[Melissa Spiess]

Singing Awareness- Can discriminate the difference between pitch and timbre of Mom and Dad’s voices Trust- Matches pitch 50% of the time Independence- Combines pitches with melodic inflections and intonations Control- follows melodic contour of song. Responsibility- Plays with pulse and meter while singing a song

Playing Instruments Awareness- Mouths instruments of different materials/textures to learn about them. Trust- Shakes an instrument intentionally to their internal beat. Independence- Likes to explore a variety of instruments. Control- Play along successfully to start stop songs. Responsibility- Adjusts to play a steady beat to changing rhythm songs

Moving Awareness- Moves entire body instinctually. Trust- Moves entire body purposefully, rhythmically, and repetitively in response to music. Independence- Can isolate body parts to move with you. Control- Follows reaching, clapping movements with you. Responsibility- Able to sequence and connect musical movements .

Listening Awareness- Prefers sound of caregiver’s voices vocal timbres. Trust- Recognizes familiar melodies and will calm to them. Independence- Will match intensity of the sound source in their face and body. Control- Can sit still to listen Responsibility- Can stop action and listen to others

[Melissa Spiess]

I have definitely used singing, playing, moving, and listening in all of my music experiences, both for classes and music therapy. Within the MT context obviously I adapt which of the experiences based on the goals, needs and abilities of the client. For our senior groups I try to incorporate each of these areas into the sessions, both to increase the number of domains hit and to structure sessions. For every class I use a mix of the 4 music experiences. Having this diversity really helps to hit development within each domain. One thing I will change based on this training is to really be cognizant of the structure of the music and the exact components of the music (contour, pitch, timbre, etc) in addition to the obvious tempo, range, dynamics. The awareness of exactly how we use the music brings to mind NMT and NRMT techniques.
Funny that they should mention Head Shoulders Knees and Toes. This was my daughter’s favorite song that we did together when she was in the early trust stage. Obviously at that point I was manipulating her body and she wasn’t doing the moving. I think this is a good reminder though that we can use different songs and interventions at different stages with different facilitation and goals in mind. For me at that stage the goal was to actively engage my child, bonding, rhythm, structured movement and anticipation. Later on in the control phases the goal would be independent movement, rhythmicity, body part awareness, sequencing. Different goals, different facilitation, same song.

@Destiny – I also loved the reminder on the mirror neurons – So many parents are worried because their child just wants to watch in classes. They clearly are taking things in though and sometimes just need to try them out in the safety of their own homes. I just had a lovely example of this yesterday. I have a box of sparkling water cans in on my office floor, my daughter found them and started trying to drink out of them. We have never given her a can to drink from. She obviously learned this by watching me.

@Emma – there is definitely so much overlap in working with individuals with memory loss and children. There are so many ways in which this training overlaps! Well done recognizing the different phases and ways to facilitate and prompt!

@Emma – great question on the documenting. Especially in our work with hospice and memory care residents I really break the responses down by domain – physical, cognitive, social, emotional, and spiritual (in terms of sense of purpose), if needed I add a behavioral category for behaviors, anxiety etc. From a physical standpoint do they take deeper slower breaths, decrease tension, increase arousal, fall asleep, indicate decreased pain/discomfort, physically interact, increase energy, move in a certain way. I break down each category into every possible response for people at different levels of baseline.

[Melissa Spiess]

@Steve, yes having a big toolkit of options has definitely proved incredibly helpful. Every individual is different.

I also appreciated that they reinforced in one of the week’s trainings that sometimes kids need to just listen and observe, and to try things on their own. I have definitely had situations where the kids are shy and quiet in class but then do the songs exactly as presented all week with their parents.

So glad you are on the team and already know Megan! I’m really glad we could get you both in on the training.

[Melissa Spiess]

My daughter is definitely in the trust stage. We listen to the same lullabies to go to sleep and she has started to sing along with me! She is definitely rocking the descending intervals and sometimes even spontaneously sings (this was an absolute delight for her Aunt as my daughter actually sang her Aunt to sleep (though it was my daughter who actually fell asleep thank goodness). She also recognizes different melodies and styles of music and responds appropriately to them (calm for lullabies, dancing to more active). This is a truly delightful stage!!! Soooo exciting to see her blossoming musically!!

[Melissa Spiess]

I love “Are You Ready for Music?” I greatly appreciate the question which presents the feel of an option while providing a fun, catchy, enticing rhythm and melody that will in turn make them ready for music.
I also loved the idea of using targeted language in songs for functional use! I’m sure this helps with transfer out of sessions which is our whole goal. I also appreciated the cognizance on how exactly each song is crafted in terms of each musical characteristic and the effect it will have.

@Emma. The summer song was talking about it being too hot and making us feel lethargic but then moving into the things we do as a result. Great point! The humidity is killing me today. One thing our culture does very poorly is allow us to sit in emotions and feelings. Especially kids need the opportunity to feel tired, sad, angry… sometimes. We can teach them how to deal with these things through the music. Three cheers for validation and coping skills!

