Have you had a chance to catch up on the last two Session Idea Blasts?

The first was about a Musical Game called Music Man that allows you to easily insert your clients’ and students’ preferred singers, bands, and songs into it (leads to instant engagement!)

The second was a Pop Song Listening Game. This one is super fun to plan and facilitate – it allows you to incorporate your clients’ and students’ musical faves as well.

Today’s post is about how you can incorporate Popular Music and Art into your sessions, to facilitate creativity and self-expression.

The Tune In To Teens and Attention & Perception E-Courses are open for enrollment this week only, at a discounted rate AND with some incredible bonus material included:

The Ultimate Pop Song Bonus is a 12-page creativity pack with tons of ideas for how to use current pop songs by Taylor Swift, Dua Lipa, Jason Aldean, Miley Cyrus, Imagine Dragons, and many more, therapeutically.

In it, you’ll learn how to use one of Taylor Swift’s popular songs, along with an arts experience, to promote self-expression, increase self-esteem, and increase communication skills.

You’ll learn how to facilitate a lyric analysis for Kacey Musgraves’ beautiful song “Rainbow,” and create artwork that promotes communication and self-expression in your clients and students.

You’ll also learn my favorite song to use at the beginning of each year to get my students dreaming about their goals and plans for the year ahead. It involves a song discussion and art project that incorporates meaningful lyrics from the song.

The Ultimate Pop Song Bonus includes tons of other musical experience ideas that target speech and language, attention, executive function, and relaxation goals in ways that are engaging and cool for your teen clients.

It’s valued at $25, and is included FREE when you enroll in Tune In To Teens or The Attention & Perception E-Course by Sunday, January 19th.

Following that, the courses will no longer be available for purchase, as I will be focusing on other projects and offerings.

If you’re on the fence, hop off and enroll now!

The post Session Idea Blast for Tweens & Teens – Music & Art with Pop Songs appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

It’s a snow day here in Pennsylvania – a far cry from the 80 degree Januarys we experienced when we lived in Florida!

Before I go outside to shovel and sled with my kiddos, I wanted to write up a quick blog to continue the Session Idea Blast Series I started last week.

In the last post, I shared about a musical game that my middle and high school students LOVE.

They love it because it’s competitive, allows them to work in teams, and incorporates their favorite music.

I love it because it allows me to easily customize the goals to fit the needs of each of my unique students.

Today, I’m sharing about a musical experience called Pop Song Listening Games.

Games that help our clients refine the auditory perception and listening skills that help them succeed in classroom and work settings.

Here’s how it goes –

Start by creating a list of popular and client preferred music.

Then, on your favorite video platform, look up versions of those songs played on different instruments.

For example –

“Havana” by Camila Cabello played on flute.

“We Don’t Talk About Bruno” from Encanto on trumpet.

“Antihero” by Taylor Swift on clarinet.

You can also play live versions yourself!

Play the song for your clients, and they’ll guess the song AND the instrument that is playing.

You can turn it into a game by dividing your clients into two or three smaller groups, or have the group participate as a whole.

After they correctly guess the song and instrument, play the original version of the song and everyone can jam and sing along.

This game is a great way for students to practice those oh so important attention and perception skills!

If these ideas are sparking your interest, then you’ll be glad to know that the doors for the Tune In To Teens E-Course and The Attention & Perception E-Course will be opening next week, on January 13th (at a discounted rate and for a limited time).

The session ideas and content in the courses are all geared toward school-age (K-8) and high school-age clients with disabilities, but can easily be adapted for other ages and clinical populations.

Each E-Course has three packages to choose from, ranging from 5-15 continuing education credits that are pre-approved with the Certification Board for Music Therapists (CBMT).

Lynda Miller, MT-BC, had this to say about The Attention & Perception course:

“Thank you for creating The Attention and Perception E-Course!  I have been encouraged, inspired, and moved to action by the way you presented this subject.  Instructions to “Stop now and fill out creativity worksheet” were effective and I used several of the ideas that same week.  My clients have responded positively to both the interventions and my renewed excitement.  Your E-Course has been worth every penny and my clients  and I thank you!”

