Using Music to Teach…Physics?

Music + Physics

I use music to teach a variety of concepts on a daily basis, from money to making friends to telling time.  These are basic skills that every child learns one way or another, but learning through music is not something students learn as a part of getting their teaching degree. Learning through music is also not limited to elementary subject matter.  When I was in 8th grade, I took an advanced algebra class in which we learned the quadratic formula.  To this day, I can still spout it out.  You know the tune “Pop! Goes the Weasel”, right?

X equals negative B, plus or minus the square root of B squared minus 4AC, all over 2A

I don’t have any use for this knowledge now, but the fact is that almost 15 years later, I still have it — because I learned through song. The same goes for the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution (“We, the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union…”), the 50 states, and so on.  A catchy song is so much more “sticky” than a textbook page when it comes to both short- and long-term memory, which is why music is such an effective teaching tool.

In addition to my work as a music therapist, I write custom songs for children to target specific skills and concepts.  I also put together custom CDs, one of which I created this past weekend for my nephew.  Mason turned 2, and for his birthday, I wanted to do something special for him.  He LOVES music, so when he heard all of these songs with his name in them, about all of his favorite things (especially drums), he was ecstatic.

Mason’s party was held at the St. Louis Zoo, and we played the CD while we ate cake and ice cream in the discovery room.  As the party was winding down, one of the employees came over to tell me how much she enjoyed the CD.  She then proceeded to explain how much she loves music, and that she used songs to teach her children all kinds of things as they were growing up.  When her son was in college and struggling before a physics test, she set the key information to music.  Her son learned the “physics song” his mom wrote, and in turn, aced his exam.

Bottom line?  Music can help teach just about any skill or concept, whether it’s as basic as tying a shoelace or as complicated as college physics.

Sunday Singalong: Shakin’ It Up

Happy weekend! After a short hiatus, I’m back with a brand new “Sunday Singalong” video. This time I’m shakin’ it up with a song I wrote specifically for fruit shakers, which I added to my instrument collection last summer.  I’ve posted this song before, so you can listen to the entire song and get the sheet music by following that link.

The “Shaky Fruit” song is very straightforward, and the objectives are clear: listen (or use visual cues) for your turn to shake your fruit, and only shake your fruit during your turn.  But the second version I presented goes just a little deeper.

The key moment comes when I ask the group, “Where is (child’s name)?” and the child replies, “Here I am!”.  The primary objective was for the child to respond verbally to his or her own name; playing the instrument is simply a reward for doing so.

My friend and colleague, Lea Keating, explains the importance of a child being able to do just that in her latest blog post.  It took a very scary situation to remind her of this, as she details in her post, but it serves as a lesson for every parent, therapist, and educator out there.  You can read it here.

Friday Fave: A Day at the Beach

A Day at the Beach

This past Sunday, my husband and I celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary.  Zach is the planner when it comes to special occasions and vacations, so although I knew we were going to Chicago (we had a wedding there the night before), he surprised me with a stay at the W Hotel, a boat tour, several romantic meals, and a trip to the beach.  Zach knows how much I love sun and sand, so it was quite a treat to spend the afternoon relaxing on the shore of Lake Michigan together.

And as I lay on that beach, enjoying the gorgeous weather and perfect company, I was reminded of just how lucky I really am.  Not only do I have a loving and supportive husband, but together we have a beautiful home, an amazing family, and more blessings than we could even name.  I have a career that I love and feel genuinely excited about when I wake up in the morning, and a place where I can share my work with people all over the world (you!) who find it interesting and valuable.

It’s so easy to get caught up in the tidal wave of life sometimes that we forget to step back and see the big picture.  I’m often guilty of this myself.  It took a day at the beach to make me realize that, all things considered, my life really is a day at the beach.

[For more mushy thoughts and snapshots from my anniversary weekend, feel free to visit my photo album on Facebook.]

Saying Goodbye with Peace & Love

With school starting a week from today, you’d think I’d have “hello” songs on the brain. But yesterday, out of the blue, I was hit with the memory of a song from my high school years. Blessid Union of Souls was a popular band back then, and I listened to their self-titled album nonstop.

My favorite track was Peace and Love, and when it came to mind yesterday, I realized it would make a great “goodbye” song. I’m thinking “goodbye” in more of a long-term sense; perhaps I might sing it at a final music therapy session (prior to termination of service) or even a graduation ceremony.

May every star you wish upon
And every hope you’re hangin’ on come true
Out of everybody in the world
There’s no one who deserves it more than you
I hope you find
Everything you’ve been dreamin’ of
Only good things
No in betweens just
Peace and love

These words did not come easily
Still you know I had to write them down
You must know what you mean to me
I wish that you could always be around
I hope you find
Everything you are worthy of
I’m gonna miss you
But I only wish you
Peace and love

Peace and love
Tears of joy
Kindness of strangers
All of your roads
Paved in gold
By guardian angels
Wherever you may be in this world
My salutation says it all
May you always have enough
Peace and love

I let you go unselfishly
Cause everyone needs time to be alone
Well maybe time will bring you back
And if it does you’ll always have a home
I sign my name
No one to blame it on because
I’m on your side
No question of pride

Peace and love
Tears of joy
Kindness of strangers
All of your roads
Paved in gold
By guardian angels
Wherever you may be in this world
My salutation says it all
May you always have enough
Peace and Love

I use the chords provided here (incidentally, Ultimate Guitar is where I find almost all of the chords and tabs for cover songs I perform).  I’d love to hear how you might apply this song to your music therapy practice or otherwise.  Please share your thoughts in the comments!

What Kind of Songwriter Are You?

songwriter

Take fellow music therapist Wade Richards’ quick assessment to find out whether you are Air, Water, Fire or Earth when it comes to songwriting.  Wade is presenting the CMTE “Songwriter’s Garden” at this year’s AMTA national conference in Cleveland; the assessment is just a teaser of what else he has in store.  I had a lot of fun answering the questions and trying to guess which element I qualify as, and my guess is that you will, too.

Songwriting Assessment

Assessment Scoring

Be sure to come back and share which element YOU are.  Wade would also be interested in your results, so stop by his blog, Time for Music, and let him know.  Oh, and you get extra credit if you can guess whether I’m Air, Water, Fire or Earth. Wade guessed correctly!