Free Download: “Little Red Apples”
This is one of many counting songs I’ve written, which focuses on counting both up to 5 and down from 5. I created simple apple visual aides (using red construction paper and then laminating) which my students can then manipulate as we count.
Click here to download the mp3 and lyrics/chords.
P.S. If you want access to my entire collection of over 200 songs (mp3, lead sheet, and instrumental track), videos, tutorials, and visual aides, plus ALL new releases from Listen & Learn Music, consider joining me over at Listen & Learn Plus!
That Yellow Bus
Transitions from one place or activity to another are one of my students’ biggest areas of struggle. One particularly difficult transition that a majority of children face on a daily basis is getting on and off on the bus. Student arrival and departure is quite an event at my school, especially for students who ride the bus. Another therapist (from a different school, but who happens to be a family member!) told me about a student of hers who is having lots of trouble with bus transitions. She asked me if I had a song dealing with this topic, and I replied that I didn’t yet, but to give me a few days.
The song that resulted is uncomplicated and repetitive. It covers each and every bus transition: getting on to go to school, getting off at school, getting back on after school is finished, and getting off at home. Take a listen to “That Yellow Bus” and see what you think:
When it’s time to go to school,
This is what you gotta do:
Get, get, get on the bus!
Once you are inside,
You’re gonna take a ride:
Get, get, get on the bus!
Snap your fingers, tap your feet,
While you’re cruisin’ down the street,
In that yellow bus.
When you get to school,
This is what you gotta do:
Get, get, get off the bus!
To your class is where you’ll go,
This you already know:
Get, get, get off the bus!
Snap your fingers, tap your feet,
Your day is gonna be sweet,
Once you’re off that yellow bus.
When school is through,
This is what you gotta do:
Get, get, get on the bus!
Once you are inside,
You’re gonna take a ride:
Get, get, get on the bus!
Snap your fingers, tap your feet,
While you’re cruisin’ down the street,
In that yellow bus.
When you’re home from school,
This is what you gotta do:
Get, get, get off the bus!
In your house is where you’ll go,
This you already know:
Get, get, get off the bus!
Snap your fingers, tap your feet,
Your afternoon will be sweet,
Once you’re off that yellow bus.
This snappy little ditty is one that I think will come in handy for many of the students at my school and elsewhere. Plus, it’s just fun! The therapist who requested it has two little boys, and she told me last night that they were dancing around the kitchen last night while they listened and sang along. Now that put a big smile on my face :)
Sunday Singalong: What Do You Do?
You can find the original post of this song, including lyrics, here.
Listen & Learn reader Erin Breedlove requested that I feature “What Do You Do?” as today’s Sunday Singalong song, and since that is what I chose, Erin will receive a free album download of her choice. Congrats, Erin! Everyone else – send next week’s requests (it could be a Listen & Learn original OR a cover of any song that could be used in a music therapy session) via email, or just leave a comment right here on the blog.
How was your weekend? Mine has been a good mix of relaxation (Friday Night Lights is our new streaming Netflix fave), work-related stuff (IAMT board meeting and piano festival student applications) and fun (friend’s wedding and out with friends).
Today is a big day in the Rambach household, because as I wrote yesterday, we are celebrating my husband’s 27th birthday. We are going out to dinner at a local Japanese restaurant, where you can sit at a hibachi grill with up to 16 people. Tonight all of those seats will be filled with family, and I can’t wait. Yummy sushi and other Japanese goodies, here I come!
Enjoy your Sunday night, and I’ll see you back here tomorrow for a brand-new song about a certain type of transportation.
Birthday Boy
Somebody is turning 27 around here, and it’s not me! My husband, Zach, who is a whopping five months older than me, will be celebrating his birthday tomorrow, and the rest of the family and I will be there right along with him.
Although Zach and I have only been married for a year and a half, I’ve been by his side for six birthdays. He takes the cake for giving the best gifts (birthday, Christmas, or otherwise) but I always tell him that I’m much easier to buy for than he is! One of the best gifts he’s ever given me (and there are lots from which to choose) was actually for our wedding, when we we were planning the playlist for the souvenir CD that would be given out to all 250+ guests.
We had already decided that the song I wrote for him on Valentine’s Day, Second Chance Dance, would be included, but what I really wanted was to record a song together for the CD. After lots and lots of coaxing, he finally caved in. We reworked the lyrics to the song “Anyone Else But You” (the one Ellen Page and Michael Cera sing at the end of the movie Juno). Zach isn’t a singer, or musical in any way aside from enjoying it, so I was pretty darn proud of the job he did on this song. Needless to say, his friends and family were more than surprised when they heard it played during the picture slideshow my parents put together for our rehearsal dinner!
