by Alisabeth Hopper | Mar 22, 2018 | Resources
I am so excited to share with you that we will be releasing the Functional Sign Language Song Crate CMTE course on Tuesday! In this course, you will learn how to sign nine songs and receive practical applications for use in your sessions.
I use sign language every day with a variety of populations and ages. I want to share with you a few of my favorite stories of the impact of sign language in music therapy.
I was working with an adult with a developmental delay in an assisted living facility who was very emotional and experienced separation anxiety with many staff and people in her life. She had experienced the loss of close family members and her goal was to begin processing those emotions.
We used “Bring on the Rain” by Jo Dee Messina every week. I started by teaching her the sign for “rain”. She quickly caught on and I began adding a few more signs week to week. When she felt defeated, we would refer back to the song. As I taught her sign by sign, we broke down the meaning of the song in a way that was simple and clear.
By the end of that treatment period she had learned the whole song. She was smiling much more and crying much less. It was clear that it had a positive affect on her self-esteem and gave her an opportunity to explore her emotions in a more structured and safe way.
I spend approximately 12 hours of my week at a school for children with autism, cerebral palsy, adverse behaviors which require additional support staff, and in general, multiple disabilities. I serve these children ages 10-22 with group and individual music therapy.
I had a client whom I was seeing in the group and individual setting when we began working on increasing her appropriate self-expression and limiting her self-injurious behaviors (i.e. biting, hitting, pinching, pulling hair, etc.). When asked a question, she would often begin a self-injurious behavior. She was able to speak, but struggled at the time to use that speech as a method for effective self-expression. The client was encouraged in class and other therapies to verbalize, but her growth was slow moving.
When she started individual music therapy sessions, I decided to try something different. I wanted to focus on using sign language as a way to decrease her negative behaviors and then build verbalization on that. We started with simple signs like “hello”, “wait”, “please”, “all done”, “help”, and “more”. She learned these signs much more quickly than I had anticipated and so I began to add more signs like “help”, “eat”, and “bathroom”.
I began signing everything I spoke or sang in her sessions, and she began learning signs more quickly than I could teach her. Soon thereafter, her behaviors dramatically decreased and she was promoted to a life skills classroom where she can receive support to challenge her academic skills and build as much independence as possible.
I regularly use sign language within the early childhood setting to support speech development and social skills in our youngest little ones. They may not always be able to isolate their fingers to perfectly execute the sign, but if they are able to increase self-expression and communication in support of those very important developmental markers, then they are off to a wonderful start on their expressive journey!
I am a believer in the potential for sign language in music therapy. Be on the lookout for the course release early next week to explore how sign language can be an effective tool in your practice!
by Laura Tam | Mar 15, 2018 | Resources
The moment I found out I passed my board certification exam was glorious. It was as if the entryway into the profession of music therapy had finally been unlocked and I was free to enter.
Even as a beginning music therapy student, I remember being so inpatient. I was eager to have my own clients but often felt bogged down with all the requirements that I had to complete in order to get certified. I didn’t see it back then, but looking back, I see that that the time that I wished would pass by so quickly was put in place so that I could train, make mistakes, learn from those mistakes, repeat the lessons learned, and build confidence.
I’m thankful that these steps exist because not only did it prepare me to enter the workforce, but it also provided my future clients with the assurance that they would consistently receive quality care.
So what exactly are the steps that music therapists take to become board-certified?
All music therapists must complete an approved degree in music therapy, whether it is at the bachelor’s, master’s or doctorate level. After the degree is completed, the next step is to complete an approved internship. After completing internship, the aspiring music therapist is then eligible to sit for the national board certification exam.
After passing the exam, he or she may use the credential “MT-BC” (Music Therapist-Board Certified). Once a music therapist is board-certified, he or she must continue to develop professionally and maintain the ethical and professional standards of the profession.
What happens if I encounter an individual who uses music to help others but does not hold the MT-BC credential?
