Music remedy can deal with a number of objectives you will have on your clientele. As I work with many school-age shoppers, I’m discovering that one space I give attention to typically is educational expertise. Singing songs with these expertise embedded might be very efficient, however I additionally like so as to add a kinesthetic contact for sensory enter and reinforcement: devices!
Throughout our educational skills-focused classes, my shoppers and I typically work on studying, writing, counting, and figuring out left and proper. It generally takes some progressive considering to get devices concerned! Listed here are some methods I work on educational expertise with my shoppers throughout their in-person music remedy classes.
Studying
One of many first steps in studying to learn is with the ability to establish sight phrases. A technique we are able to work on that is by enjoying the drum! I do know, it doesn’t make a lot sense at first, however let’s get inventive! I like to make use of a flooring tom and two mallets (one for the shopper and one for me). Previous to the session, I reduce up a sticky word into 15 items, write a sight phrase on each bit, and frivolously tape it to the top of the ground tom.
Throughout the session, the shopper and I sing “Play Your Drum With Me”, altering the lyrics “all people” to the shopper’s title. In between every verse I’ll both level to a number of sight phrases and have them establish the phrases or I’ll say a phrase and so they have to search out it and play their mallet on that a part of the drum. Not solely are they engaged on their studying expertise throughout this intervention, however they get some inventive freedom by enjoying the drum!
Counting
Do you know you can match 52 numbers on the white keys of a full-size keyboard? We love to make use of dry-erase markers to write down numbers on the piano and work on our counting expertise! We both write the numbers 1-52 or 0-51 on the keyboard, relying on the shopper’s choice. Then, let’s play each key to depend by 1’s and skip to depend by 2’s, 5’s, and 10’s! We will additionally play a recreation the place I sing a quantity and it’s important to discover it on the keyboard!
Should you wait to write down the numbers on the keyboard till through the session, this additionally supplies a great alternative to work on handwriting expertise.
Left and Proper
I really like “The Proper-Left Music” from the Hear & Be taught assortment. It’s easy, repetitive, and offers so many alternatives for achievement. If the shopper is new to the idea of proper and left, I adapt it to be with lollipop drums.
I maintain the lollipop drums in my arms whereas the shopper makes use of the mallets to play both the left or proper drum. Give them further prompts by holding up the drum that corresponds with the right course. As they can establish these instructions extra independently, have your shoppers dance with shakers from proper to left!
There are such a lot of potentialities to work on educational expertise within the music remedy setting, and including devices offers it an additional particular contact! As many college students are nonetheless doing distant studying for varsity instruction, it’s much more essential to have enjoyable and artistic methods to bolster their educational expertise. What are your favourite academic-focused music actions?