And Anna Ruffle, MT-BC, shared this with me about Tune in To Teens:

“Thank you for sharing your tips and experience with this population!! The features I enjoyed most were the resources, session ideas, implementation tips – all of it!! I would definitely recommend to anyone struggling with building rapport, coming up with ideas, presenting engaging, relevant content to teen groups. It was a very organized, detailed, helpful course! It is such a great, thought-through, and thorough course that I have already recommended it to other MTs I work with.“

More than 400 music therapists, educators, and professionals have taken Wholesome Harmonies E-Courses and successfully put the ideas into use in their sessions and classrooms.

Stay tuned when they open for enrollment at a discounted rate and for a limited time next week!

The post Session Idea Blast for Tweens & Teens – Pop Song Listening Games appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

Happy New Year!

Things have turned chilly here in Pennsylvania. We have a snow storm on it’s way at the end of this weekend, which means my kiddos will inevitably have a snow day on Monday!

‘Tis the season of an erratic school schedule.

Nonetheless, I have big plans for later on in January – the Tune in To Teens and Attention & Perception E-Courses will be re-opened for enrollment!

So excited to be able to offer these popular courses again.

Leading up to the re-open launch, I’ll be doing a Session Idea Blast for Tweens & Teens by sharing some new ideas I’ve been implementing in my sessions recently.

The new year is the perfect time to gather and implement some fresh ideas, am I right?

Today, I’m sharing about a Musical Game called Music Man (a spin off of Hangman).

It’s as simple as this – choose a singer, band, song title, or song lyrics, and that will be what your students or clients need to guess.

Just as in regular Hangman, you’ll write on a wipe off board one blank line for each letter of the singer’s name, song title, etc.

Students can be in groups and guess letters until they can solve the Music Man puzzle and figure out the singer’s name, song title, etc.

(Check out the Tuneful Teens E-Book to see what I have students do if they guess the wrong letter, i.e. one that isn’t part of the singer’s name or song title!)

If they correctly solve the puzzle, we’ll then sing the song that they guessed and I’ll find a way to make it therapeutic based on those clients’ goals.

For example, if the song lyrics were “Baby now we got bad blood” by Taylor Swift, we might do a two-part movement pattern to the song.

If the band was Imagine Dragons, we might do instrument playing with cues.

This experience is awesome because tweens and teens LOVE it and are EXCITED about it, which means you have instant engagement.

But, you are working on social communication skills and expressive language, as students work together to solve the puzzle.

And, you can sprinkle in work on lots of other goals and objectives when you use the song therapeutically after the puzzle has been solved.

Tween/Teen engagement + work on therapeutic goals = WIN WIN.

If these ideas are sparking your interest, then you’ll be glad to know that the doors for the Tune In To Teens E-Course and The Attention & Perception E-Course will be opening on January 13th (at a discounted rate and for a limited time).

The session ideas and content in the courses are all geared toward school-age (K-8) and high school-age clients with disabilities, but can easily be adapted for other ages and clinical populations.

Each E-Course has three packages to choose from, ranging from 5-15 continuing education credits that are pre-approved with the Certification Board for Music Therapists (CBMT).

Sarah Jarvis, a music therapy intern, had this to say about The Attention & Perception course:

“Would I recommend the course to others? Oh, absolutely. Your voice is easy to listen to, your videos are excellently edited, and your material is succinct and straightforward. For someone with ADD, this was AWESOME and so simple to stay attentive. The edited videos of client interventions seamlessly fit into the instruction videos. It made it so easy to mentally jump from what a therapist can do to use this information and these techniques. Thank you for making it a fun learning experience!”

And John Kneip, MT-BC, shared this with me about Tune in To Teens:

“I think this was the most organized and clearly presented online music therapy course I have ever taken. Thank you for so much for the valuable and useful information. I really appreciated the amount of specific, practical, and useful ideas.”

More than 400 music therapists, educators, and professionals have taken Wholesome Harmonies E-Courses and successfully put the ideas into use in their sessions and classrooms.

Stay tuned when they open for enrollment at a discounted rate and for a limited time next week!

The post Session Idea Blast for Tweens & Teens – Music Man appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

Nonetheless, I am peeking ahead to 2025. How about you?

