by Rachel | Professional Development
I’ve been facilitating early childhood music programs since graduate school, before I was even a full-fledged music therapist. I’ve continued to do so all of these years, and it has been so exciting and fulfilling to see my programs continue to grow and touch the lives of many young children (and their families).
After reading dozens of emails from fellow music therapists and educators asking for advice on starting an early childhood music program, I decided to take the plunge and create an online CMTE course on this very topic. It covers the entire process — from conception to the very last class — and everything in between.
This 3-hour CMTE course consists of 3 chapters, and each chapter is made up of 6 videos. Watch the videos at your own pace and on your own time; once you register, you will have 3 months to complete the videos, final evaluation, and post-test. Each video comes with a downloadable audio track and PDF of the slides in the video.
BONUS: You will also receive 12 songs (including mp3, instrumental track, and lead sheet) from the Listen & Learn Music collection. That is $36 worth of music at your fingertips, which you are invited to use as inspiration for your own early childhood program, or include in their original form. You are also welcome to create adaptations and use the instrumental track to record your new versions.
Course Outline
I. Create (42 minutes)
What Kind of Program Will You Create?
Songwriting for Ages 0-3
Choosing Children’s Songs
Instruments, Props & Singable Stories
Packaging Your Program
Chapter 1 Action Steps
II. Market (48 minutes)
Location, Location, Location
The Money Stuff
Devising a Marketing Plan
Make the Most of Local Resources
Create a Buzz Online
Chapter 2 Action Steps
III. Make Music (40 minutes)
Before the First Class
Preparing the Environment
How To Be an Early Childhood Rockstar
Tips for Tricky Situations
After the Last Class
Chapter 3 Action Steps
Final Evaluation (20 minutes)
Please note that I will be answering all questions posted by course participants inside the course. I want this course to be as interactive and educational as possible so that you have the resources to go forward and create a successful program.
The price of the course is $75, which includes the bonus mp3/instrumental track/lead sheet downloads ($36 value).
Listen & Learn Plus! members receive a 20% discount on this course, so if you are already a member, click here to enroll. (And if you’re not a member yet, join now to receive 5+ years of archived resources and downloads PLUS the course discount.)
Once you complete your payment safely and securely via PayPal, you will be redirected to the registration page. Upon registering and logging in, you will have full access to the course for 3 full months.
If you have questions, feel free to leave them in the comments below.
Looking forward to seeing you in the course!
by Rachel | Professional Development
This month has been insane. Between changing my business structure, moving my office/studio to a new location, seeing a full load of student, starting new sessions of two different early childhood classes, and creating an online CMTE course, I’m lucky I’m still sane enough to type this blog post.
A few weeks ago, in an attempt to organize all the chaos, I entered everything into iCal. Then I used the Reminders app to make lists for each different area of my work and life that needed attention. I could access both my calendar and lists from my iPhone, iPad, and laptop, so I thought everything would be under control.
But I was wrong. Things were still slipping through the cracks, and whenever I found a free block of time to get something done, I would be overwhelmed and have no idea where to start. So one night I went old school and wrote out a list of things I had to do the next day.
Thanks to the list sitting on my desk the next morning, I knew exactly where to start and how to budget my time. I didn’t waste precious minutes with things that didn’t need to be done right away; instead, I went right down the list, crossing things off as I finished them.
You really don’t get the same satisfaction from check-marking an item on your iPhone as you do drawing a line through something with a sharpie, do you? It’s amazing how focused and motivated I am when I sit down to work each day, because I know that my goal is to have crossed off every single item before I go to bed that night.
I use these small notepads (of which I have several, thanks to giveaways at AMTA conferences!) so that I can’t fill it up with too many to-dos; keeping the list relatively short allows me to concentrate on the MOST important items. And if for some reason something doesn’t get done that day, I write it down on the next day’s list. This doesn’t happen often, though, because nothing irks me more than throwing away a list with items left uncrossed!
Thanks to these daily lists, I’m just about finished with content creation for that online CMTE course I mentioned at the beginning of this post. Early Childhood Programs: Create, Market, Make Music! is just a couple weeks away (or less, if I really get things in gear) from launching — I can’t wait to share it with you :)
by Rachel | Professional Development
I’m knee-deep in content creation for my new CMTE course — Early Childhood Programs: Create, Market, Make Music! — and I can’t wait to share it with you in a few weeks.
Creating a new group, class or program can be overwhelming, but it can also be extremely rewarding — especially when the end result is helping young children learn and grow through music. This 3-hour CMTE course will guide you through the entire process of designing, launching, and running a successful early childhood program.
Coming Soon!
The course is set to launch in late September, so plug in your name and email below for details and updates.
by Rachel | Professional Development
I’ve always been a sucker for a full plate, both in the literal sense (ha!) and when it comes to work-related projects. I wasn’t sure if that would be the case this summer, since last year at this time I was on maternity leave and work was not a high priority. But it turns out that the opposite has been true, and I’ve been lucky to strike a good balance between family time and music therapy.
After our weekend summit in California last month, my Music Therapy Pro colleagues and I have stepped up our game. We added a brand-new feature called “Four Corners” in which each of us shares a monthly audio or video post on our area of expertise. My corner is called The Business Savvy Clinician, which is all about running a private practice (both inside and outside of the therapy room). While I love collaborating with Michelle, Kimberly, and Matt on topics for the podcast, it’s also fun to have my very own space over there.
