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!
Slow & Steady Wins the Race
I have a piano student who would like nothing more than to dive right into each piece, skipping all the intermediate steps and playing both hands together the first time he lays eyes on it. This, of course, causes lots of frustration for him (and me).
“Slow and steady” is a term I’m always using with him, and it applies to many of my other students, as well. Piano pieces aren’t mastered in a day, nor are music therapy goals achieved in a single session.
This song is one I wrote specifically for tone blocks, but my intention is that while my kiddos sing and play along, they are also internalizing the value of going “slow and steady” across settings and situations.
I’m sure you recognized the piggybacked tune, which has quite a calming effect on especially energetic groups (like my Church Mice). I also adapted this song for drums, changing the word sounds to “rum-pum-pum, pum”, “thump, thump, thump”, and “boom, boom, boom”.
As much as I love an upbeat song — and that is apparent if you go through my song collection — it’s always nice to take a breather. What are your favorite “slow and steady” tunes?
Studio Renovation: Progress Update #3
Please note that this is NOT a picture of my new waiting room. But these ARE the new couches I just purchased for it…minus the horribly patterned pillows (yuck!).
This past Saturday, my mom and I went shopping with the goal of finding the perfect waiting room furniture. You know when you have a mental picture of what you’re looking for, but you’ve never actually seen it? Well I had that mental picture, and I did in fact find the actual version of it in this sofa/loveseat combo.
However, we both absolutely despised the pillows that came with it, so try to ignore them in the picture above. Luckily, Amanda Ellis at More With Music has offered to make pillows for me! Not only that, but the Music Therapy Tween, Michelle Erfurt, is making some cute beanbag chairs for my little ones. Have I mentioned how much I love my fellow music therapy bloggers? :)
My new furniture is being delivered on May 9, so I’ll soon have some pictures of them in my actual waiting room to share with you. I’m still hunting for a coffee table of some sort, but I think I’ll wait to see how much room is left after the sofas are in place.
So what do you think? And if you have any decorating ideas that would complement them (along with the new flooring and yellow walls – here are some pictures to refresh your memory), let me know!
Choosing a Graduation Song…Help!
One of my favorite parts of being in high school show choir was singing at graduation every year. It was always a little bittersweet, especially the year I graduated, but I loved it. I’m not in school anymore, obviously, but I still get to sing at my students’ graduation.
Every May, one of my job duties at The Hope Institute is choosing and performing a graduation song. In years past, I’ve sung In My Life, Seasons of Love, You Raise Me Up and For Good. It’s always a big decision, and this year I’m a little stuck.
So far, here are the front-runners:
- “My Wish” by Rascal Flatts
- “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” the Israel Kamakawiwo’ole version
- “The Climb” by Miley Cyrus
- “Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)” by Green Day
I know most of these are a bit dated, but I’m keeping in mind who the graduates are as well as the audience. So this is where I need your help: what options am I missing?! I’d really like to do something more current, however, I’m at a bit of a loss for ideas.
Please leave a comment with your ideas and input!
Sunday Singalong: Easter Edition
Happy Easter! After singing with my church choir in two services this morning, I’m looking forward to relaxing with my family and enjoying some yummy food. Maybe we’ll even dye some Easter eggs — I’m feeling inspired by this song!
I’m keeping this short today, because I know that many of us have plans on this special day that don’t involve reading blog posts :) Whatever those plans may be, have a wonderful holiday (or just a wonderful Sunday, if you don’t celebrate Easter).
Friday Fave: Earth Day
To tell you the truth, I’m a little bummed that Earth Day falls over Spring Break this year, because I always enjoy singing earth-related songs with my students and watching them go outside and plant trees on this day. But it’s currently raining cats and dogs, so I doubt there would be much planting going on anyway.
So Sadie and I are having our own little Earth Day celebration at home right now, as I’ve been going through some fun YouTube videos to share while she watches over my shoulder :) Here are a few worth checking out on this day.
- Heal The World: I know this Michael Jackson song is a little cheesy, but I still love it. When I was in elementary school, we put on a musical called Gonna Have an Earth Day, and this was the closing song. It gives me the warm and fuzzies when I listen to it, exactly 20 years later.
- The Three R’s: Jack Johnson reminds us to “reduce, reuse, recycle” in this great song, which is one that I love to sing with my students.
- Good Green Earth: This is one of my highest-viewed YouTube videos, and it features the song “Good Green Earth” by James K. I think this is my #1 favorite Earth Day tune.
- Recycle With Me: The list would NOT be complete without a song from Bobs & LoLo, one of my favorite children’s singer/songwriter duos. “Recycle With Me” is not only fun to sing, but also very educational.
Oh, and here’s a cool fact about Earth Day for you. One of my wonderful sponsors, Susan Seale of Make Me Musical, recently wrote a blog post in which she shares that her husband, Nigel Seale, is actually the founder of Earth Day Canada. He also served as the global chairman of Earth Day in 1991 and 1992. How cool is that?!
Happy Earth Day to each and every one of you. How will you celebrate and do your part to make the Earth a better place?
Building Your Personal Brand
Yesterday I had the opportunity to talk to a classroom full of college students about my approach to personal branding. The instructor just happens to be the mother of one of my piano students, so she has seen first-hand how I’ve built my own personal brand over the last couple of years, both online and locally.