I’ve had several people reach out and ask about joining one of the Wholesome Harmonies E-Courses.

Though these courses are currently closed, the GREAT news is that they will be open for enrollment in January 2025! 🎉

The new year is the perfect time for a fresh start, and a time to gather new ideas for your upcoming music therapy sessions and classes.

(Or to log some CMTE credits – each course has three packages available, ranging from 5-15 continuing ed credits that are pre-approved with CBMT).

​Tune In To Teens is designed for music therapists and other professionals who work with teens with autism and related disabilities and are passionate about providing sessions that truly rock.

It’s packed with creative intervention ideas, new songs, session planning inspiration, and strategies for success when working with teens with special needs.

​The Attention & Perception E-Course offers a multitude of creative intervention ideas for targeting auditory perception and attention skills. You’ll watch more than 30 video demonstrations. And, throughout the course you’ll learn creative intervention ideas, new original songs, and strategies for maintaining your clients’ attention throughout a session.

You’ll also have access to sheet music, colorful visuals, pop song rhythm sheets, listening guides, dance break MP3s, and creativity worksheets.

To be sure that you don’t miss out on the scoop for when the E-Courses are open for enrollment, you’ll want to hop on the wait lists now.

In addition to staying up to date on when and how you can enroll, you’ll get bonus material just for joining the wait list.

And remember, mark your calendar for January 2025 when both courses will be open for enrollment for a short window of time!

Enjoy your holiday season and I’ll see you in 2025!

The post 2025 E-Course Update (and get ready to mark your calendar!) appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

The Tune In To Teens and Attention & Perception E-Courses will soon be going on hiatus for the foreseeable future.

It makes me a little sad to say that.

These have been passion projects for me – putting my knowledge and passion about music therapy with tweens and teens into these E-Courses, hearing your positive feedback and stories of success, has been a joy.

As a continuing education provider for the Certification Board for Music Therapists (CBMT), I pay to be a provider, and for each and every course offering so the credits will be pre-approved.

Since I’ll be putting my energy into new projects, like expanding the Elevate Email Idea Subscription, I’ve decided to no longer offer the Tune In To Teens and The Attention & Perception E-Courses.

BUT before I pull them, I’m going to offer them one last time at a discounted rate and with added bonus material, this week, January 15 – 19th.

Don’t worry! When you enroll, you’ll still have the full 3 or 6 months to complete the courses (depending on which package you choose), but the opportunity to purchase will end after Friday, January 19th (let me know if you have any questions on that!)

So…

if you’ve been on the fence about taking one of these courses,

if you need some pre-approved CMTEs (I’m talking 5-15 credits),

or if you need some cool and creative ideas for working with tweens and teens,

Now is the time to enroll.

​

Tune In To Teens is a resource designed for music therapists and other professionals who work with teens w/ autism and related disabilities, and are passionate about providing sessions that truly rock (think engaging AND cool).

The Basic Package includes the E-Course with video modules & demonstrations, session videos, GarageBand tutorials, sheet music, MP3s, and creativity worksheets.

Add on packages for additional CMTE credits include an article review in the Advanced Package, and email ideas and support in the Pro Package, all designed to set you up for success in your sessions with teens.

You can check out everything that’s included in Tune In To Teens and enroll here.

​The Attention & Perception E-Course was created for music therapists and other professionals who want to deepen their understanding of attention & perception, and use that knowledge to create engaging, effective, and FUN musical experiences to target those processes.

The Basic Package includes the E-Course with more than 30 video demonstrations, so you can see what the techniques look like in actual music therapy sessions.

Add on packages for additional CMTE credits include an article review in the Advanced Package, and email ideas and support in the Pro Package.

​Check out everything that’s included in the Attention course and enroll here.

PLUS, in addition to getting a discounted rate and 5-15 pre-approved continuing ed credits, when you enroll in either course this week, you’ll receive The Ultimate (I mean it!) Pop Song Bonus.

In this 12-page bonus, you’ll learn how to use songs by Imagine Dragons, Taylor Swift, Dua Lipa, Miley Cyrus, Jason Aldean, and so many others to address a variety of therapeutic goals.

I’m telling you, this bonus material is just SO GOOD!

