It’s Listen & Learn’s birthday, but YOU’RE getting the presents.
My baby is hitting double digits! It’s hard to believe that this little website I started as a brand-new music therapist is still going strong 10 years later. Recording the songs, creating the materials, and writing the blog posts that fill up these pages brings me SO much joy, but what fills me up even more is knowing that they are benefiting YOU.
YOU are the reason that Listen & Learn Music is still alive and well today, and YOU are the reason I’ll be celebrating another 10 years in 2028. Every email and comment I receive detailing how a song was brought to life in a classroom or music therapy session, and how it helped a child to learn a new skill, provides the motivation to make this an even more valuable resource for you.
To properly thank you for your support, I want to give you a gift for every year of Listen & Learn Music. Starting September 1, I’ll be sharing one of my favorite resources with you from the L&L collection each day in yearly chronological order, all the way through September 10.
Our Biggest Giveaway Ever
And last, but not least, I hope you’ll participate in the GIVEAWAY I’m doing on September 10! One extremely lucky winner will receive a LIFETIME VIP MEMBERSHIP to Listen & Learn Plus, including all current and future CMTE courses.
All you have to do is help me celebrate by:
1) following Listen & Learn Music on Instagram
2) Creating a post about how you’ve used a L&L resource, or just simply sending a birthday wish
3) Tagging @listenlearnmusic on your post
4) Using the hashtag #listenlearnmusicturns10
Feel free to save and post this image and use the caption:
Wishing @listenlearnmusic a very happy 10th birthday! I’m joining in the celebration and hoping to win a lifetime VIP membership to Listen & Learn Plus! #listenlearnmusicturns10
Follow the steps above to enter as many times as you’d like between September 1 – 10.
Start from the beginning.
Each day, I’m writing a blog post recapping each year of Listen & Learn Music and announcing the resource gift for that day.
If you’ve entered your name and email address above, you’ll receive these directly to your inbox, and you’ll also have access to them (along with other cool stuff) inside the private Facebook group.
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More from Listen & Learn Music
DIY Cupcake Shakers + A Song for Shaking Along
How innovative are you when it comes to instruments for music classes, music therapy, and classroom use? Well, I can tell you I’m not even a fraction as innovative as my colleague at Music Therapy Connections, Becky Waddell.
About a month ago, Becky sent me a Slack message: “I picked up tiny cupcakes that I’m turning into shakers for one of my classes if you get an itch to write a song about cupcakes! Ha!”
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What It’s Like to be a Therapist at a Camp for Kids with Special Needs
This past week, I was on Nantucket Island in Massachusetts, at Adam’s Camp New England. For the past three years, I have been one of the music therapists for Adam’s Camp. Every year, this camp has pushed me to the limits and taught me new skills, while creating incredible bonds with children, their families, and other therapists along the way.
To say I love this camp would be a serious understatement! I look forward to my weeks at Adam’s Camp more than almost anything all year.
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#Goals (and When to Reassess)
Summer is usually a pretty laid-back time at my private practice, Music Therapy Connections. However, summer 2019 is a MAJOR exception to this rule, as it has been quite the whirlwind so far.
At the end of May, we welcomed a new music therapy intern, Emma, and then just a couple weeks later, we welcomed a new full-time music therapist, Molly. Then, one week after that, our long-time music therapist, Alisabeth, left us to have her baby.
So as you can imagine, there has been an overload of new client intake, new contracts beginning, and current clients being reassigned to different music therapists. Thankfully, we are at tail end of this shuffle, and now the real work begins.
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The Amazing Cabasa!
One of my all-time favorite instruments in my music therapy arsenal is my collection of cabasas! I love them so much, and use them frequently in my music therapy sessions and music classes — probably every day.
When I pass out cabasas, people are often unsure how to use them and typically require some guidance. Because of this, the cabasa is a great instrument for children to explore, be creative, and practicing mimicking.
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Parker’s 6th Birthday
It’s official: I have a 6-year-old! When Parker turned 5 (remember his epic Batman birthday bash!?) it felt like he was entering the “big kid” years, and now it seems that he is firmly in that category.
After two years of hosting big backyard birthday parties, this mama was ready to keep it much more low-key. So we rented out our local gymnastics center, where Parker and 18 of his closest friends could run wild and use up all their summer energy.
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Move Your Body Along
As I was scrolling through Listen & Learn Music in search of a movement song, I stumbled upon “Move Your Body Along” — a true hidden gem in the L&L catalog.
I have to admit, I listen to so many songs because of my job, that sometimes I forget them. Other times, I have the best of intentions, set out to learn a song and incorporate it into my repertoire, and just never do it. THIS is one of those songs!
