Well Hello Everybody!

It's a new month and it's time for a new 'Hello' song. I like to keep things interesting and one way to do that is to introduce a new 'hello' song. Many, many of my adult clients L-O-V-E Elvis Presley...so I thought I would adapt a famous song of his as our new hello song.

I chose "Hound Dog" and the new version is here for you to enjoy. My clients are a little less mobile and less active due to their age, so movement is a great way to get our classes started and the blood flowing.



Enjoy!

Wachs is Walking to Houston

A good friend, past professor, and amazing musician, Daniel Wachs was invited to work with the Houston Symphony!



Here's the article posted on Chapman's Happenings Website.


Hope it went well, Daniel! Cheers!

Giffords hitting "All the Right Recovery Notes"

Thanks to my friend (and senior-intern at MusicWorx) Steph for posting this article on twitter! It discusses how music therapy has affected Gifford's speech thus far in her recovery.


Giffords Article



xoxo

Guilt. Where Does it Come From?

My good friend, Tim Ringgold, has an amazing story to tell. He was a colleague of mine at Chapman University and is a fabulous music therapist with a big heart.

Please visit his blog Bella's Blessings. In his latest post, there is a great video of him speaking about guilt. I think about him often and am touched to know him.

xoxo

Organization. What's That?

Since I am a new (6 months board-certified) music therapist, I am starting to create songs, templates, PEC symbols, flashcards, etc. I was using rubber bands and plastic baggies....until I found the best thing ever at Target!

I pop in every couple of weeks (and those of you that know me) know that Target makes me happy :) And..on this occasion, Target made me very happy. I found just what I needed, took home two, and left only spending 2 bucks and some change. They were in the dollar section!


This specific file is for PEC SYMBOLS.




I have tabs for instruments, animals, colors, people, food, and names.




Here's a close up view.



I have another one for flashcards, cds, rhythm cards, and stickers.

Please share your ways to stay organized!

L-O-V-E

Valentine's Day is less than a week away...so...I thought I'd share with you what I'm doing with my clients this week!


A lot of my clients are working on sounding out words, spelling, and word recognition. This intervention goes along great with Valentine's Day and works on the goals listed above. Using an oldie (but goody) "L-O-V-E" clients learn or work on spelling the word "love." Here are the visuals that go along with the intervention. Velcro and a laminating machine are my best friends.


"L is for the way you look at me."



"O is for the only one I see."




"V is very, very extraordinary."



"E is even more than anyone that you adore..and LOVE..."



Here are the words and chords for your convenience.

"Music Can Bring You Home..."

A line from the new movie hitting theaters on March 18th. Are you as excited as I am?!






Here is The Music Never Stopped trailer!

The Note-Ables

Just came across this news story and video and thought I'd share it with you. Music Therapy is used in this case to help a young man with autism learn to communicate and to become more sociable.

The Note-Ables: Changing Lives Through Music

Here is the Note-Able's website. They are a non-profit organization based out of Reno, NV.