Music therapy services provided by individuals who do not hold the MT-BC credential have not successfully completed the steps mentioned above, therefore posing great risk of potential harm to their clients and community. To understand why music therapy services might be provided by a non-credentialed in the first place, it is important to consider these factors:
- Misrepresentations of music therapy
Often times the term “music therapy” may not be used in the context of an evidence-based health profession that involves a relationship with a credentialed therapist. Rather, it is often mistakenly used as casual term to label a genre of relaxing music or products related to music and relaxation. When the public is misled to believe that music therapy is just the act of listening to a YouTube video titled “Music Therapy”, it creates confusion as to what board-certified music therapists actually do.
- Related music professions that are similar but not interchangeable with music therapy
Related music professionals, including musicians who perform in hospitals and volunteer musicians who sing in nursing homes, can use music to help others. While it may look like a therapeutic relationship exists between the musician and the client, only a board-certified music therapist is trained to incorporate evidence-based music activities to accomplish individualized goals, study the effect of music on clients, and promote measurable changes in behavior or function.
- Currently, most states do not have regulatory legislation in place at the state level to prevent unqualified individuals from offering music therapy services
Many music therapists are involved in the process of becoming state recognized. This may involve informing legislators of the benefits of music therapy and asking them to pass legislation that involves some or all of the following:
- Protecting the public and vulnerable populations (eg. persons with intellectual or emotional disabilities, or persons coping with physical, mental, or terminal illness) from un-credentialed professionals that may inappropriately use music and cause potential physical, psychological or emotional harm
- Facilitating greater access to music therapy. Agencies and health care providers may be more likely to include music therapy as a service option if music therapy becomes a state recognized and licensed profession. This would help music therapists provide services to more facilities and agencies and would give the public better access to choose music therapy as part of their treatment
What now?
Now that I’ve gone through the whole process of becoming nationally certified, I can appreciate the weight of what I do. Music therapy is an amazing profession that involves rigorous training and the opportunity to make a positive change in other people’s lives. As a board-certified music therapist, I can now be a part of a community of professionals that is passionately dedicated to the well being of their clients.
For the student music therapist, that journey may look like committing to do your best in the daily grind of studying; to the new professional, it may look like researching ways to become more active in supporting music therapy in your community; and for others, it may even look like actively talking with legislators and asking them to create licensure for music therapists in their state.
Wherever you may be, don’t be afraid of taking ownership of your profession. Don’t be afraid to ask yourself how you can continue to grow as a professional, and always remember that what you do matters!
by Alisabeth Hopper | Mar 12, 2018 | Resources
As a music therapist, I am deeply aware of the power and possibility of what intentional music can do for someone’s life. When it comes to working with older adults, I am often tagged in videos like this one below. I want to share with you what I see when I watch this video.
What I love about this video:
This is a wonderful example of how music can invoke memory recall and engage the brain in a different way than most other daily activities. This video is sweet, endearing, and moving. As a music therapist, there is nothing I love more than seeing beautiful moments in music.
What I want you to know:
This type of musical engagement with iPods is not music therapy. Though playing preferred music for residents in a care facility may invoke memory responses, it is missing one thing: intention.
A music therapist offers almost all live music in a therapeutic session during which the therapist can assess and address not only memory, but also motor, speech, social skills and more. Another distinct difference in these programs is that when a resident reaches a point where memory is invoked, the music therapist engages him or her in a way that promotes a positive and safe experience and understands how to encourage memory recall again.
Of course, the final difference is that this program requires administrators to take a training. A board certified-music therapist, on the other hand, is required to complete a bachelors or masters degree in an accredited music therapy program, complete a 1040 hour internship, and then pass a board certification exam and maintain that certification with continuing education.
I am so happy that there are iPod programs to bring music to facilities that may not have access to a music therapist. I absolutely love what I do. I love being able to help people with clinical music therapy. It is my passion and my purpose.