Julia Sullivan, MT-BC calls Tune In To Teens a “lifesaver course!” She says “I am working with high school and post-grad students for the first time. I struggled to make relevant, age-appropriate activities, and your course was the first thing I turned to. I’m having an easier time now and I thank you for the great information!

And, after taking The Attention & Perception course, Sarah Jarvis, a Music Therapy Intern, said: “Would I recommend the course to others? Oh, absolutely. Your voice is easy to listen to, your videos are excellently edited, and your material is succinct and straightforward. The edited videos of client interventions seamlessly fit into the instruction videos. It made it so easy to mentally jump from what a therapist can do to use this information and these techniques. Thank you for making it a fun learning experience!”

Can’t wait to see you over in the courses!

The post The Tune In To Teens and Attention & Perception E-Courses are going away appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

Today, I did an entire refresh of my Music Jeopardy game for teens.

I updated all the songs for the Name That Tune and Finish the Phrase categories, and all the artists for the Name That Singer and Name That Style categories.

I do a refresh like this every few weeks, since the music that’s considered hip and cool seems to change pretty frequently.

It can be hard to keep up right?

For me, it is. So here’s where I hang out to find new music for my teen clients and students:

Kidz Bop

Now That’s What I Call Music

Billboard Hot 100

For the Name That Style category, I was having trouble coming up with an appropriate song for the rap category, so I went to the Billboard Hot 100 chart for Hot Rap Songs.

I found a song by a rapper I’d never heard of and included it in the Jeopardy Game (just because I hadn’t heard of him doesn’t mean my students haven’t!)

I was also having trouble finding songs that had appropriate lyrics and content for one of the schools where I work.

So I went to the Kidz Bop and Now That’s What I Call Music sites.

These sites are great because you can find clean versions of popular music and the songs that your clients like.

These are resources I come back to time and time again as I keep my finger on the pulse of what music is “cool” and “in” right now.

This doesn’t replace asking our clients about their preferred music, it’s just another tool in out tool belt!

If you’re in need of some more tools for your tool belt, then I would love for you to join the Tune In To Teens E-Course (it’s pre-approved by CBMT for 5-15 credits, depending on the package you choose!)

Anna Ruffle, MT-BC had this to say after completing the course:

“Thank you for sharing your tips and experience with this population!! The features I enjoyed most were the resources, session ideas, implementation tips – all of it!! I would definitely recommend to anyone struggling with building rapport, coming up with ideas, presenting engaging, relevant content to teen groups. It was a very organized, detailed, helpful course! It is such a great, thought-through, and thorough course that I have already recommended it to other MTs I work with.“

You can hop on the waiting list here:

You’ll receive updates on when the doors for enrollment are open (next week! May 30 – June 3), how to access a discounted rate, and a FREEBIE: Yo’ Guide to Rapping With Confidence.

Can’t wait to see you over in the course!

The post Where I Hang Out To Find New Music For Teens appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

Over the past few weeks, I’ve shared some posts that’ve hopefully boosted your creativity if you work with school-age clients or teens.

In this post, I showed how to therapeutically use songs that don’t appear (at first) to have therapeutic value.

And here, I shared how I keep things age appropriate (and cool!) when working with teens.

If you want even more material on how to create engaging musical experiences for your teen clients (and earn some CMTEs!), mark your calendar for May 30th.

From May 30 – June 3, the Tune In To Teens E-Course will be open for enrollment at a discounted rate and with some additional bonus material.

Today, I’d like to share with you a few pop songs that have been great for movement activities with my school-age and teen clients.

This is a great example of how we can use a client preferred song that may not be an ideal candidate for song discussion or lyric analysis.

Over the past few months, my clients and I have gotten up out of our seats and boogied to:

“Cool” by Jonas Brothers

“Take My Breath” and “Blinding Lights” by The Weeknd

“AOK” by Tai Verdes

“Love On Top” by Beyoncé

“RITMO” by Black Eyed Peas and J Blavin

“Keep Your Head Up” by Andy Grammer

“What Else Can I Do?” from Encanto

“Surface Pressure” from Encanto

Sometimes the students follow movement patterns – one pattern for the chorus and another for the verse.

