to take our young children by the hand and be part of their journey to health and wellness and self-actualization. Additionally, I enjoyed reflecting on my own students and their developmental stages, particularly those who are not meeting the stages at the typical chronological ages, and how that informs my work with them.
I’m greatly looking forward to all that’s ahead with musical development.ParticipantHi Everyone! My name is Marly Rychener Hobson and I work with Becca & Jeanne at Niles Township District for Special Education – a special education cooperative in the northern Chicago suburbs. I studied Psychology as an undergrad, with a music minor at Indiana University and went on for my MA/Equivalency at The University of Iowa. I did my internship on the south side of Chicago and have spent my music therapy career working in the Chicago area since then. I started in the medical setting, where I got the most joy working with the children & adolescents. I then went on to a therapeutic day school and residential treatment facility for children and teens who were wards of the state. I then landed my position at my current school, and will be starting my 14th year there and my 17th year as a music therapist. As Becca mentioned, our district services low-incidence students ages 3-22, including some inclusive pre-schools. I have encountered some very influential and inspiring music therapists along the way at conferences and trainings, including Elizabeth Schwartz! Her most recent presentation about “Maintaining Optimal Engagement in Music” at the GLR conference got me so excited about this training. Kaylee – I also attended a presentation at a national conference by your internship supervisors, Jason & April, and was highly impressed and inspired by their internship program. I learned about Dr. Carpente’s IMCAP-ND through Jason & April, and we were fortunate enough to invite Dr. Carpente to our district to lead the IMCAP-ND training at our school a few years ago. I just completed my DIR-Level 1 training and am so excited to keep moving forward with those trainings as well. I am passionate about authentic engagement, relationship-based therapy, and being in music with children/others. I am hopeful that this course will continue to guide our department’s direction and philosophy as we service our students in a variety of settings and formats, from individual work to inclusive groups.
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