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Incorporating Singable Stories
Children just love books; it is a simple fact I have come to learn over the years. Whether it’s looking at the pictures, having a chance to turn the page, or snuggling in an adult’s lap, many children are highly motivated and engaged when it’s time to read a book.
I was always hesitant to incorporate books into my music therapy sessions and music classes, but I noticed that if I arrived a few minutes early or stayed a little later, many of my clients and students would ask if I would read them a book. For young children, I truly think it is a way for them to express that they want to share an experience with you and often, they are telling you that you are important to them.
For younger children and those with special needs, visually attending or engaging in a book might be hard work or just not interesting for them. When that’s the case, my solution (of course) is to sing the words of the story!
There are so many stories that are easily singable, and many even have songs or melodies written for them. Below, I’ve featured two singable stories you can find in the Listen & Learn Music catalog.
Some of the goals addressed in these songs:
- Improve the transition to bedtime
- Improve sequencing skills
- Improve object identification
- Increase sustained attention
- Increase creative thinking
- Improve fine motor skills
There’s no better time for a lullaby than bedtime, and the same goes for books! When you combine the two, you get “I’ll See You in the Morning”, a sweet lullaby that pairs with the books of the same title (find it here) by Mike Jolley.
When utilizing “I’ll See You in the Morning”, encourage children to look at the pages and identify what they see, fill in the blanks, or recall what they heard in the story. The singable story may also help them understand the transition from day to night, which can be confusing, and even scary for young children.
It can be hard for children, and even adults, to truly understand how big the world is. There are so many different cultures, languages, and sights to see, and “Around the World We Go” serves as a great introduction to the diversity of the world we live in! This singable story pairs with the book of the same title (find it here) by Margaret Wise Brown.
“Around the World We Go” can be utilized in many of the same ways as “I’ll See You in the Morning”, but because of the repetitive nature of this particular book, it provides the ideal opportunity to include sign language for improved fine motor skills.
“Around the World We Go” can also be used as a conversation starter with children about other people around the world. For children who are older, this could even be used as an opportunity to create their own verse for the singable story, and maybe even encourage the children to create illustrations for their verse.
All singable stories can be utilized to improve sustained focus and object identification, but it is easy to see that different singable stories can be utilized to target other goals, such as understanding the differences in the world or transitioning to bedtime. There are so many possibilities with singable stories, which makes them a priceless addition to any music therapy session or music class.
Let me know in the comments below: What singable stories do you incorporate into your music therapy sessions or classes?
You can listen to all of these songs in their entirety right here. Lyrics, chords, mp3, and instrumental track for these original songs are available for download. As is the case for all Listen & Learn Music creations, we invite you to adapt these songs as needed to best serve your students and/or clients.
Four Seasons Song Pack!
The end of May and beginning of June is a busy time for everyone, but it’s especially jam-packed for my family thanks to LOTS of birthdays! This week, we’re celebrating mine (June 5) AND my son’s (June 8).
For the last few years, I’ve put together a special Listen & Learn offer during my birthday week, and this year is no exception. This one might actually be my favorite yet, because it will come in handy alllll year long.
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Greatest Hits of the School Year
Here in New Hampshire, school is still in session for a few more weeks. Many of my clients and students are preparing to move on to new classrooms, new schools, or are just getting ready for summer break, and often, a break from music therapy or music classes.
For the last session or class of the school year, I like to bring out all of the kiddos’ favorite songs we’ve done, and sometimes, children will even make requests for what songs they’d like to hear.
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Scenes from Summer Break
Believe it or not, we are already over a week into summer break at my house! Parker’s last day of kindergarten was May 22, and we’ve been filling our days with summer fun ever since.
Luckily, my husband Zach and I were able to enjoy a week of rest and relaxation in Hawaii (check out my story highlights on Instagram) right before the end-of-school madness set it, which was great because life has been moving like a freight train from the moment we returned home.
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How To Teach Turn-Taking & Sharing
Taking turns is one of the most challenging tasks for students in my music therapy groups and music classes. Although it can also be a challenge for the music therapist or teacher to facilitate and manage sharing opportunities, there are many factors that can influence the success of songs that feature turn-taking.
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And Then She Was 4
It seems impossible, but my girl turned 4 this week! We celebrated by playing hooky from preschool, baking a homemade cake (with pink frosting, of course), and having our family over for pizza and presents.
Since she was born, Mia Belle has been my “Velcro baby” — stuck to me 24/7. And although she’s still a mama’s girl through and through, at 4 she is finally open to letting go of me in favor of her daddy, who takes her to ballet class and “Chikolay” (Chik-Fil-A) every week.