The four of us also launched a new mini podcast called “MT in 3” that will air monthly via the Music Therapy Round Table. This podcast is free, and features a 3-question interview of a different music therapist each month. We had so much fun coming up with a HUGE list of potential interviewees, and then writing the 3 questions that each of them would answer. Michelle Erfurt is our roving reporter, so she’s the lucky one who gets to talk to all of the people we consider to be “rockstars” in our field. The first episode features Mallory Even, who is one of my own personal music therapy idols. You can listen here as well as subscribe on iTunes.
And this is my own personal project, which I’m super excited about. In the last month or so, I’ve had a lot of fellow music therapists ask for advice when it comes to creating and running early childhood programs. Since I have a lot of experience (I’ve been doing it since grad school!) I decided to create a 3-hour online CMTE course on this topic. This is a very labor-intensive project, which I know first-hand after creating The DIY Guide to Writing, Recording, and Sharing Your Music for Kat Fulton’s Music Therapy Ed, but like that one, it has been a labor of love so far. You can learn more and get updates about the course here.
There are actually a few other projects on my plate at the moment, but I need to keep those under wraps just a little longer. I’ll share them with you soon, though! What are you up to this summer? Are you tackling big things, or taking it easy? (Also, sidenote: how is it almost August already!?)
by Rachel | Professional Development
For the 4th summer in a row, my Music Therapy Round Table colleagues and I devoted a few days to what has come to be called the “MTRT Summit” — where we focus on brainstorming and planning for the following year.
This year we convened in northern California, where our newest colleague Matt Logan lives. While we spend a good majority of the long weekend sitting around his table with our laptops open, we did find time to enjoy some delicious food and wine (in Napa Valley, no less!).
I arrived early Friday evening, so Matt and I went out to dinner and started doing a little preliminary planning for the weekend. Michelle and Kimberly’s flight had been delayed, so they didn’t end up getting in until 11 pm. I was already asleep by the time they got to the hotel! We had a super early morning on Saturday, which began with coffee and breakfast at a yummy diner in Berkeley.
Next we met up with Matt’s friend and photographer Tara, who took photos for our website and promotional materials. She was great to work with, and it was a bonus that we got to hang out on the water at the same time. I can’t wait to see the photos after she edits and sends them next week.
After the photo shoot, we headed to Matt’s house for a long day of work. And by “work” I mean bouncing ideas off of each other, setting goals for the year, coming up with new projects, and enjoying the awesome company. We only see each other in person twice a year, so it hardly feels like work even though we are super productive and our brains hurt afterwards.
It’s really amazing how much we can accomplish when we are all together in the same room! One of the very best parts of our yearly summit is recording the podcast, since we’re used to doing it via Skype. Being able to read each other’s cues, make eye contact, and really just chat without having to worry about any potential technical difficulties is a breath of fresh air. This month’s episode is one of my favorites.
The best way to avoid the afternoon slump? A delicious lunch followed by a quick wine tasting. When in Rome, right? We were all ready to get back to work following our excursion, and ended up ordering pizza later that night because we were on such a roll and didn’t want to stop working. That’s when you know you love what you do :)
Our last full day together! Matt made us a delicious breakfast on Sunday morning, and then we picked up right where we had left off the night before. We finished recording both podcasts, mapped out our new content, did quite a bit of writing, and came up with topics for the entire next year. Whew! We more than earned an afternoon in Napa Valley, which is where we headed as soon as our work was done.
Matt took us to his favorite winery, Judd’s Hill, where we learned all about lots of different kinds of wine (and of course, tasted them too). The weather was gorgeous and it felt so wonderful to sit in the sun. The view wasn’t so bad either — miles and miles of vineyards with mountains in the distance. Next we had lunch and then enjoyed another tasting at a different spot before heading home.
All good things must come to an end, and for us, that was the next morning. Michelle, Kimberly and I headed to the airport at 5 am to catch our flights, but not before taking one last photo. I had a looooong day of flying, followed by a two hour drive home. After being away from my son Parker for the first time since he was born, it was pretty sweet to see him when I walked through the door.
I can’t wait to share with you everything we have planned for Music Therapy Round Table and Music Therapy Pro this year. Not only that, but our summit inspired me to make some big plans for my own personal businesses (Listen & Learn and Music Therapy Connections) as well. Now I just need a few more hours in each day to carry them all out! ;)
by Rachel | Professional Development
A couple weeks ago, I was talking to a friend whom I have a lot in common. Like me, Mallory Even is a music therapist, business owner, and mom. During the course of our conversation, I mentioned that I had recently started saying “no” to work-related opportunities that didn’t excite or inspire me. Mallory agreed, and added:
When I am away from my kiddos, I am always thinking, “make this count!”
Yes, yes, yes. I feel more driven than ever when it comes to my career, and Mallory articulated the reason why perfectly. If I’m going to be spending precious minutes and hours away from my baby, they’d better be spent well. I think this has made me a better therapist and teacher, which in turn benefits my students.
A recent “make this count!” experience: becoming certified in NICU music therapy. Attending the lecture component, fieldwork training, and completing the outside reading and exams were a huge time commitment, but the joy I felt in receiving that certificate was a reminder that it was worth the effort.
I’m genuinely excited about the work I’m doing these days and the direction(s) in which I’m heading professionally. There’s no room for indifference or ambivalence in my life, and I’m learning to feel less guilty when I turn down commitments that would most likely evoke those feelings.
Now if only I could rewind a few years and tell my younger self to take this approach; guess I’ll chalk it up to growing older and wiser, right?
