I just love St. Patrick’s Day, and finding ways to incorporate that theme into my music therapy sessions with children with autism and adults with developmental disabilities.

There are so many fun ways to work leprechauns, shamrocks, and Irish music into our sessions to target therapeutic goals.

Check out this post, creatively titled “St. Paddy’s Day Session Ideas,” to learn how to play the crowd favorite game I created called “Irish…or Not Irish?” There is a FREEBIE in that post, so you can download the materials and use this game in your sessions right away! In this post you’ll also learn how to “play a rainbow” using your rainbow colored instrument sets.

In the also cleverly-titled post, “MORE St. Paddy’s Day Session Ideas,” you will get just what it says – more creative ideas to implement this week and next. You’ll learn how to incorporate Irish music into your sessions – both up tempo jigs and more mellow piano tunes.

In addition, I share about my FAVORITE instrument to use to enhance my St. Paddy’s Day Sessions.

It is the oh so versatile…..

Duck quacker.

I use the duck quacker to be the sound of the leprechaun laughing! This instrument has been, across the board, for the past 20 years, one of the most engaging instruments for my clients.

Any time they hear the sound, they stop what they’re doing, perk up, and listen.

So, I use the novelty and interesting sound of the instrument to engage my clients so they can work on their therapeutic goals.

In the post, you’ll learn about the game I play called “Where is the leprechaun?“, how I utilize the canary stick, and what goals can be targeted.

And if you want even more creative inspiration, check out Elevate.

Elevate is an email idea subscription designed to help you infuse creativity and FUN into your sessions with school-age & teen clients with autism & related disabilities.

You’ll earn 10 pre-approved CMTE credits per package.

These resources will super charge you and get you ready for your music therapy sessions and classes this Spring.

There are three packages to choose from: the Teen Package, the Attention/Perception Package, the Holidays & Themes Package, and the popular Combo Pack.

Each package is approved by the Certification Board for Music Therapists (CBMT) for 10 continuing education credits.

You’ll receive an email with new musical experience ideas in your inbox each month for six months.

Check everything that’s included in Elevate HERE.

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I am back to working with preschoolers and I am LOVING it!

I recently started a new contract, providing group music therapy at Amazing Kids Club Autism Center, part of True North Wellness Services in Hanover, Pennsylvania. I provide weekly group music therapy for the preschool program, and….

I had forgotten how physical it is to work with preschoolers!

We are up and moving around the room to music, playing instruments under our chairs, using music and movement to learn academic concepts, like you can see in these videos here, and sometimes we’re even inside a drum (check out videos here!)

After working mainly with teens for several years, it’s refreshing to be back to using some “oldie but goodie” original songs I’d written, printing out new visual aids, and of course, getting in some exercise as I keep the students engaged with lots of movement.

If you’re a music therapist looking for creative ideas for working with children with disabilities, check out the entire collection of ideas here for FREE. There are over 100 posts with session ideas, as well as ideas for enhancing your clinical practice!

And if you are looking for virtual or in-home music therapy services around the Gettyburg, Hanover, Littllestown, or Fairfield areas in Pennsylvania for individuals with autism and related disabilities, reach out to me via email or by phone: (305) 349-3680.

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Have you ever had a time when you were going along, leading your session, and suddenly realized that things were totally out of control?

Kids were screaming, people were wandering, and no one was following your instructions?

Insert hand raising emoji here. I’ve been there.

We’ve all had moments where it’s a runaway train and we feel like we’re losing our clients.

The great news is, as music therapists, we have lots of tools in our tool belt to steer the train back on track.

Today, we’re going to take a look at some of those tools.

The first one is to Be Proactive.
If you haven’t already, read last week’s post about “How To Plan Engaging Experiences For Mixed Ages & Abilities.” I share some great tips for ensuring your clients are engaged at a level that is appropriate for them.

Second, Use Musical Cues to Capture Attention.
Sometimes things are so loud and chaotic, it’s impossible to be heard when speaking. In these moments, I’ll strategically use musical cues to capture the attention of my clients. That might look like a loud, fast strum on guitar, and then gradually bringing down the tempo and volume as clients begin to quiet. Or, it might look like very, very soft fingerpicking and singing, in hopes that clients will quiet in order to hear.

