This winter, it feels like my kids have had more snow days and snow delays than they have full days of school!

We’ve been embracing it, though. Yesterday we went snow tubing, and we’ve been enjoying ice skating and lots of sledding in our backyard.

All of my sessions with kids this month and last month have been infused with a winter theme, especially my Rockin’ and Readin’ sessions at the library.

Because the focus of these sessions is on literacy, I always make sure to include a singable story.

Last Friday, I was rockin’ and readin’ at the Harbaugh-Thomas Library in Biglerville, Pennsylvania. We did the singable story “Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?” by Bill Martin, Jr. and Eric Carle.

This gave children the opportunity to work on receptive and expressive communication skills. They followed directions to put their hand to their ear when I sang the repeated phrase “What do you hear?” and then sang the phrase along with me.

I also included the singable story “The First Day of Winter” by Denise Fleming in my recent virtual music therapy sessions with afterschool programs in South Florida. This story can be sung to the tune of “The 12 Days of Christmas,” so it’s easy for students to catch on, it has lots of repetition, and has opportunities for movements so students stay engaged.

While browsing the library shelves recently with my own kids, I found several NEW winter-themed singable stories and wanted to share them with you.

“Walking in a Winter Wonderland” by Richard B. Smith and Felix Bernard pairs perfectly with the song we are all familiar with, and has beautiful illustrations.

“If It’s Snowy and You Know It Clap Your Paws” by Kim Norman is based on the song “If You’re Happy and You Know It,” but gives it a winter-y twist. Again, this is perfect for early childhood classes and library sessions because the children and caregivers are already familiar with the tune and can easily sing along.

I hope these singable story recommendations give you some creative ideas for a musical experience you can add to your sessions this winter, or to cozy up and read at home!

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Today we are wrapping up the Music Therapy in Action series with some of my most favorite videos – our Special Performances and Events!

I worked for seven years at United Community Options of Miami, facilitating music therapy for children with autism and related disabilities. During that time, my interns and I prepared many different types of performances for families and donors.

We helped the children perform several different shows, complete with an original script, songs, and dance moves.

One was a Halloween-themed show called “In the Woods,”; another was our spin on the classic “Little Red Riding Hood”; and another was a performance of The Nutcracker.

My interns and I also prepared the music for two Halloween special events:

I composed an original music score to go along with the book “Nightsong” by Ari Berk. The children listened to the story with the musical accompaniment.

Elevate Subscribers who signed up for the Holidays and Themes Package received the “Nightsong” score and instructions so they can use this in their Halloween-themed sessions this month.

I also composed a music score to go along with a reading of the book “Big Pumpkin” by Erica Silverman. This one is SO much fun!

I love looking back on these pictures and videos and see the children shine.

If you are looking for more ways to infuse creativity and fun into your music classes and therapy sessions, check out the Elevate Email Idea Subscription:

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Earlier this week, I was Rockin’ and Readin’ at the Carroll Valley Library branch in Fairfield, Pennsylvania.

The library invited me to lead a session during toddler and preschool story time, and we had a blast!

Today, I’m sharing a few ways I turned a typical holiday sing-a-long into an interactive, goal-oriented session for the children and their family members.

See which ones would work for your clients and students!

Sign Language – Prompt children to sign along with the songs. We did the signs for “antlers,” “nose” and “glows” while we sang “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer.” And, the sign for “snow” as we sang “Let It Snow.”

Props/Manipulatives – I always love to bring in hand held items for sensory stimulation and to give children something to hold onto. Encourage children to move the parachute while singing “Hanukkah Oh Hanukkah.” During the upbeat rhythmic part of the song, bounce the parachute quickly; during the slower part, move it up and down slowly to match the tempo.

Instruments…with directions – Children can choose an instrument and are given instructions to follow during the songs. For example, I added a freeze portion to the song “Santa Claus is Coming To Town.” And for “Frosty the Snowman,” children were instructed to listen closely and raise their instrument high in the air every time we sang “Frosty.”

Add a Book – It wouldn’t be Rockin’ and Readin’ at the Library if we didn’t have a singable story added to the mix. For this session, I brought in “The Twelve Days of Christmas” by Jane Cabrera (she’s got other great singable story books as well). Her adaptation of this familiar song is adorable, and lends itself to a music session perfectly. For example, there are drumming dogs and a party in a pear tree!

These few additions turned a regular ol’ sing-a-long into an interactive session that gave the children the chance to practice developmental skills (i.e. moving the parachute with the group to practice social skills; and listening for cues and following direction to work on impulse control and attention skills.)

I love Rockin’ and Readin’ at the Library and will be back at the Carroll Valley Library in Fairfield, Pennsylvania on Wednesday, January 4th from 10:00-10:30am for Baby Story Time!