I was a new professional, fresh out of graduate school, when I began building my personal brand. I was afraid of getting lost in the sea of music therapists, and wanted to make a name for myself as I started my career.
First came Listen & Learn, where I established a presence and voice in the online world. Soon after, I started a Facebook page so that I could further connect with people interested in my work, my blog, and me in general — in other words, my personal brand. I joined Twitter for the same purpose.
While I was working hard to spread my message online, I was simultaneously doing so in my community. Presenting at conferences and workshops, performing at various local venues, and being featured in newspaper articles were all ways to make my brand known.
And while I didn’t have a specific strategy at the time, as I look back, I realize that I followed a pretty simple set of self-written rules:
- It’s never too early to begin building your personal brand. No matter how young or inexperienced you are, just get started. Your brand will grow as you do.
- Be genuine in everything you write or post. When people meet you in person, you should come across the same as you do online.
- Be consistent. Use the same profile picture and style across platforms.
- Be transparent. Don’t inflate your credentials, your numbers, or your network; just show your true colors and eventually all of those things will inflate on their own.
- On the flip side, don’t give yourself too little credit. If you underestimate your abilities and potential to be an authority in your niche, others will do the same.
Even though I still have a long way to go, I feel like I’ve been pretty successful in my efforts within a relatively short period of time. So based on that success, here are the six things that, in my opinion, are essential to every personal brand:
- A goal. What are you working towards? Where do you want to be a year, 5 years, 10 years from now?
- A resume. Always have this on hand and ready to share, and always be adding to it. Every experience counts.
- A website. Even better, a blog. Create dynamic content so that people have a reason to keep coming back.
- A slogan that people will remember. Mine is “helping children learn and grow through music” — which sums up all of the different kinds of work I do.
- Social media presence. Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube…the more platforms for people to find you, the better.
- Business cards. I use VistaPrint to create custom cards that reflect my brand’s aesthetic and message.
Whether or not they realize it, most people are building their personal brand on a daily basis. What are you doing to set yourself apart from everyone else?
Say Cheese! (But Only With Permission)
Each time one of my students completes a level in a lesson book, masters a particularly difficult piece, or receives an award in a competition, his or her picture goes up on the studio bulletin board — or “Wall of Fame” as I like to call it.
Only my students and their parents see the bulletin board, but what about posting pictures and videos of students on my website (as I did with Sergei above) and Facebook page?
The answer is simple: you MUST ask for parents’ permission to do so. Each spring, I have parents fill out a yearly survey which includes the following question:
Do I have permission to feature pictures and/or videos of this student (never using last name) on my studio bulletin board, website, and/or Facebook page?
Parents then have three options: 1) Yes; 2) Please ask on a case-by-case basis; or 3) No. Once they have signed the form, I keep it on record until the following year.
Amazingly enough, I’ve not had one parent mark “no” in response to that question. However, I never take advantage of their trust, which means I share students’ photos and videos very sparingly. But every once in a while, it’s nice to showcase students and give them the thrill of seeing themselves in a public space.
Do you have a media release option for your students?
Sunday Singalong: Eat Like A Rainbow
I’ve been singing this song all month, but have yet to get tired of it. It’s so much fun to sing! Props to Jay Mankita for writing such a catchy tune that also stresses the importance of healthy eating…something most kids don’t think about on a regular basis.
It’s a bit ironic that I’m posting this song today, because I’ve been doing the very opposite of eating healthy all weekend. I’m writing to you from Las Vegas, where it’s just about impossible to do that! But as soon as I get back to Illinois, I plan to stock my fridge with red apples, orange juice, yellow bananas, green spinach, blueberries, and purple plums :)
Are there any other great songs about eating healthy that I don’t know about yet? Enlighten me!
Friday Fave: Evernote
I’m a list person, but quite equally a digital junkie. That’s why I’m always searching for new ways to keep track of my to-dos, as much as I love the good old pen and paper route.
Last fall, I stumbled upon and fell in love with Lino It. I used it for a long time, but recently got the itch to try something new. I remembered reading about Evernote a while back, so I downloaded it to the desktops of both my Macbook Pro at home and my Macbook at school, in addition to the app for my iPhone.
So far, I’m totally digging it! Evernote works similarly to Dropbox (another Friday Fave), in that whatever you save to it on one device will be synced to every device on which you have Evernote installed. So if I write a to-do list on my school computer, I can access it later on my iPhone or at home.
Not only can you make lists, but you can also clip links, pictures, and even full screenshots to Evernote. This is super convenient when I come across a blog post or a tutorial that I want to have readily available in the future. You can search your Evernote account for the item that you’re looking for, and organize items into different folders depending on topic.
I think I’ll stick with Evernote for a while…at least, until I discover the next coolest app for staying on top of my crazy-busy life. Have you tried it, or do you favor another method?
Surely You Can Shake It
This little church mouse sure can. Shakers are an integral part of my instrument collection because not only do they sound great, but they are colorful and easy to play. I often incorporate them into the songs I write — particularly those targeting movements and following directions — for those same reasons.
“Surely You Can Shake It” is new to the Listen & Learn collection. The song combines several goals, including shaking up high, down low, slowly, and quickly.
It’s fun to hear my students make (or at least, attempt to make) the “ch” sound along with me. An easy way to target other speech sounds would be to change “ch” to “shh”, “sss” or just about any other syllable. If you haven’t already noticed, I’m a big fan of using a single song to address multiple goals!