I will always treasure this recording, because it’s most likely the only one I’ll ever have of its kind. I couldn’t be luckier to have such a wonderful, funny, supportive husband – he calls himself my #1 fan, though my mom begs to differ – and I hope his 27th year is his best yet!
Friday Fave: Skype
The first time I Skyped (yes, this is a legitimate verb), it was with some of my family who live in Denver, including my 3-year-old niece and 1-year-old nephew. It was so much fun; I got to hear Kaitlin sing some songs, and see how big Jacob had gotten since the last time they visited. And the best part is that it was completely free. Technology = amazing.
But it wasn’t until recently that I used Skype for professional purposes, and now I’m hooked! I met two of my good music therapy friends, Kimberly S. Moore and Michelle Erfurt, through the internet, and got to spend time with them in person at the AMTA national conference last November. While we were in San Diego, we decided to “get together” monthly to bounce ideas off one another and just talk MT. We had our first Skype meeting in December, and another one last night. As a result, we’re now working on an exciting project in which Skype will play an important role.
After last night’s meeting with Kimberly and Michelle, I spent some time Skyping with a music therapy student in Georgia who found me by way of Twitter and has since connected with me on Facebook. (Gotta love social networking.) Erin writes a blog that recently turned its focus to music therapy, so we had a lot to chat about.
So many aspects of my personal and professional life rely on technology and the internet, which makes me wonder: how did people ever get by without it?! If you browse through my previous Friday Faves, you’ll notice that many of them are some piece or type of technology, from the iPhone, to Garageband, to my awesome microphone. We’re living in the digital age, and I’m loving every minute of it!
Currently Covering…
I found Little Miss Ann by way of iTunes last winter, and immediately fell in love with her song, “Clap For Love”
In fact, I make sure that all of the songs I write or cover would be appealing to any child, no matter what level of functioning, as well as the adults that accompany them. If the parents, teachers and other caregivers have to listen to the same song over and over again, they might as well enjoy it…right?
How cute and fun is that?! That is why I think children’s music artists like Little Miss Ann, Justin Roberts, Laurie Berkner, etc. are so popular: they most definitely appeal to their target demographic, but adults like it, too. And that is what I always strive for with each new tune. I want to make sure it addresses the targeted goals and objectives properly, and I want it to be universally likable. Hopefully I’m achieving these two goals, at least, most of the time!
Making Friends: A Step-by-Step Song
One of my favorite things about the holidays was getting to see all my friends who grew up with me in Springfield, but now live far away. Katie (middle) and I have been friends since we got our identical winter coats mixed up after a show choir performance in the 8th grade. She was my maid of honor in my wedding, and she asked me to be hers following her recent engagement. Jill (right) and I became friends way back in the 5th grade, when we were in a school performance of The Wizard of Oz together. We were also in each other’s weddings.
These friendships came easily, but for many children, making friends can be a difficult and overwhelming experience. Most of my students are diagnosed with autism, and social skills are a major area of focus in the classroom and in music therapy. One of the teachers at my school asked me to write a song about making friends, and why having friends is important. I kept it basic, using language my students can comprehend, though it can be easily adapted for individual children and social situations.
Step one: wear a smile.
Step two: say hello.
Step three: introduce yourself,
To someone you wanna get to know.
Step four: have a conversation,
Ask a question or two.
Making friends can be so simple,
All you have to do is just be you.
You gotta have friends to make you laugh,
Help you feel better when you are sad.
You gotta have friends to make you smile,
Help you feel calm when you are mad.
You gotta have friends so don’t be shy,
Go out and give it a try,
Anyone would be lucky, ooh-ooh,
To have a friend like you.
REPEAT ALL
I emphasized the importance of “being yourself” because many times, children in general, like adults, try to change certain aspects of themselves – be it their behavior, appearance, mannerisms, etc. – in order to fit in or befriend someone. Self-esteem is a value that should be encouraged at any given opportunity, and this song is just another one of those opportunities.
This particular tune lends itself to role-playing, either between the student and therapist/teacher/parent or between two or more students. Work together to establish comfortable conversation starters, appropriate dialogue, and body langauge. If you were to write a song on this topic, what steps would you add? If you’ve taught social skills and have any tricks up your sleeve, I’d love to hear about them.
Sunday Singalong: Time to Sing Hello
Each week, I will choose a song to sing and play for my “Sunday Singalong” video (which will also be posted on my YouTube channel). Most of the time it will be one of my own songs, though I am open to sharing covers, as long as it is something I might use in a music therapy session. I’ll be open to suggestions throughout the week, which you can submit via the comments section of my blog or email. If I choose the song you suggest, you get a free download of any Listen & Learn album.