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Spring into Summer Break
The countdown to summer break is on! For many of my music therapy sessions and music classes, we only have a few weeks left before we’ll part ways for the summer. Although most therapists and teachers who work with school-aged children look forward to summer break, it can be a challenging time for our clients and students.
Endings are never easy, and although we might continue working with the same kiddos next year, there are still a lot of changes happening for them. Between schedule changes and weather changes, the prospect of new classrooms, new teachers, and classmates can be totally overwhelming.
As a music therapist, it’s easy for me to present these challenging topics and transitions in a fun and upbeat way. Below, I’ve featured two songs that I’ll be using to help my clients and students transition to summer break!
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Creating Adaptations to Suit Your Needs
One thing that I love about working with lots of different kiddos is the opportunity to create adaptations! These allow me to use the same songs with many different students and clients, all of whom have unique strengths and needs. Being a music therapist has made me even more creative; I am constantly inspired not only by my kiddos, but also by their teachers, therapists and parents.
I have been approached countless times by those I work with to incorporate different themes or important topics into my music therapy sessions or music classes. Often times, I will use a song that I already know, and adapt it to accommodate other goals.
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Mother’s Day the Kindergarten Way
My son’s school has the most precious tradition: a Mother’s Day Tea hosted by the two kindergarten classes. I heard about it last summer from another mom whose son had just finished kindergarten, and I’ve been looking forward to it ever since.
I have to say, this event definitely lived up to my expectations! Imagine 50 kindergarteners dressed in their Sunday best, serving their moms treats and performing songs about how much they love their moms…that’s what I got to experience last night :)
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My Family in Photos
Over Easter, my family had the rare opportunity to all be together in one place at the same time. We met up in Denver, where my stepsister and her family hosted all 18 of us — including 8 kids ranging in age from 2 to 12!
We not only celebrated Easter, but also my mom’s 60th birthday. One of the things she really wanted was current photos of all of us, along with some of the entire family together.
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Teaching Safety Skills Through Song
Music is such a powerful and flexible tool, as we’ve witnessed firsthand both through our own life experiences and the work we do with children. Most of us have learned so many things through music…I mean, Schoolhouse Rock, anyone?!
I learned so much through music and I love seeing my clients and students learn things through music as well. Children latch onto music very quickly, so it is the perfect vehicle to teach important skills, like safety rules.
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How to Find the Right Song Every Time
You know that moment when you need a song for a child, music group, or music therapy session? In your mind, you clearly know what goals the song will target, the instruments or props that you want to use, the theme…now you just have to find it. Well, you are in luck!
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Keep It Simple
Last week, I told you that my colleagues and I were hard at work on a new resource centered around our go-to props and instruments: drums, rhythm sticks, scarves, and shakers. Today is the day we get to share that new resource with you!
Keep It Simple: 16 Goal-Based Applications for the Instruments & Props You Already Own is here, and I can’t wait for you to check it out and start putting the applications to use.
In this comprehensive downloadable PDF, we are sharing:
- Overviews for each instrument/prop, which include a list of general objectives that can be targeted using those materials, additional intervention ideas, and 10-15 extra songs that pair well with each instrument/prop. We created Spotify playlists for all 4 categories, which are linked in the overviews.
- 16 applications that you can easily put to use in your own sessions. Each application includes a demonstration video and link to lyrics/chords, along with a detailed facilitation guide outlining the targeted objectives, procedure list, and multiple adaptations.
- A quick reference spreadsheet containing an overview of the objectives for each application. Although many of the songs may seem simple or you’re familiar with them already, we have found a variety of ways to facilitate them in order to help our clients meet their goals.
- 2 extra applications that can be used not only with the big 4 instruments/props, but also incorporate many meaningful signs that can be used across populations. Sign language demonstration videos are included.
These tried-and-true applications have been effectively put into practice in schools, hospitals, early childhood centers, senior living facilities, and private practice, and our clients ranging from 3 months old to 90+ years old have benefited from them. We hope that your clients will, too.
Give your instrument- and prop-based repertoire a big goal-based boost with Keep It Simple, created by our team of 4 board-certified music therapists. You will find all of the details and option to purchase right here!
Spring is All About… {Free Download!}
One of my favorite things to bring into my music therapy sessions and music classes is visual aides. I LOVE visual aides! For many of my clients and students, visual aides help them connect the dots from the lyrics to the objects or concepts in the songs.
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate the goals and objectives that can be targeted when I put the instruments away and utilize visual aides. Although I typically create my own, “Spring is All About…” already has beautiful visual aides that you can get for yourself right now, because this song is a free download!
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