Third, Get Moving.
Rhythmic movement is one of my favorite ways to reengage clients. There may be some extra energy that clients need to get out, or they may be seeking sensory stimulation. In these cases, I’ll get everyone up and launch into a movement experience – like jumping or stomping – with a strong, rhythmic cue.

Or, Swaying.
In some cases though, our clients may be overstimulated by a chaotic situation. You must know your clients and be constantly observing them for signs of over (or under) stimulation. If they appear overstimulated, I may go into a slow and quiet swaying experience in a 6/8 meter. Or, simply slow, soft fingerpicking, to bring the energy in the room to a more calm and peaceful state.

Fourth, Get Creative.
This goes back to Tip #1 – being proactive in designing creative musical experiences that are custom made for your unique clients. If you do this, you are much less likely to lose your clients’ attention.

Which leads me to….next week, when The Elevate Email Subscription will be open for enrollment! This is a fantastic way to start the new year off with a bang, and get creative intervention ideas sent straight to your inbox each month.

There is a subscription for ideas for teen clients with disabilities, and a subscription for ideas that target attention & perception skills. (Or, better yet, you can get the Combo Pack which includes both subscriptions for a discounted rate!)

You’ll receive monthly musical experience ideas sent straight to your inbox each month, have access to instructor support for any questions, AND complete Creativity Worksheets to double or triple the number of ideas you walk away with and earn 7 CMTE credits.

Enrollment will be open (at a discounted rate) from Jan 16 – 20, 2023!

The post How To Reengage Clients If You’re Losing Them appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

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!

The post How To Make Your Holiday Sing-a-Longs With Children Interactive appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

I recently participated in the Adams County Library’s FunFest.

Doesn’t the name FunFest just sound like a good time?

It really was.

FunFest is a free event hosted by the library system that celebrates the kick-off of their summer reading program. Community organizations and businesses host vendor booths with activities for children and information for parents.

My girls were excited about the milkshakes and balloon art, and I was excited to host my very first vendor booth so I could make connections with people in the community.

There’s something about being in Pennsylvania, and more specifically Gettysburg, that makes me want to dive in and be part of a community.

We’ve been here less than a year, and at the event I saw countless people I knew and recognized – librarians, families from my girls’ soccer teams, art therapists I’ve co-treated with.

This year’s theme was Oceans of Possibilities, so all the activities offered at vendor booths were ocean-themed.

I decided to have four activities that demonstrated how music therapy works (and boy was it hard to narrow those down!)

Here were the activities I offered:

Rainbow Hand Bells – Demonstrating how music therapy can improve cognition and academic skills.

Children were instructed to follow a color coded notation sheet and play the corresponding hand bell, and then Name The Tune (which was the ever popular “Baby Shark”). Then, they were encouraged to create their own song on the bells.

Goals: To improve sustained attention, improve color recognition, and increase executive function skills.

Q-Chord Playing & Singing – Demonstrating how music therapy can improve communication skills.

Children were instructed to follow a notation sheet and play the corresponding letters on the Q-chord.

Then, they were encouraged to sing (to the tune of “Wheels on the Bus”): The fish in the sea they swim, swim, swim; swim, swim, swim; swim, swim, swim. The fish in the sea they swim, swim, swim, all day long.

Goals: To increase receptive communication (direction following), increase expressive language, and improve articulation.

Multisensory Beach Basket – Demonstrating how music therapy can provide multisensory stimulation.

Children were instructed to pick up and play the instruments and items in the sensory basket. Items included: plush fish, spiky fish, sea shells, squirt bottle, bubbles, sun screen, and ocean drums.

Then, they were encouraged to sing (to the tune of “Shoo Fly”): What does the shell feel like? What does the shell feel like? What does the shell feel like? Is it rough or is it smooth?

Goals: To provide multisensory stimulation.

Drumming and Ocean Waves with the Parachute – Demonstrating how music therapy can improve motor skills.

Children were instructed to play the drum, then pick up the parachute and make waves as they sing: The ocean waves go up and down, up and down, up and down; the ocean waves go up and down, all day long.

Goals: To improve fine and gross motor skills, improve bilateral coordination, and increase strength and endurance.

I had a continuous stream of families visiting the booth, reading and learning about music therapy, and trying out all the instruments and activities.

What a wonderful way to introduce myself to the community and share about the benefits of music therapy!