I thought it would be appropriate to feature a hello song as my first “Sunday Singalong” installment, so without further ado, here you go!
What are your thoughts on the new feature? I’m still a novice at making videos, but I figure this will give me a good excuse to improve my technique. It will also give me a reason to borrow the Ultra HD Flip Camcorder
I gave my mom for Christmas! So send your feedback my way, and enjoy the last few hours of the weekend.
So Long, 2009!
I can’t believe that I am writing my last blog post of 2009. Where did the last twelve months go? This year seems to have flown by faster than any previous year, which I’m told happens as you get older. But as quickly as it went, 2009 was a fabulous year, in terms of both my career and personal life. Follow the links to read more about each month’s highlight:
January: One of my students had a breakthrough during music therapy.
February: I passed the joy of the Snowball Microphone on to my readers.
March: My husband and I closed on and moved into our new house.
April: We vacationed in San Diego and returned completely refreshed.
May: A new addition to the family arrived…our golden retriever, Sadie.
June: I turned 26 and got an iPhone, which did wonders for my productivity.
July: I launched my Kickstarter project, a three-month adventure.
August: My music therapy work was featured in a local news piece.
September: Listen & Learn was featured as a “Blog of Note” by Blogger.
October: The Model Me Kids DVD for which I wrote songs debuted.
November: I attended and presented at my first national conference.
December: I was featured in a radiothon for Children’s Miracle Network.
If 2010 is anywhere near as successful as 2009 was, I’m in for a great year. Thank you, everyone, for reading Listen & Learn Music, and for sending your feedback my way. I hope you’ll continue to do so in the new year. And come back tomorrow to hear a song you can sing for the next 365 days, as well as my new year’s resolutions. Cheers!
Merry Karaoke: Home for the Holidays
That is how our first holiday in our first home looked. It was certainly a white Christmas, and I was hoping to take a similar picture of our new home this year, as we get ready to celebrate our first Christmas in it. Unfortunately, we’ve only had a tiny bit of snow, and it is currently raining cats and dogs, so maybe I’ll get one later in the week.
No matter what the weather, I’m just glad to be staying home for the holidays! I feel very lucky that both of our families are nearby, which means we get to see everyone without having to drive long distances or get on an airplane. And that is why I decided that for today’s “Merry Karaoke” song should reflect this sentiment:
Oh, there’s no place like home for the holidays,
For no matter how far away you roam –
When you long for the sunshine of a friendly gaze,
For the holidays – you can’t beat home, sweet home!
I met a man who lives in Tennessee, and he was headin’ for
Pennsylvania and some homemade pumpkin pie;
From Pennsylvania folks are travelin’ down to Dixie’s sunny shore;
From Atlantic to Pacific –
Gee, the traffic is terrific!
CHORUS
I met a man who lives in Tennessee and he was headin’ for
Pennsylvania and some homemade pumpkin pie;
From Pennsylvania folks are travelin’ down to Dixie’s sunny shore;
From Atlantic to Pacific –
Gee, the traffic is terrific!
CHORUS
What are your plans for the holidays? Will you be staying home, or traveling to see friends and family? No matter what you’re doing, I hope your week is safe, fun, and full of cheer. Today is my first official day of vacation, and I am off to bake cookies. I’ll be back with at least one more installment of “Merry Karaoke” before the week is through…see you again soon!
Merry Karaoke!
There’s nothing like a little snow and an early Christmas celebration with family to put you in the holiday spirit. As we drove home from my in-laws’ house this afternoon, all I could think about was singing along to some of my favorite Christmas songs, and that is just what I did. In fact, I went one step further by recording one of them, karaoke-style. Cheesy? Yes…but tons of fun! I’ve told you before how much I love the Carpenter’s Christmas Portrait album (remember?) so you shouldn’t be surprised that the song I chose is from that very collection.
Frosted windowpanes,
Candles gleaming inside.
Painted candy canes on the trees.
Santa’s on his way,
He’s filled his sleigh with things.
Things for me and for you.
It’s that time of year
When the world falls in love.
Every song you hear seems to say,
Merry Christmas,
May your New Year dreams come true.
And this song of mine,
In three quarter time,
Wishes you and yours
The same thing, too.
Be on the lookout for one or two more installments of “Merry Karaoke” before the big day, which is quickly approaching! I had a chance to catch up on holiday preparations this weekends – not only did I finally finish my shopping, but I also did all of my wrapping. Cookies is next on the list, but that will have to wait until tomorrow. I’m off to curl up on the couch and watch my favorite holiday movie, White Christmas. So long for now!