Make-It Monday: Music Therapy Tools

I spent some time this weekend, combing through my clip-art files to make a food-based visual aid for my Teachers Pay Teachers store. It is almost finished, and I am getting ready to release it to the world. (If you are interested, it's called "I Want To Eat, Eat, Eat, Eat, Eat.") This will be a multi-functional visual aid chock full of food-related pictures and word options for clients, and I am pretty excited to be able to add it to my files for my clients. It's going to be a bit pricier than my other files because it was so much work, but it will still be reasonable for those of us out there who need inexpensive materials for our clients.

This file will be another one of my generic music therapy tools. In the visual aid, I do offer sheet music and lyric sheets for a specific song, but there are so many different ways you can use food pictures in songs that I am sure that this will become a worn-out visual pretty soon!

That reminds me, I have to make another set of emotion visuals for my blue folder - half of the cards are now missing...

There are some things that I feel any music therapist should have at his/her fingertips to assist clients in communicating wants and needs in music therapy sessions. These things are meant to be present for all to use whether they demonstrate a need for alternative or augmented communication or not. When you have a bunch of tools available then you can use them when you need them. It's that simple (in my brain, anyway!). A bunch of food pictures is one of those tools that I think should be included in a set of music therapy communication aids. So, I have one now.

In addition to food pictures, all music therapy communication kits should include a choice board, emotion cards, yes/no choice boards, first/then choice boards, and letters and numbers. Oh, and don't forget a bathroom card - ESSENTIAL! Mine currently have just the emotion cards, but that will change pretty soon. I'm working on new pages for my communication books - I also need to find new communication books - I have about three students who enjoy stepping on them and breaking the rings in the binders - sigh. Ooh, maybe Happy Planners would work for this type of communication book - I'll have to see how much things cost to see if it will justify the initial costs to get rid of the ringed binders. TANGENT. Back to topic now...

I find that making these tools for other music therapists to use with their clients is very fun and somewhat challenging. Sure, I know how I use these visuals, but it makes my brain stretch to think about ways that others would/could/should (goblin!) use them in music therapy outside my own clinic.

In a bit, I will be ready to offer visual aids in a bundle. This will give folks an option to purchase several of these tools together rather than buying them one at a time. I'm thinking a music therapy communication bundle would be something that others may be interested in - basic choices along with some topic-specific choices. It could be an add-on bundle - purchase it once and get updates forever. I already have two of those bundles in my own purchase library, and I love them! I have SO many resources available to me!! I'd like to pass that type of thing on so others can use materials that work.

Enough rambling. I am going to go to my files and get my newest Teachers Pay Teachers file ready to upload. Here comes food pictures!! While I'm there, I'm going to print out some copies for myself and start making my visuals for my books. I'm also going to brainstorm a list of songs that I know that can use these particular visual aids to supplement client responses and offer choices for communication. So far, I have three that I know of immediately - there are many, MANY more!

Happy Monday, all!