by Rachel | Uncategorized
For most of my students, the guitar is an object of fascination. They want to hear it, touch it, and most of all, they want to play it. But as much as many of them want to strum those strings, there’s usually a bit of apprehension before they go for it.
During a music therapy session last week, I found myself really wishing I had a fun and inviting tune to help acclimate that particular student to strumming the guitar. Luckily, now I do!
In the song, I mention several different ways to strum: with your fingers, with a pick, up and down. I also sing about joining in “loud and strong” because lots of my kiddos have a tendency to barely graze the strings, which results in almost no sound at all.
The guitar is essential to most of my music therapy sessions, and I always want to ensure that it does not become a barrier between my student and myself. How do you introduce the guitar to your kiddos and help them feel comfortable strummin’ away?
by Rachel | Uncategorized
As a kid, I absolutely LOVED long car rides. My brother and I found ways to entertain ourselves for hours at a time, which was lucky for our parents. But I know very well that we were probably the exception, and most parents don’t have it quite as easy as mine did.
When I put out a Facebook call for song topics, the mother of one of my students responded that a song about long car rides would come in handy (although it was a little too late, since they’d already made a trek that day!).
But I’ve got her covered for next time, and with summer vacation season coming up soon, hopefully this song will get lots of use.
Let’s face it…car rides can be super boring, especially here in the Midwest where for the most part, the only scenery is cornfields. But if you put an “adventure” spin on them, maybe that will help. At least, that was my thought when I wrote the song :)
What are your favorite songs, tricks and tips for making long car rides bearable — both for the little ones and yourself?
by Rachel | Listen & Learn Music
A fellow music therapist recently posted on a Facebook forum that he was in search of songs or interventions about performing tasks independently. I commented that I couldn’t think of any off the top of my head, but that it sounded like a great topic for a Listen & Learn song. After all, I have plenty of students with goals related to performing tasks independently. And that’s how “I Can Do It By Myself” came to be.
Naturally, the tasks that I chose to include this song are all musical: playing the drum, playing the piano, and playing the bells. But because the song is so very simple, just about any task (including movement, item manipulation, etc.) can be substituted to accommodate a child’s specific goals.
So many of the songs I’ve written have come about because other music therapists have either mentioned or specifically requested topics. Feel free to send your suggestions and requests my way…coming up with new subject matter every single week can be a bit of a challenge!
by Rachel | Listen & Learn Music, Uncategorized
This week’s song topic comes courtesy of my mother-in-law, a special education teacher who works with young children. Every month I make her a CD of Listen & Learn songs to use in her classroom, and she creates amazing visual supports to accompany the songs.
This weekend I asked her what kinds of goals her students were working on, and she gave me a long list. At the top of it was learning the basic colors, and since I hadn’t written a color song in a while, the choice was easy.
Colors All Around focuses on the colors of the rainbow — though I simplified a bit, leaving out indigo and substituting violet with purple. I included three examples of each color and envision the song being used as a sort of “I Spy” game.
When it came to recording this week, I kept it super simple. Guitar and vocals, a throwback to the original Listen & Learn song style. This one is all about the lyrics, after all. Which songs about color are you digging lately?
by Rachel | Listen & Learn Music, Uncategorized
Earlier this year, I had the chance to see one of my favorite singer-songwriters, Eilen Jewell, in concert. Pokey LaFarge was the opening act, and I haven’t been able to get his song La La Blues out of my head ever since.
So I used that to my advantage and wrote The “La La” Song! Only my song isn’t about the blues — it’s about being happy, singing, and working towards speech goals.
I used all kinds of consonants throughout the song, but the idea is that they can be changed to accommodate a child’s unique and specific speech goals. I wrote a greeting song a few years back that followed the same model, and was able to adapt it for use with many of my students throughout the years. I’m thinking I can do the same with this one.
Side note: I’m really digging the piano lately! Sometimes it’s refreshing to put down the guitar and use another instrument, not only for recording, but for music therapy sessions as well. I need to do that more often :)
