Forum Replies Created
-
AuthorPosts
-
Participant
I would have to say that one of my key takeaways from this course is the power of informing staff about what is going on in session. The power of teaching the people that care for your clients about how you are interacting can help benefit how they see what goes on in sessions and can benefit how they interact with the client as well and I love how this course brought that topic to the forefront. Another concept was importance of owning yourself as a professional and valuing the knowledge that we bring to the table. As a relatively new clinician, it is tough at times to feel like I am a professional and that I am really knowledgable so owning that is really important and I enjoy how it was worked into the course. Lastly, the knowledge about development and the details of how a child progresses developmentally through music interactions is something I will definitely take away. I really did not know much about that going into this course and I feel much more confident in my knowledge base now! As for sharing this information, I feel much more informed for how music therapy with infants work and I have already been informing people about this like school teachers who are pregnant that ask about music therapy, friends who are having kids, and more!
ParticipantI would say that what most excites me is being able to create a safe space for children and their parents to grow and connect together. Just the fact that this space can exist for a demographic of clients and parents who could really utilize and enjoy it is wonderful. I think that is one of the main reasons that most of us get into music therapy in the first place so it makes sense too! I also love having the skills to not only help the kids grow but to also help the parents to learn and grow as parents. That is just an opportunity that you don’t see too often in sessions so it is very interesting!
ParticipantIn my past experience, I have always tried to focus on setting up the group allow for the path of least resistance. To do this I make sure that the space isn’t cluttered with stuff, I learn the group and figure out who does best sitting next to who, and what instruments clients will interact with well (i.e. Johnny will throw egg shakers but not maracas). This allows for me to find a baseline that works well for the group that we can always go back to if need be but then we can push the boundaries towards our goals with a bit more safety! Another strategy that I use was outlined in this week’s video, and that is communication. I find that it is best practice to be in constant communication with the staff and parents/guardians of the clients to make sure that you are on the same page with how sessions are going and what tweaks may need to be made to allow for getting the most out of sessions.
ParticipantOne of the big points that I lean on his how personalized music therapy is vs. a regular music class. Regular music classes will have a set of songs and activities that they want to do and they will do without much flexibility but in music therapy, we adapt our interventions in the moment to fit clients needs. This is a huge difference and the focus on being flexible and molding the experience to best fit the client means a lot to the client’s experience. Also, being able to explain why I am changing things in session can help to provide them with perspective into how their child is interacting with the music and how they can better connect with their child through the music. All in all (in my biased opinion), it is a more inclusive experience, a more comprehensive experience, and a more educational experience for the family as a whole.
ParticipantMulit age groups are a tough task and I find that the best approach is to find interventions that meet the youngest kids where they are at but provide opportunity for the older kids to expand and not get bored. That being said, finding that balance is difficult. I run a few groups now that have a variety of functioning levels in them and what I generally try to do is provide an experience that allows for all of the clients to have a moment to shine. I also try to set them up so that those who can, have the opportunity to model and assist other clients in the group. With the older kids in a multi age group, I would definitely work to provide opportunities for modeling so that they could feel a sense of connection to the younger kids through helping them. The biggest emphasis would be on connection and providing an opportunity for all to be able to contribute and participate at whatever level they are able.
ParticipantExploratory, exciting, energetic, silly, social
I would start with a gathering song and then a hello song to get everyone oriented to the space. I like starting with instruments because it allows for everyone to start engagement at their own level so I would move into an instrument song next. Then, I would move into a body orientation song like head, shoulders knees and toes to scaffold into a movement song. This would include probably a gross motor movement song and then an action song to provide some opportunity to connect to their outside environment; an example of this would be the firetruck song Favor presented. Then, I would do a scarf song to incorporate some sensory input with the movement and allow them to connect with each other and their parents using the scarves. After this, I would go for a bonding song to cool down and allow for interaction with the parents and then end with the goodbye song!
ParticipantEmergence, coexistence, companionship, exploratory, multifaceted
I would begin the session with a gathering song to get everyone oriented to the session and then move to a hello song once everyone is engaged in the session. Next, I would do an instrument song to allow for all of the kids to engage with instruments at their own level. The older kids will most likely play independently while the younger kids can engage independently or with assistance from caregivers. Then I would move to a lap ride do allow for the siblings to engage in movement together with the parents. After getting physically warmed up through instrument play and the lap ride, I would move into a movement song like the train song that Katie modeled because this movement of walking in a circle would allow for the older kids to walk on their own while the younger kids have the option to be carried by the parents. Then I would do a shared scarf song to allow interaction between the younger and older kids. I would end the session with a cool down song and then a goodbye song!
ParticipantI believe that stimulation level is variable from kiddo to kiddo. You will be able to tell when a kiddo is overstimulated by observing their behavior such as crying or trying to get away from the source of stimulation. Some babies will be able to handle more stimulation just due to the fact that they are exposed to more stimulation regularly than others so it really depends. After reading the prompt I thought of when Meredith brought up how hazy the boundary is between SM1 and SM2 because it depends on whether or not the baby can handle the increase in stimulation. All in all, it really depends from person to person so we need to do our best as the clinician to read whether or not there is too much or not enough stimulation and adjust!