I hope you’ll enjoy this video of music therapy with an older adult.
by Alisabeth Hopper | Feb 23, 2018 | Resources
I am so excited to share with you what I have been working on for the past few months! When I created the Functional Sign Language for Music Therapists CMTE course, I intended to teach need-to-know signs for professionals. After completing the course, though, I felt that there was something missing. I wanted to share with you how I break down and sign to songs and dive into how I use sign language to address the goals of my clients.
From this came the idea for our new resource: the Functional Sign Language Song Crate! This song crate is your go-to resource for how to use sign language in any song! You will learn ten songs that are suitable for clients in childhood through adulthood and explore how sign language can be interwoven with the goals and growth of your clients!
I am passionate about what sign language can do because I have seen it used as a highly effective tool for reaching motor, social, emotional, and communication goals for people of all ages and abilities!
Take a look at an official sneak peek at the Functional Sign Language Song Crate, coming soon!
Is there a song you would like to learn how to sign? Head over to our Facebook group and cast your vote for a song we should include in the song crate!
by Alisabeth Hopper | Feb 1, 2018 | Resources
If you have been following Music Therapy Connections, you know that we love using sign language. I incorporate sign language into sessions with clients of all ages to support nonverbal communication, verbal communication, self-expression, fine motor skills, gross motor skills, and social skills. It is fun to learn something new within the safe and enjoyable environment of music therapy.
The first time I used sign language in a music therapy session, I was in practicum during my junior year of college. I was working with an adult with developmental delays. She struggled to process loss and was often deeply emotional and attached to the people in her life, including myself.
We used a variety of songs to experience joy, anger, sadness and more within the support of the session. One way we achieved this was by learning to sign “Bring on the Rain” by Jo Dee Messina. We learned to sign one word per line. After five sessions, she was able to sign the song with the support of the therapist.
After the song resolved, we would sit in silence for a few moments. It was as though she finally had permission to be sad without feeling rushed to be okay. What was even more amazing is that through this whole experience, she learned something new which she hadn’t done in a very long time.
I am very passionate about the potential for sign language in music therapy and across professions because I have seen what mindful application can do to support goals and growth.
You may be thinking: “I want to learn some sign language but where do I start?” I have listed five of my favorite resources for learning sign language below. These are perfect to get you started applying sign language in your daily life!
- www.aslpro.com – ASL Pro has the largest video dictionary of signs that I have found! Their signs are the most practical applications and therefore tend to be simpler to apply. They also have additional video dictionary’s for phrases and religious signs!
- www.signsavvy.com – Sign Savvy is another video dictionary website, but they often give multiple choices. If you have found a sign but it is too difficult for your clients to execute as is you can search here for variations.
- www.lifeprint.com – Lifeprint is a great website to receive free lessons on learning ASL. Now I will say that I use what I call Functional Sign Language instead of ASL for practical use with the non- Deaf population. That said, there is a lot of helpful information in these lessons and bonus, they’re completely free!
- www.aslnook.com – ASL Nook shares stories and adventures in the life of this Deaf family. Their videos are informative, fun to watch, and very endearing. You can also follow them on Facebook where they often post their videos and resources.
- www.youtube.com – I know what you’re thinking… “Really?” And yes! Youtube is fantastic resource not as a sign dictionary but for tutorials on how to sign your favorite songs! For instance, you could sign “7 Years” by Lukus Graham, or almost any other song you could imagine. Word to the wise; keep in mind that these people aren’t usually professionals and may give some incorrect information so try to find someone you deem to be credible.
There you have it! I hope you find this list of resources helpful in your journey to applying sign language to your daily life in a meaningful way.
by Alisabeth Hopper | May 25, 2017 | Resources
It was no difficult choice to do this song for our ASL cover. I absolutely love this song because it is cross-generationally appropriate! Because it is an affectionate song about love it is great to use at home and even as a lullaby. The music we choose to surround the children in our lives with is so important. Choosing music from different decades and genres will only enhance and deepen our experience in the world around us and with the people we love.
