New Video about Making a Choice Board

As I speak, I am uploading a process video that I made yesterday. I am not necessarily the best videographer that ever was, but I am learning, and I do enjoy showing what I can do with a couple pieces of paper and a camera. I was nervous about an eye doctor appointment (that got cancelled so all those nerves were unnecessary), so I put together something I've mentioned before in my blog - a theme-based choice board for clients to use to shape their own music therapy sessions. The end result is gorgeous (if I do say myself), and I am so excited about getting the process on video that I could just burst!

I CAN CHECK SOMETHING OFF MY TO-DO LIST!!

It is taking a very long time to upload, but that seems to be the way things go around here. It will go faster once I am no longer using the internet for anything other than uploading. After about two hours of uploading, it finally was finished!!

 

So, why do I make these boards? It goes along with my current focus on my theme boxes and ideas for coordinating my stuff into coherent patterns of therapy. With a choice board based on my dinosaur theme, I know exactly what needs to go into the box that has my dinosaur stuff in it; the Dinostory Rock Opera links and visuals, the dino rhythm card set that I have, the rhythm sorting game, lyric sheets for dinosaur songs, the dinosaur playlist/CD, the sand tray, and the list goes on and on. Put the choice board on top of that box, and I can feel confident that things will be where I want them to be. 

I may make a monthly theme board to keep in my month boxes. July's box has some patriotic themes as well as some summer things to do. I could put together a choice board for the patriotic theme and another one for the summer stuff. Since both of the boards are made out of a file folder, they will not take up too much space in the box.

Ooh, a new project that includes making things that have a function in my music therapy sessions! I love it! Time to customize my customizable Teachers Pay Teachers file and get going!!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Dear AMTA

Dear American Music Therapy Association: I am debating long and hard about remaining in this relationship. I have been in this relationship since college, and this is not a decision that I am taking lightly or without great cost.  I am not happy with what you are bringing to this relationship. Now, I have been a selfish partner over the past several years - mainly because I am not feeling like we share a common mission anymore. It is easy for me to place the blame on you, but I know that this is not all on me. I have tried to be invested in communication and support and understanding, but everyone comes to a time where enough is enough. I am trying very hard to decide if the benefits that you provide to me are worth the feelings that I have about where I think you and I are going. I am not sure that our destination is the same anymore, and this makes me sad. To be completely honest, I am only in this relationship these days for the music therapy interns. I don't think that is a hea...
Read more

Songwriting Sunday: Repetition

Image
One of the things that I find to be helpful with my client population (children, adolescents, and young adults with dual diagnoses) is repetition of phrases, lyrics, and music. As a result of 30+ years of working with this population in various iterations, I have found that my clients respond the most to songs with three repeated phrases to prime their responses with a different phrase to communicate the important part of the experience. DISCLAIMER: This is not a definite way to write music for clinical interactions. This is what seems to work well with my particular group of human beings. Don't go to your supervisors and tell them that I told you that this is the ONLY way to write music - It is NOT! You have to find what works for your clients and for their clinical goals. Since my clients respond well to this type of song, I tend to write songs in this format more than any other. What I have found is that my clients remember these songs more than the ones that I do in different f...
Read more

Being An Internship Director: On Hiatus

Image
It has been long enough since I have had an intern that I am seriously feeling like I have little to say on the subject. At the same time, I am currently writing Chapter 5 of my general internship handbook, so I am able to write about being an intern and what types of things to think about during this important time in our professional development. It is a strange place to be in, and it is one that is a bit challenging for me. Right now, I have had three vacant internship positions since the beginning of the calendar year. I will have a vacant position next month and that will be an entire year of rejected offers. In the past nine months, I have offered positions to three applicants who have declined. It is interesting how people complain that there aren't enough internship programs, but programs like mine are empty. I guess there aren't enough internship programs that pay large stipends (which mine cannot) out there. I get it. It is interesting to me how we have moved from an ...
Read more