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Tomorrow, Friday, September 11th I’ll be Zooming in to offer brand new VIRTUAL Rockin’ & Readin’ sessions for the Miami-Dade Public Library System.

Typically, the music therapists on my team and I travel to library branches across the county to offer our program.

Now, we’re able to offer these sessions virtually, so “virtually” anyone can attend!

(Rockin’ & Readin’ at the Library is one of the topics I receive the most emails about from music therapists & educators. Read this post and this post to find out more information about how I started these programs at the library).

These sessions are so much fun to lead.

Tomorrow, we’ll be doing an Apple Theme, so we’ll be:

• Singing apple songs (lots of apple songs!)
• Rising horses on the farm to William Tell Overture Finale
• Singing and counting apples in the tree
• Doing a singable story called “The Small Seed”
• Playing instruments
• Moving and dancing

The musical experiences are designed to target attention, academic, motor, and communication goals in ways that are engaging and FUN!

Here are the upcoming dates for 2020 –

Rockin’ & Readin’ for Preschoolers
Friday, September 11th @ 11:00am
Friday, September 25th @ 11:00am

These sessions are open to children ages 3 – 5 of all abilities for FREE, but you must call the Coral Gables Library to register and receive the Zoom login information.

Stay tuned for more upcoming session dates and I’ll see you over on Zoom!

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The library is one of my favorite places to be.

I’ve always loved the smell of the books and the peacefulness that lives in the bookshelves.

Well, that is the peacefulness until storytime starts!

If you’ve ever been to one of our Rockin’ & Readin music sessions, you know we get a little bit loud as we drum, shake bells, dance, and sing.

I created the Rockin’ & Readin’ at the Library program with the idea of bringing music into storytime. The musical activities we lead target developmental goals (like working on expressive communication by singing simple songs) and promote literacy (through singeable stories for example). The therapists on my team and I travel to library branches throughout Miami-Dade county to provide these music sessions for babies and toddlers.

We would love for you to join us in making music!

The sessions are FREE and open to toddlers (ages 18 months – 3 years) of all abilities, including those with special needs. Here are our upcoming session dates:

Friday, March 8th Claire will be rockin’ and readin’ with toddlers at the International Mall Library Branch from 10:30-11:00am.

Wednesday, March 13th Claire will be heading out to the Beach. She’ll be rockin’ and readin’ with toddlers at the Miami Beach Regional Branch from 10:30-11:00am and the South Shore Branch from 11:45am-12:15pm.

These sessions fill up very quickly and we limit the number of participants to 15 (to ensure each child has an instrument and to ensure the sessions are not overstimulating) Be sure to call the library branch directly to register your child.

Music therapists, are you interested in facilitating Rockin’ & Readin’ sessions at your local library? Check out this post where I answer some FAQs about the program. I’m also happy to set up a consultation to get you started on the right track in setting up this program in your area.

The post We Are Rockin’ & Readin’ at the Library in March appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

Although I have a storehouse of session ideas (especially when it comes to Fall!), I always like to keep things fresh and bring in new musical experiences for my clients.

My mom recently sent a book in the mail for my daughters (who are ages 2 and 4) and they love it, but as soon as I saw it (and read it) I knew it would be PERFECT for my music therapy sessions.

The book is called “The Leaves Are Falling One By One” by Steve Metzger.

You can sing the book to the tune of “The Ants Go Marching One By One.”

This singable book is great for working on the following goals:

• Expressive language (sing “Hurrah! Hurrah!” or the entire song)
• Math skills (counting 1-10)
• Motor skills (wiggle fingers and move arms up then slowly down to simulate leaves falling; or use scarves!)

You can also bring in leaves (real or fake) and use them for counting throughout the story. I think your clients will enjoy this singable book as much as mine have!

BTW – will I see you at conference in Dallas next week? I hope so!

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I don’t know about you, but I’m not ready to put my summer session plans away just yet!

I love using my uke and singing about relaxing days at the beach.

There are so many creative ways to design sensory, cognitive, and movement activities around a beach theme (click here to check out some of those ideas that you can implement right away).

I have a few more ideas to share that have worked out well:

– Book ‘n Songs (aka singable stories): “Beach Day” by Karen Roosa, “Beach Feet” by Lynn Reiser, “Beach Day” by Maggie Smith, and “Summer Days and Nights” by Wong Herbert Yee…and my FAVE which I mentioned last week: “To the Beach” by Linda Ashman.

– Beach Ball: Toss the beach ball on the parachute while moving it up and down like ocean waves.

– Suntan Lotion: Rub suntan lotion on different parts of the body to work on body part recognition AND to provide oflactory stimulation (I love the smell of suntan lotion, don’t you? Takes me right to the beach.)

– Bubbles: Pop bubbles to work on finger isolation and the “p” sound as the children say “Pop pop pop!”

