While like many of the posts found on this blog site, you’ll find a few songs. Unlike many of the posts, this is more a challenge for you to reflect on the heart of your work. We as music therapist, performers and music specialists have at the heart of our work music. It is our […]
Add a little warmth to your sessions. Warmth is… Clothing, drinks, food, shelter. It is the way we keep ourselves warm. The way a space is designed. Decorators refer to some colors as warm. Other times it comes from a variety of textures especially the inclusion if soft textiles which we can touch or (literally wrap) […]
Fire-up your sessions. Adding enthusiasm and energy comes in many ways. This posts explores injecting fun with an old fire song “Mrs. O’Leary’s Cow”. Whether the lyrics tell the true cause of the October 8-10, 1871 Chicago fire matters not. This popular song has been sung for many years. Use it as part of a […]
As we approach the end of the year, there is a tendency to reflect on the past and to set goals for the future. For many that is on a personal level. Ooh, I met this goal but gee I’m way off on this one. What the heck did I mean when I wrote this […]
It seems many institutions (among them preschools and senior living communities) make December all about the holidays. Or more specifically, turn everything from the day after Thanksgiving (or earlier) until December 26th into all things Christmas. This post is not one bashing religious observances. This is not about what you should do in your home. […]
When the autumn leaves begin to fall, the rakes come out. Folks begin to pile up the leaves. You’ll see children and pets jumping in and out of piles. When we rake, we are gathering, collecting or moving the leaves. We can do much the same with our session materials. We can gather in: Our […]
While I have enjoyed using Boomwhackers® in my senior living sessions, I must give credit where it is due. Shares by Kat Fulton convinced me to make greater use of them. As a result, you’ll find Boomwhackers® included in several session ideas on Music Sparks. Here are a few ways to have a booming good time […]
When I was employed as an Activity Director in long-term care, it took a lot of effort and time to arrange my vacations. At first, I found taking a vacation more stressful than not having a break. I had to be sure all my charting was completed, all the activities were covered, materials were in […]
A lot can go into sessions. What they didn’t teach you in school was how to crank out a variety of session plans while delivering them, documenting progress, learning new songs, prepping all the materials, and cleaning all the instruments. You CAN make it easy and enjoyable. Here are nine hacks to make it a little […]
Mistakes happen with all of us. Mistakes even happen in sessions. With experience mistakes may decrease in frequency and severity. Periodic supervision goes a long way towards our continuing to develop skills and to show areas for improvement. Challenging session can remind us of our humanness, of our need to improve and of our ability […]