If you are interested in music therapy services for your school or program, please reach out to me via our contact form or by email: Amy@WHmusictherapy.com

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I’ve been enjoying this year of homeschooling my preschooler (though I’m ready to send her back to in-person school when the time comes!)

We are now in the middle of a Spring theme and have been enjoying some fun Peeps science experiments (you know the one with the microwave right?), egg art projects, and Spring songs.

A lot of the musical ideas that I bring into homeschooling come directly from my music therapy sessions.

Five Little Ducks is one of our favorite singable stories.

Read this post to see how I use one special instrument to capture her attention and the attention of the young children that attend my virtual Rockin’ & Readin’ at the Library sessions. (This one is sure to bring out the giggles, too!)

I also love to incorporate sensory activities into my homeschooling and my music therapy sessions.

Check out this post called So Many Spring Scents.

See you how you can activate the olfactory sense for your sensory learners and make Spring come alive in your sessions. Feel free to use my original song “So Many Scents” to go along with it.

And, take a look at this post about Springtime Sounds.

Use the instrument ideas to work on localization, sound discrimination, or auditory identification. Create a Springtime soundscape or the ever popular musical rainstorm.

I hope the ideas in these posts help get the wheels turning for how you can create a festive Spring-themed session to target multiple domains of functioning.

Or, use them if you’re homeschooling too!

If you need more fresh ideas, I’d love for you to check out the Virtual Music Therapy Session Planning Pack for Spring (the ideas can be used in-person as well).

In the E-Book, you’ll learn creative musical experiences that are easily customized for your clients.

You’ll learn: musical game ideas, instrument activities, and creative movement experiences; how to use listening guides; and some brand new ideas that I’ve created just for my virtual sessions.

Along with the E-Book, you’ll get: beautiful visuals, picture cards, a musical game template, sample listening guide, and sample mini musical bio, as well as a looped hip hop beat MP3. It’s everything you need to implement the ideas in your virtual sessions right away!

Nell Miller, MT-BC calls the E-Book  “creative and wonderful” and says “I appreciate your ideas. You’ve helped me think of more varied things to try.”

Ashley Lewis, MM, MT-BC says “I of course love your resources and I think you are brilliant. Your visuals are the best I’ve ever seen! I’m a huge fan of yours and I can’t wait to see what you come up with next because I will be buying it.”

The post Spring-y Ideas For Your Music Therapy Sessions appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

In August, my girls and I made a long trek from Miami up to Maryland.

Our plan? To stay in Pennsylvania and Maryland for a few months to get away during hurricane season and avoid any kind of evacuation-during-a-pandemic situation.

It has really been wonderful getting to experience Fall again.

Twenty years living in South Florida can really make you miss the crisp weather and coziness of Fall!

We will be in Pennsylvania and Maryland for the next few weeks.

In addition to enjoying apple orchards and pumpkin patches, I am also going to be offering virtual services in the area.

This includes group and individual music therapy services and adapted music lessons on piano, guitar, ukulele, drum set, and voice, to children and teens with special needs.

The beautiful thing about teletherapy is that it doesn’t matter where you are (as long as you have a strong internet connection, am I right?)

If you are in Pennsylvania and Maryland, and are interested in starting virtual services, feel free to reach out to me here.

We already have several group sessions for children and teens starting up and would love to start more!

The post Music Therapy in Pennsylvania, Maryland, and D.C. appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

Regardless of whether your clients are doing homeschooling, distance learning, or in-person learning, we can all agree that this school year is going to look different than what we’re used to.

While sitting outside in the backyard watching my girls play and thinking about this, a song about this topic just came to me.

I furiously wrote and wrote, and within minutes the song – called “This School year Will Look a Little Different”- was complete.

I used the song yesterday in a music therapy session with teens and it was incredibly effective.

Take a listen and see if it would be useful in your sessions with children or teens as we begin the new school year:

We sang through the song as an echo song, with the lyrics pulled up using Zoom screen share. We did a pat and clap pattern throughout the song.

After singing, we made a list (using the white board feature on Zoom!) of all the things that would be different this school year. For example, school is online, or we’ll need to wear masks if we’re doing in-person learning.

And, we made a list of all the things that would remain the same this school year: math, reading, art, music, seeing friends (even if online).

Then, we talked through each of the three steps in the song and how we can follow those steps to have an awesome school year, regardless of how different things are right now.

The post Back To School Song: “This School Year Will Look a Little Different” appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

I don’t have to tell you that last week our world was turned completely upside down.