Sometimes each group member chooses a movement and the rest of the group follows it.

And sometimes, we just dance…freestyle!

Pull up these songs and have a listen – your clients may enjoy them as well.

And, if you’re interested in joining the Tune In To Teens E-Course, hop on the waiting list here:

You’ll receive updates on when the doors for enrollment are open, how to access a discounted rate, and a FREEBIE: Yo’ Guide to Rapping With Confidence.

Can’t wait to see you over in the course!

The post Good Pop Songs for Movement with Teens appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

One thing I hear very often from music therapists and educators who work with teens is that they have trouble finding musical experiences that are considered “cool” by their clients and students.

I can relate 100%.

I worked with children for so long that it was hard to crawl out of that headspace and create experiences that were appropriate and interesting for the coolest crew out there: teens.

It can be tricky, I know.

Today I’m going to share a simple tip to instantly boost the cool factor of your musical experiences: Set your song to a beat.

Sounds simple, so let me elaborate –

There are endless ways you can do this: you can set a beat on your keyboard or create one in GarageBand (your teen clients can even be part of this process!)

Many times, if I have a song that teaches an academic concept or social skill, I don’t even sing, I rap or chant to the beat.

The Noun Rap is a great example, and one of my favorites.

And, in the Virtual Music Therapy Session Planning Packs, I share a musical experience called Mini Raps.

Instead of writing a cheesy song about what my clients did on Spring Break, I turned it into a rap (or chant, if that feels more accessible to you!) and simply set it to a beat.

So, I hit the beat and rap: “Tell me, tell me what did you do? What did you do on Spring Break?”

Seems simple, but it instantly ups the cool factor and I constantly have clients telling me “That was so cool!” and “Can we do that again next week?”

When you hear those things, you know your clients are engaged and excited, and are therefore more likely to participate and work towards their clinical goals.

But you’ve gotta hook them first. And, that’s where beats come in!

If you are looking for more creative ways to engage your school-age and teens clients, you’ll be happy to know that the Tune In To Teens E-Course is opening for enrollment next week, May 10-14th!

I could not be more excited.

This course was one of my favorite ones to create and I am constantly hearing positive feedback from participants who have used the ideas over the years with success.

The course is pre-approved by CBMT for 5-15 continuing education credits, and there are three packages to choose from.

You can learn more and hop on the wait list here. You’ll get a rapping with teens freebie when you do!

The post Instantly Up The Cool Factor On Your Musical Experiences For Teens appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

One of the Tune In To Teens course features I hear the most positive feedback about is the Challenging Scenarios & Strategies for Success section, in Chapter 3.

Working with teens is one of the most enjoyable things I’ve had the opportunity to do in my music therapy career, but it does come with some unique challenges.

How do you stay on top of learning all those new pop songs? And how do you handle songs with inappropriate language and content?

How do you reproduce songs from the radio that are difficult to accurately and authentically recreate?

How should you structure your sessions and how often should you repeat activities?

How do you manage a large group of teen clients?

How do you handle challenging behaviors like cursing, fighting, and agitation from over stimulation?

And, most importantly – What do you say or do when you hear the dreaded “This is dumb” or “This is boring”?

(Hint: You’re not going to curl up in a ball and hide.)

In the Tune In To Teens E-Course, I answer each and every one of these questions in detail.

You’ll learn exactly how to handle challenging situations – specific things to say and concrete steps to take to ensure you start hearing “This is cool!” and “Can we do this again at the next session?”

In addition to all this, the E-Course is JAM PACKED with creative intervention ideas in a variety of domains, new songs, and session planning inspiration for working with teens with autism and other special needs. Course participants have access to sheet music, looped hip hop beats, original song MP3s, session videos, and creativity worksheets that can be downloaded and saved.

Participants can receive between 5 – 15 pre-approved CMTE credits (depending on which package you choose) and have access to a VIP forum with personalized instructor support (win-win right?!)

Enrollment for the E-Course only opens twice per year.

Join the waitlist by entering your name and email below, so you don’t miss when the doors for enrollment are open (and close again).

