The Feelings in My Heart

by | Listen & Learn Music, Uncategorized


We talk a lot about love during February.  After all, it is the month in which we celebrate Valentine’s Day!  But what about all of those other feelings we experience on a daily basis? Recognizing, expressing, and regulating emotions are important skills for any child, including those with whom I work. I had this is mind when I wrote today’s song, “The Feelings in My Heart”. Take a listen:

Happiness, Excitement, Anger, Sadness, and Love,
My feelings are in my heart.
You can tell how I am feeling by my actions and words,
But in my heart is where they start.

I laugh and I smile when I’m happy,
Having fun with my friends for a while,
Happiness is a feeling I have in my heart,
It makes me laugh and smile.

I jump up and down when I’m excited,
When good things are coming around.
Excitement is a feeling I have in my heart,
It makes me jump up and down.

CHORUS

I yell and I pout when I’m angry,
When there’s something I’m mad about,
Anger is a feeling I have in my heart,
It makes me yell and pout.

I cry and I frown when I’m sad,
When I’m hurting or feeling down,
Sadness is a feeling I have in my heart,
It makes me cry and frown.

CHORUS

I hug joyfully when I feel love,
For my friend or my family,
Love is a feeling I have in my heart,
It makes me hug joyfully.

I used this song yesterday with a class of middle school students who have behavioral issues.  After each verse, we went around the room and gave examples of healthy ways to express that particular emotion.  Not only did I receive some very interesting responses, but I got a little more insight into my students and what they are all about.   I’m planning another activity related to this topic for next week.  I am going to create snippets of popular songs, which I’ll play for the class and ask them to identify whether each song reflects happiness, excitement, anger, sadness, or love.  I will provide the lyrics for analysis, and of course, some of the songs will fall into more than one category.  I’ve learned that anytime you can incorporate music that the students actually listen to outside of school (as long as it is school-appropriate), the opportunity should be seized!

Happy Groundhog Day!

by | Listen & Learn Music, Uncategorized


If you’ve already had your fill of winter, then you’ll be disappointed to hear that Punxsutawney Phil did indeed see his shadow this morning.  I have most definitely had enough of this season, but I resigned myself long ago to the fact that the groundhog ALWAYS sees his shadow, and there will ALWAYS be six more weeks of winter.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a song about Groundhog Day…but I know someone who does!  Fellow music therapist Wade Richards of Time for Music has a wonderful podcast, and his latest episode features not only a rockin’ Groundhog Day song, but also a super-fun tune for Super Bowl Sunday.  Check it out!

Spring may be six weeks away, but now that it’s February, we are one step closer :)  What are your plans for this month?  I’m excited about the upcoming Illinois Federation of Music Clubs’ annual Festival, in which several of my piano students will be participating.  It will be both their first time and mine, so it should be a great learning experience for all of us.  Other than that, I have some fun projects to share with you in the next couple of weeks.  I know I have been hinting at them for a while now, so I promise to spill the beans soon.  In the meantime, here’s the song my students and I are singing all month long:

February is month number two,
The shortest of all the months, it’s true.
Usually twenty-eight days, but sometimes
At leap year, then there’ll be twenty-nine.

February second is Groundhog Day,
We’ll wait for the animal to come out and play.
Let’s hope his shadow he does not see,
It means spring will soon be here for you and me.

CHORUS

February fourteenth is Valentine’s Day,
We’ll give out cards and “I love you,” we’ll say.
Time for chocolate, and candy hearts too,
Pink and red flowers for me and you.

CHORUS

February also brings President’s Day,
Remembering those who paved the way
For the US to become so great,
And that is why we celebrate.

CHORUS

Do the Clock Rock!

by | Listen & Learn Music, Uncategorized

My students and I have been rocking out all month to this song (which can be found on the pages of my Listen & Learn Songbook, by the way!) and this blog post is definitely past due. Telling time is another one of those skills that every child must learn, and I have come across (and put into use) a fair share of songs meant to teach just that.

The song I wrote is about as simple as it gets. It’s a stepping stone to the more complicated aspects of reading the clock, which I’ll get to in my next tick-tock tune :) For now, we focus on the numbers and use simple choreography (arm motions mimicking the hands of the clock) to show how they are situated. By now, the classroom staff at The Hope Institute are experts at it!

Doo-doot, doo, do the clock rock,
Rockin’ all day and night,
Doo-doot, doo, do the clock rock.
Round and round, with all our might.

Start at the top, that’s twelve AM.
One, two, three, four, five,
Six at the bottom,
Seven, eight, nine, ten,
Eleven and then,
We’ve made it back to twelve again!

CHORUS

Start at the top, that’s twelve PM.
One, two, three, four, five,
Six at the bottom,
Seven, eight, nine, ten,
Eleven and then,
We’ve made it back to twelve again!

CHORUS

Many of the classrooms at my school have those plastic or cardboard clocks with movable arms, which come in very handy when we sing this song.  The rest of the time, I draw my own clocks, or just use hand motions – my students LOVE doing the “Clock Rock” dance – to emphasize the information presented in this song.  The more fun you make it, the more effective a teaching tool it will be!

That Yellow Bus

by | Listen & Learn Music, Uncategorized

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?

by | Uncategorized

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.