My business stopped all in-person services and moved as many clients and students as we could to virtual sessions and lessons.

Definitely NOT what we had expected or planned for.

But, music therapists are by nature creative, innovative, flexible, and resilient! So, we are already coming up with unique and engaging ways to work with our clients and students.

Here are a few ideas to engage our clients when using technology:

Use Lots of MOVEMENT – Your client on the other end of the computer doesn’t need any materials or instruments to be able to move and groove along with you. Incorporate lots of movements to wake up their body and the brain (and yours too!) – jumping, twirling, hopping, skipping, running, and stomping. Add in cues to “Freeze!” to work on attention and impulse control. Ask for their ideas for kinds of movements to do, so they have a chance to practice executive function skills like decision making.

Homemade Instruments – If your client families don’t have traditional rhythm instruments at home, give them ideas for how to make homemade instruments. (Even if they do already have instruments, it’s a fun project for them to make their own – everyone’s homeschooling now, right?!) Oatmeal and coffee containers can de decorated and turned into drums. Beans or rice can be added to soda cans and paper towel rolls to make shakers.

Songwriting – Simple songwriting can be done with clients of all ages. Think of topics that are relevant to them – St. Patrick’s Day…Feelings…Favorite things to do at home…Something they choose?

Body Percussion – No rhythm sticks at home? Try rhythm patterns using body percussion. It’s a great way to work on attention skills, impulse control, and auditory perception skills. You give a four-beat pattern, and they imitate it. Or, write out a four-beat rhythm pattern for them to learn and play along with your singing.

Fun pop songs – Have you heard of “The Git Up” by Blanco Brown? This would be a great song to teach older kids and tweens. The song is super upbeat and there’s a series of dance steps to learn, which is great for working on sequencing and memory.

Incorporate the Whole Family – This is a wonderful opportunity to engage parents, caregivers, and siblings in the session. This gives them a chance to bond with their child in a positive way AND learn musical experiences they can do once the computer is shut down.

These are just a few simple ideas.

I have a feeling we will all learn as we go, and begin to generate more and more ideas as time goes on.

I cannot wait to get back to my in-person sessions. I miss hearing a whole class of children singing along with me and getting big hugs at the end of a class. But for now, we will make the best of what we have.

If you’re in need of some session planning inspiration for your virtual music therapy sessions, check out this brand new resource (it’s 50% off until April 30th):

The post A Few Ideas for Going Virtual With Music Therapy appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

Last week, I started a two-part mini-series on the importance of transitions when working with children.

Quick refresher: 1) Transitions help children know an activity is ending; 2) They help recap and review; 3) They let children know another activity will be starting; 4) Transitions help reduce challenging behaviors; and 5) They help children feel organized, safe, and secure.

Now that’ve covered WHY transitions are important, here are some tips on HOW to facilitate smooth transitions with children:

1.Use a picture schedule. A picture schedule is an excellent way to let children know when an activity is starting (they can pull a picture off the schedule) and when an activity has ended (they can put the picture in a bag). Seeing the entire session schedule laid out in picture form can help children feel organized and secure because they can see exactly what is going to happen and when.

Here are 5 reasons why I love using a picture schedule in my sessions with children (and a picture of the one I use!)

2.Sing through your transitions. Passing out rhythm sticks? Cleaning up scarves? Sing a transition song. For example, to the tune of “Here We Go ‘Round the Mulberry Bush,” sing “Let’s put the scarves back in the bag.”  This gives children something to do (sing along while they wait!) and gives them clear instructions (“Put the scarf back in the bag.”)

3.Turn the end of a song into the transition song. Whatever song you’re singing, turn the last verse into the transition song. This works great for fast movement activities and instrument songs. I like to use original songs, but for this example, I’ll use a familiar song. Let’s say you’re singing “Wheels on the Bus” with your kiddos and they are standing up, moving their arms like the wheels on the bus. For the last verse, sing “Now it is time to sit back down, sit back down, sit back down. Now it is time to sit back down, in our chairs.” Gradually decrease the tempo and volume as you do this to facilitate a smooth and peaceful transition. (More on using specific musical elements to cue behaviors here!)

Now that we’ve discussed why transitions are so important and how to facilitate them smoothly, do you have any ideas to share?

I’d love to add some new ideas to my repertoire!

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