[Shannon Kiley]

I primarily will be sharing this information with the supportive people in my clients’ lives– aides and teachers in school systems and family members in private homes, as well as caregivers in SM groups. As time goes on I can also share the information with other music therapists!

[Shannon Kiley]

I won’t be going anywhere dramatically different, but my journey has been strengthened and supported and will continue to be strengthened and supported through this training! I can’t wait to start providing SM groups and becoming more involved in the nurturing of the “little honeys” in my community. The training has already positively impacted how I work with my PreK groups; understanding the developmental levels of children has been vital in improving the precision of my targeted interventions. When a child is having difficulty in music group, I’m now able to step back and effectively answer the question, “Am I asking them to do a developmentally appropriate task?” and therefore pinpoint special needs easier.

[Shannon Kiley]

I like what Kathryn said about structure & freedom– I was going to say something similar. In structure, giving multiple levels of opportunities for engagement is important, and giving the children the freedom to engage in the music in the way that feels natural to them, while still giving clear boundaries on what behavior is *not* ok.

[Shannon Kiley]

I’m looking forward to having a greater competency in working with this age group moving forward… I’ve already learned so much just doing the training!

[Shannon Kiley]

I don’t think there is much of a difference, but as others have said, the difference in description can point to the specificity of the goal. Music for skill building reads to me as music for developing a very specific ability, whereas music for development seems like targeting a wider area like communication/motor coordination/visual tracking which is appropriate for the developmental level.

[Shannon Kiley]

I think the most necessary element in running a multi-age group is the provision of multiple levels of engagement! Also making sure that everyone is aware of the options for different ways to engage, which points back to the importance of parent education.

[Shannon Kiley]

FS: cooperation, expansiveness, helping, integrating, strength
SM3: fun, control, freedom, activity, brightness

FS: Hello!, I Love You/You Love Me, Can You See Me (EKS), Dancing In The Middle (EKS), Move Your Scarf, Goodbye Everybody!

SM3: Hello Everybody, My Brand New Friend (EKS), If I Arr A Pirate, You Play A Little (EKS), Jump With Me, It’s Time To Say Goodbye

[Shannon Kiley]

As everyone has stated, it is hard to know what is good for each group, because it depends so much on the children! But of course we want to have the sense that the babies are given a calmer energy level than the Sprouting Melodies 2 kids and that the Sprouting Melodies 2 kids are given a calmer energy level than the SM3 kids. And then watching responses carefully! I remember my professor in school talking about the importance of certification for working with NICU babies, and about seeing a video of some whackjob bringing cymbals into a NICU (“it’s music! babies love music!”… >_< ), and all the babies are showing startle responses and this person is not tuned in to that. As MTs, our ability to see these nonverbal “NO” responses in children is so important to our work in general but especially for fine-tuning the level of appropriate stimulation.

[Shannon Kiley]

Remo is pretty reliable. Otherwise I am just testing the instruments in the store to see how they sound! I like the other suggestions for a one-stop-shop for this stuff, and it would be great if there was a place for music therapists to review the instruments and talk a bit about how their different clients respond to them.

[Shannon Kiley]

Remo is pretty reliable. Otherwise I am just testing the instruments in the store to see how they sound! I like the other suggestions for a one-stop-shop for this stuff, and it would be great if there was a place for music therapists to review the instruments and talk a bit about how their different clients respond to them.

[Shannon Kiley]

Excitement, Energy, Independence, Motion, Growth

1) Feel free to let them roam the room! 2) It’s OK if your child wants to just watch; they are absorbing as much as those who are roaming. 3) Children at this age love to know that they can do it themselves; give them the opportunity to do that! 4) If you hear your child vocalizing in response to the music, they are singing! 5) You child will likely want to explore many ways to play the instrument– there is no wrong way!

Hello: Hello Everybody!, Bonding: Wiggly Jiggly Car (EKS), Song About Me: Just Like Me (EKS), Instrument Song: Shake It Up Baby, Movement Song: Move Your Feet (SK), Goodbye: It’s Time To Say Goodbye

[Shannon Kiley]

Calm, Comfort, Stimulation, Bonding, & Structure.

1) Look how your baby tracks the instrument with their eyes! 2) I love how you are providing a strong physical foundation to sway with your baby to the song… this helps them develop a sense of security. 3) Allow your baby to explore the instrument however they want to– drool/mouthing is OK! We clean the instruments 🙂 4) They take in a vast amount of information through their mouths at this stage. 5) Even if it looks like your baby isn’t doing anything in particular, the amount of information they are taking in is enormous and the processing is largely internal!

1) Greeting/Gathering: Good Morning! (ES) 2) Hello: Hello Everybody! 3) Bonding: You Are My Baby 4) Song About Me: Where Are Your Toes? 5) Movement: Sway With Me 6) Instruments: Instruments, Instruments 7) Cool-Down/Bonding: I Love You, You Love Me 8) Goodbye: It’s Time To Say Goodbye

[Shannon Kiley]

My experiences with children of this age are rather limited, but during my internship I helped to run a mommy & me group similar to Sprouting Melodies. Interestingly, this program’s youngest group was suggested to be 6-12 months. When parents would ask if they could bring younger children to the group, the general response I observed was “Well, you *can*, but…”– the implication being that it wouldn’t be very useful for the 0-6 month age range. With the information I’ve learned now, I know that an insane amount of information is being processed during this time and the focus on sensory stimulation (and tolerance!) and bonding couldn’t be more appropriate for that age range. During the internship I always felt like the 6-12 month group was a little “boring” because the babies “just sit there”, which isn’t as much fun to watch… however, I’d love to go back and try it again knowing what to look for now!

[Shannon Kiley]

Coleen, I’m glad you mentioned the Musical Autist! I like their work. This is certainly an interesting topic– In thinking about it now, when I am in a community music therapy situation, I usually feel a little anxious because I feel like by not having a specific treatment plan for each person, I worry about others mistaking the value of what we do even moreso than usual! But this simply highlights the importance of community education in these situations.

Music has been an integral part of almost every community gathering since the dawn of humans. With all of the progress we’ve made in nearly every facet of human existence, it’s about time we started using community music for targeted reasons!

[Shannon Kiley]

To echo some of the other thoughts, parents really crave that reassurance that they are doing the right thing. (btw that reminds me of a video I saw recently– worth a watch! http://www.upworthy.com/these-kids-finally-say-what-they-really-think-about-mom-and-her-reaction-priceless-9) Additionally, I’ve found that parents really appreciate the tips you can give them for connecting with their child musically. Overall I’d say the biggest need of any family is connection, and what better way to do that than music?

In the community, I see a need for validation of those with disabilities. Too often people with disabilities are overlooked and marginalized, and they appreciate someone really seeing them for who they really are. In CT, most houses and communities are spread out (sprawled) in a strange way, and the “downtown” area of most towns seem to be dedicated primarily to cultivating a quaint image of the town rather than creating a sense of community. Therefore I think visibility efforts in CT are particularly well-suited.

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