Summer is in full swing!

My kids and I just returned home from an amazing trip to Colorado (it was our first time!)

We went on horseback rides with the Rockies as our back drop, rock climbed in the Arapaho National Forest, and tried archery for the first time.

We made some incredible memories, and now I’m back home catching up on emails and writing (even though I was able to keep up with a fair amount of work virtually).

Today I want to share a songwriting experience that I facilitated for teen students in the autistic support classroom of one of our nearby high schools.

One of the class periods I saw them happened to fall on Valentine’s Day, which can be a sensitive time for students who have mixed feelings about the holiday.

I decided to bring in the song “Nice To Have a Friend” by Taylor Swift and focus on friendships and the other non-romantic relationships we have.

Here’s how I facilitated this experience:

  1. First, I handed out lyric sheets and we sang through the song together.
  2. On the second page of the lyric sheet, I had a blank box where students, depending on their level, could write or draw things they like to do with their friends.
  3. Next, we turned the ideas from the box into song lyrics for a Verse 3. We’ve done songwriting from scratch in the past, so we focused on the use of “rich language,” and the teachers and I helped the students craft lyrics using as much rich language as possible.
  4. If each student was comfortable, we then took a turn singing through their Verse 3. They could sing it alone, or I could join with them.
  5. Then, the whole group finished by singing the chorus together.

For students who didn’t feel comfortable singing, I offered egg shakers to softly play along with the music. This way, everyone could participate at their comfort level.

The song worked perfectly because it was simple and easy to learn, even if students had never heard it before. And, the structure of the song lent itself nicely to this type of songwriting.

Do you have Swifties in your music therapy groups or music classes too? Looking for more ways to use her songs therapeutically?

Check out this blog post with a Session Sneak Peak into how I use Taylor Swift’s songs and other pop songs in a goal-oriented way with my teen clients.

Here’s how I use “Trouble” by Taylor Swift to work on attention goals,

And, here’s how you can create an entire T. Swift-themed music therapy session!

For even more ways to infuse CREATIVITY and FUN into your sessions and classes, check out Elevate. It’s subscription where you receive music therapy session ideas for school-age students (Grades K-12) straight to your inbox each month!

You can choose from the Teen Package, the Attention Package, or the Holidays & Seasons Package (my personal favorite!) Each package is pre-approved by CBMT for 10 continuing education credits.