Participant5 words to describe Sprouting Melodies 2 would be exploratory, playful, energetic, funny, lighthearted
5 phrases that I would use when speaking to parents are: I know that during SM 1 we brought our bags in but the kiddos are much more active in this group and anything that they can interact with, they will interact with so we are going to leave the bags outside! It’s okay if your baby doesn’t start and stop with the group, we are all learning and this is a new activity to them so we will get it down eventually, but no rush! It’s okay if your baby is up and moving around the room, that’s healthy and shows that they are comfortable with being more independent! It’s okay if your baby isn’t focused on the music the entire time, this is a safe space for them to explore their environment and be social! Did you see that, after watching you start and stop with the music, your baby followed you and caught on, what a fun moment!
To do a Sprouting Melodies 2 session I would start with a gathering song like gather round to get everyone situated to the music. Next we would do a body percussion song like come and sit with me and clap your hands (which AJ sang in the video) because the kiddos would be able to get their body involved in the music. Then I would move into a song about me like All of this is me, me, me which Liz sang in the videos because it would support the kiddos development of self while maintaining the body being involved. Next, I would do a shaker song like Come and Shake With Me (Favor presented it in the video) because it would allow the kids a chance to interact with instruments. Next I would do a movement song like I’ll Go Marching to the Music Will You Come to allow the kids to engage their whole bodies. Next I would do a cool down song followed by the goodbye song to wrap up the session!
ParticipantRight now when I work with younger students I utilize maracas, wrist bells, cabasas, frame drums, paddle drums, gathering drums, and scarves. I am not sure of the brands of all of the instruments but it seems pretty standard in general as far as instruments go! For my guitar I use a Cordoba classical guitar because the nylon strings are less harsh to interact with for the students and I don’t use a pick when playing it which gives me more flexibility with what I am doing as well!
Participant5 words to describe music experiences in SM1: gentle, relaxing, grounding, connection, homey
5 sentences for speaking with parents: It’s totally fine that your child is sleeping, they means that they are comfortable in the space so take this time to relax and connect with others! Your child wants to hear you sing, and this isn’t a performance at all, this is time for everyone to have a chance to connect! Did you see that, your baby turned their head towards you when you started singing again! It’s okay if your baby needs to eat, feel free to do whatever you need to do in here! It’s okay if you’re baby is crying, some babies just seek different levels of stimulation and now we know where your baby is at.
For a session, I would start with a gathering song like the good morning song that Favor presented in the video. Then I would probably do another one like Gather Round just to leave space for more to show up and normalize the music experience for the kiddos. Then I would move to a bonding song like Wiggly Jiggly Car to get the kids and parents more connected and involved together. Next, I would do an instrument song like In my little hand to bring instruments into the situation and provide an opportunity for that type of stimulation. Then another lap ride like the Row Your Boat that AJ presented and I would finish off with a goodbye song.
ParticipantI believe music therapy can play a big role in community settings. It can be a fun and low pressure way to connect people to each other and outside resources that they may need. One setting I did a fieldwork placement in that isn’t similar to Sprouting Melodies in the slightest but could have some interesting parallels was a drop in center for homeless folks and people struggling with drug addiction in North Philadelphia. One of the main focuses we had there was to provide a space for people to come in and express themselves, unload whatever mental burden they may be carrying, and connect them with resources that could better their lives. I think Sprouting Melodies could have a similar effect to this through providing parents a space to talk about the struggles they are having and connect with other parents to strengthen their social networks. Also, having a collection of pamphlets for breast feeding support groups, other social activities, and things of that nature available to parents could be beneficial in connecting them with resources to make their lives easier!
February 23, 2023 at 12:48 pm
in reply to: Share some of your experiences with children of this age and level.
ParticipantPersonally, I do not have a ton of experience with children at 0-18 months of age. The youngest client I have worked with was 2 1/2 and I a couple of developmental areas that were mentioned in this course, as I described earlier. One part of this weeks content that I did utilize was communicating with the parents and when their child wasn’t doing everything I asked of them, I reassured them that its okay and that being in the space with me is progress in and of itself too! Working to help parents break down the self deprecating feelings is huge and I think can be very helpful to not only developing trust in your relationship with them, but also in developing trust in themselves to foster a positive parent to child relationship.
Though I have not run any classes, I have observed two Sprouting Melodies classes at RMTS and they were interesting to watch, It was fun to see how children that young interacted musically and how the environment was not only beneficial to the children’s development and engagement, but also to the parents engagement and socialization.February 21, 2023 at 6:49 pm
in reply to: What are the needs of the families and communities that you work with?
ParticipantMost of the communities that I work in at the moment are school based and I think that they really benefit from having the opportunity to engage in learning skills in a new way. Being able to utilize music and music based interventions to learn has helped some students to remain engaged in activities and motivated them to make more progress than they have had in other settings. Due to me not living close to the community I mainly work in, I am less aware of what the community needs outside of the setting I am in, but the community is largely hispanic and spanish speaking so I do my best to accommodate my clients who are less familiar with english. Music provides a space for students who are emerging bilinguals (I prefer that term to English language learner because it shows more respect to the fact that they already know and understand a language) to interact with their peers, their teachers, and me without needing to worry about language. I have also been attempting to utilize some of the skills I have learned here in my work by explaining what I am doing to the teachers when I can so they can see what I am seeing in sessions and understand more about what I am doing. Some of the teachers are not very familiar with music therapy and I am hoping that this is helping to build their knowledge of what music therapy really is!
ParticipantJordan,
I totally agree with the live vs. recorded music comment you had! It just deepens the experience in my opinion and helps everyone to feel more included as well! Thanks for pointing that out!
-
AuthorPosts