When you join the waitlist, you’ll hear about special discounts and promotions, and how you can access free bonus material. Plus, you’ll get this freebie right away: Yo’ Guide To Rapping With Confidence. A step-by-step procedure for how to create meaningful raps with your teen clients and students.

Catch up on past course highlight posts here, here, and here. You’ll learn about special features of Tune In To Teens that make it stand out from other continuing education courses.

More than 100 music therapists, educators, and professionals have taken the E-Course and successfully put the ideas into use in their sessions and classrooms.

John Kneip, MT-BC had this to say about Tune In To Teens: “I think this was the most organized and clearly presented online music therapy course I have ever taken. Thank you for so much valuable and useful information. I really appreciated the amount of specific, practical, and useful ideas.”

If you’re interested in learning more about the E-Course, be sure to hop on the wait list now!

The post {TUNE IN TO TEENS SPOTLIGHT} How To Handle Challenging Situations When Working With Teens appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.

When it comes to looking at goals and areas of need for my teen clients, creativity and self-expression continually come to the top of my list, in terms of importance.

With the upheaval that teens have experienced due to the pandemic, promoting creativity and giving them opportunities for self-expression seem more important now than ever before.

Each time I sit down to session plan for my music therapy sessions, I make sure to add in these kinds of opportunities.

I’ve used GarageBand…

facilitated Hawaiian Music & Art Experiences…

and led this Pirate Creative Listening Experience (which was a total hit!)

I also made sure to include these kinds of creative music experiences in Tune In To Teens, the E-Course I created for music therapists and educators.

In the E-Course (which opens for enrollment NEXT WEEK!) you learn:

Music therapy interventions that target the following goals: Increasing self-expression, enhancing self-awareness, and increasing self-esteem.

Music That Tells a Story: Learn how to facilitate this experience, exactly what questions to ask, what musical pieces to use, and multiple variations and ideas for extension.

Rapping: If rapping makes you feel uncomfortable or self-conscious – first of all, I’ve been there; and second of all, I’ve got you covered. In the course, you get step-by-step instructions for how to facilitate rapping experiences using basic tools that you likely already have. You’ll also get sample themes and sentence starters so you have a concrete place to start.

Rap Track MP3s: You’ll receive rap track hip hop beats and learn how you can use them in multiple creative ways during rapping, movement, and instrument playing experiences.

GarageBand Tutorial: You can watch a GarageBand tutorial for Mac and iPad, so you’ll be able to create your own looped beats and assist your clients in creating their own.

In addition to all these ideas, the E-Course is JAM PACKED with creative intervention ideas in other domains, new songs, session planning inspiration, and strategies for success when working with teens with autism and other special needs. Course participants have access to sheet music, looped hip hop beats, original song MP3s, session videos, and creativity worksheets that can be downloaded and saved.

Participants can receive between 5 – 15 pre-approved CMTE credits (depending on which package you choose) and have access to a VIP forum with personalized instructor support (win-win right?!)

Enrollment for the E-Course only opens twice per year.

Join the waitlist by entering your name and email below, so you don’t miss when the doors for enrollment are open (and close again).

When you join the waitlist, you’ll hear about special discounts and promotions, and how you can access free bonus material. Plus, you’ll get this freebie right away: Yo’ Guide To Rapping With Confidence. A step-by-step procedure for how to create meaningful raps with your teen clients and students.

Be sure to stay tuned…

Over the next few weeks on the blog, I’ll be highlighting some of the special features of Tune In To Teens that make it stand out from other continuing education courses.

Catch up on past course highlight posts here, here, and here.

More than 100 music therapists, educators, and professionals have taken the E-Course and successfully put the ideas into use in their sessions and classrooms.

Michelle Nettle, MT-BC said this when she completed the course: “Amy is a great presenter and I would definitely take more of her online CMTE courses! I hope you keep creating more E-Books and CMTE online courses. I love all the ones you currently have available. You are great and your ideas and presentation are so creative and also easy to implement, as you do a great job of “breaking” all the interventions down. Thank you and please keep creating!”

If you’re interested in learning more about the E-Course, be sure to hop on the wait list now!

The post {TUNE IN TO TEENS SPOTLIGHT} Promoting Creativity & Self-Expression In Teens appeared first on Wholesome Harmonies, LLC.