[Melissa Spiess]

MN has an incredibly diverse population. As Emma mentioned we have a large Somoli population. We also have one of the highest Hmong populations in the country. Working in hospice and in the hospital I see quite a wide diversity of people, both in terms of ethnic backgrounds and faiths. Just yesterday we had a staff person from Mexico join us for a session and worked with a Caucasian client who volunteered in Africa for years so we used music from that area. I work with many Jewish clients who are not allowed to use music for non-religious purposes during certain holidays.

I think the biggest lesson that I have learned over the years is to be respectful of cultural interests and rules (music is not ok for lay people to use in all cultures and religions at certain times), but to realize that just because a person has a certain cultural or faith background that they may prefer more “American” music. Assessment and communication (rather than assuming) is key.
I LOVE using music from a variety of cultures in early childhood to expose them to differences. I find that music in different languages is great for movement, instrument play, and lullabies in particular.

What did they say in the video about minor keys or different modes? I feel like it was that children are able to sing songs back in minor keys fastest. Is that right??

[Melissa Spiess]

@Elizabeth. Still trying to figure that out!

[Melissa Spiess]

Jeannie, cheerful, whimsical, and straightforward… yeah, these are good words to describe you 😉

[Melissa Spiess]

I definitely don’t think that having children is a requirement for being a good teacher. However, I feel like being a mother now will enhance my classes significantly. For example, some of the massage techniques they taught in Kindermusik NEVER worked for my kid. I did however find other things and tips from parenting books that we can combine with music to both enhance development and help with those challenging parenting moments.

Emma – YES!!! To all of your points!!

Jessica – You are sooooo right about the motivational factors associated with truly being authentically and sincerely engaged in sessions. This goes for all populations and settings. Unfortunately this is something that isn’t a given. You can tell who is in a job just for a paycheck and who is there because they are passionate about helping others. Thanks for this awareness!

We can all be kids, even those of us who are more “big kids” 😉 In my mind this is one of the many things that keeps life fresh!

[Melissa Spiess]

My most valuable takeaway from this week’s content was affirming the need to have groups/classes organized by age. I started doing this and it worked beautifully. However, you are CONSTANTLY recruiting because by design your kids are always aging out of classes so was beginning to have doubts. As a result, I tried taking my daughter to mixed age classes to give it a shot and really missed having everything targeted to enhance age specific developmental goals. I am excited to have TWO new staff to help with classes so that we can have enough providers to teach multiple age ranges!

Having both the notes and book (it’s an awesome book Elizabeth!!) with specific breakdowns of abilities and milestones in several categories is incredibly helpful.

It’s ironic that 0-18 month is actually my favorite! Obviously from a therapy standpoint goals are different if you are addressing a specific condition or need. However, for early childhood classes, the number one and two things that parents want to know and need (in constantly changing order) are what can I do with this child and how to I calm this child. I learned from my husband (lets not tell him I shared this) that there are definitely some people who have no idea what to do with babies and how to interact with them. This was incredibly frustrating for both me and him. Form my perspective because quite frankly sometimes Mama needs a break. Most importantly though, it was hard for him to bond at first because he really didn’t know how to interact with her. This really bummed me out. My parents all absolutely LOVED ideas for creative ways to interact with their kids. The developmental process happens automatically when parents start DOING things with the children. For example learning to hold the babies in different positions or to offer instruments/toys in different ways gives the babies different perspectives to see the world (and the resulting eye development, neck and torso control etc). I’m so excited to get back into this! I’ve always loved it! Now so even more with a child of my own.

[Melissa Spiess]

Jennie, I’m so glad that we can do another training together! I’m glad that you are getting back to your passion of working with kids!

Emma, I’m a Park Nicollet alumn too so met you at the reunion as well.

Steve, did I mention how excited I am to have you on the team and to be able to start offering classes again?

Thank you in advance Erika for your help with technical issues!

[Melissa Spiess]

My name is Melissa Spiess and I live in the Twin Cities of MN. I am going on my 16th year as a music therapist. I have had a private practice, Living Spirit Therapy Services, for 11 years. The emphasis of my work has been in hospice, memory care, with individuals with Parkinson’s, and neurorehab. I have taught/facilitated Kindermusik classes and intergenerational groups off and on for many years. I absolutely loved working with children and their caregivers, but was often frustrated that the Kindermusik program has a set curriculum and script. As a music therapist I often wanted to change or add things to make them more beneficial, especially when making the classes intergenerational. I was incredibly excited to hear that the Sprouting Melodies program gave you the structure, developmental information, and focus on caregiver education, but ability to modify things.

I just had a daughter 14 months ago and it has been incredibly frustrating for me not to be able to find a quality music class for her. One was absolutely terrible and the other was a great class, but the teacher refused to clean instruments unless they went in a kid’s mouth and every week we made it to class she would get sick. I’m excited that we can begin offering quality early childhood music classes through my team again! In addition to getting back into teaching early childhood music classes, I look forward to getting a refresher on child development and music development that I can use at home. I look forward to learning from and with all of you!

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