We have a few more weeks to enjoy some beach activities in our music therapy sessions and then it will be back to school time!

Hope you’re having a great summer and that you can use some of these ideas in your sessions this week!

The post Need More Beach Theme Ideas? appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

It’s no secret that I love Fall and I love Halloween.

I find that there’s something about the season and holidays that sparks my creativity for planning new ideas.

Since I lead many sessions at our local library branches, I’m always looking for books to incorporate into my sessions.

Here are links to videos where I composed music to go along with the books: “Nightsong” and “Big Pumpkin.”

See the image above for more books that pair nicely with a song or instrumental music. (“We’re Going on a Ghost Hunt” is super cute!)

“We’re Off to Find the Witch’s House” is another great book I found this year. It’s a story about some children going trick-or-treating and the spooky friends they meet along the way.

I paired an instrument with each spooky character. For example, we used the canary stick to represent the owl, the clatterpillar to represent the skeleton, the sand blocks to represent the mummy’s shuffling feet, and the thunder tube to represent Frankenstein.

We also used the drum to represent knocking on the door when the trick-or-treaters arrived at the witch’s house.

This book is great for working on attention, impulse control and expressive language. There is a phrase that repeats throughout the book, “We’re going to the witch’s house, but we’re not afraid.” I prompted the children to repeat the phrase “But we’re not afraid.”

This allowed them to work towards their goal of increasing expressive language by speaking a 3-4 word utterance.

That’s all for now!

I hope you’re enjoying your Halloween sessions as much as I am.

Leave any book recommendations in the comment section below. I’d love to add some new books to my list!

The post It’s Fall Ya’ll: Halloween Books & Ideas appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

I’ve been on a library kick the past few weeks.

I’ve been having an amazing time planning for my sessions at the library, which include baby and toddler classes and Rockin’ & Readin’ sessions for children of all abilities, including those with special needs.

If you lead sessions at the library or if you want to incorporate more book ‘n songs into your sessions, be sure you’re signed up for our mailing list by clicking here.

As soon as you sign up, you’ll receive a brand new PDF resource I created – “20 Best Books to Use in Book ‘n Song Activities.”

These are some very specific things I look for when I choose a book to put to music and use in my music therapy sessions. I look for at least one of these things:

• The book has large, colorful illustrations.
• The pages are not overly cluttered with pictures or words (I’ve found that simple is better).
• There is some way the children can “interact” with the book – by lifting a flap, pulling a tab, or feeling a texture.
• The book incorporates some kind of academic concept (counting, numeral identification, letters, colors, etc.)
• The phrases or storyline allow children to participate (there’s a phrase they can repeat or some action they can do). I don’t ever want the children ‘just’ sitting there and listening – they need to be actively involved in the activity.

The list I created has books that incorporate one or more of the above criteria.

Here are a few more Book ‘n Song Resources for you:

• Read this blog post “Create Your Own Book ‘n Songs” which has more tips for you
• Watch this video where I use the book “Color Dance” to teach my kindergarten class about mixing colors.

I’ve had great success just going to the children’s section of the library and pulling out books to see what I can find. Oftentimes, I’ve found the more interesting and engaging books that way.

So be sure you’re signed up for the newsletter list to receive the “20 Best Books to Use in Book ‘n Song Activities” today!

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I just got back from taking my little one to story time and our local library and let me tell you, she loves it!

Now that she’s one, everything is more fun.

She’s getting into the movements of each song and she’s very observant of the librarians when they read.

I lead baby and toddler developmental music classes at library branches all across Miami (check out our Developmental Programs page for details!) and Brooke has given me so many ideas for things I can add into my sessions. (More on that in an upcoming blog post!)

Because she and I spend so much time at the library, I have tons of opportunities to grab books for my developmental music classes.

Recently, I found a few gems.

Jane Cabrera has a series of books that incorporate and expand on popular songs. This week in my sessions I’ve been using “Row, Row, Row Your Boat,” “Over in the Meadow” (my favorite!) and “If You’re Happy and You Know It.”

These books are beautifully illustrated and lend themselves perfectly to book n’ song activities because they incorporate concepts I’m already addressing in my sessions (identifying animals, movement, numeral identification, and counting just to name a few).

I typically use all my own original songs in sessions, but during my developmental music classes I like to also incorporate pre-existing, well-known songs so parents can sing along right away and use these songs at home.

Be sure to check out Jane Cabrera’s books – she has quite a selection to choose from.

And if you’re looking for even more books to add to your book ‘n song collection, be sure to hop on our newsletter list today. I’ll be sending out a list of the “20 Best Books to Use in Book ‘n Song Activities” next week to newsletter subscribers – you don’t want to miss out on that!

Now I’d love to hear from you…

What is your favorite book to use in your book ‘n song activities. Leave a comment below to let us know!

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