by Alisabeth Hopper | Feb 19, 2016 | Intern's Corner, MTC
Hello again,
Throughout my time at Music Therapy Connections I have seen all of my supervisors use an iPad. I have seen the iPad’s used for everything from a visual aid, to a song book, and in the hospital setting as our tote of instruments. And although it serves many different purposes in many different settings I think its safe to say that everybody has their go to apps. These are mine…
5 Apps for the Music Therapy Intern
- Tabs HD: This is my absolute favorite app. It is essentially the application from the website www.ultimateguitar.com. The website itself is well known for its wide selection of chord and lead sheets. The selection is phenomenal and with the app you can have it all at your fingertips. I use it for on the spot song choice given a list of either my favorites or the Top 100. The app itself is free, but to use it to its fullest potential it requires a purchase of the service TabPro which can be paid by a monthly cost, or a one time fee.
- GuitarTuna: This is a straight forward tuner. I know, I know, there are so many tuner apps out there but this one is really fantastic. The image shown on the screen is of the head of the guitar and each note name is given next to its corresponding tuning key. It also uses different colors to correspond with the correct pitch and whether it is flat or sharp as you tune. This is a wonderful tool for lessons, adaptive lessons, and in general new learners! And the best part? Its free!
- Emotions: This app is very simple. It displays four images of people showing a certain expression, then it audibly says an emotion word and the player is supposed to choose the corresponding image. Now, what I love about this app is that it uses complex emotion words and at times it is difficult to differentiate, even for me. This is a tool that I use with some of our students with Autism and other disabilities to work past happy, sad, and angry, and really delve into identifying complex emotions. This app is also free.
- Relax M. HD: This app has many different sounds to choose from for the listener to create a customized relaxing audio. It includes anything and everything from light piano music to river and bird sounds. Also, once you have created your relaxing audio you can adjust the volume on each sound and put it on a timer. This is a great tool to use where your given client is particularly sensitive to certain sensory input as they can choose exactly what they like or find relaxing. In addition a relaxation script could be spoken over the chosen track. And again, this is a free app.
- Tiktik: Finally, this app has been a game changer for me. Tiktik is an organization app that is set up in a to do list format. You can create multiple lists which are color coded and if you choose, are incorporated into your master list. I love that this app actually has check boxes so when an item is completed I get the satisfaction of clicking the box and watching it disappear from my list. As an intern I keep my job, internship, and home life in separate lists and as everyday comes I can look at my master list and accomplish what needs to be done one day at a time.
These are my absolute favorite apps. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!
-AH
by Katey Kratz | Feb 11, 2016 | Class Registration, Parents
Starting next week, we have 5 NEW CLASSES!!!!
We have a class for everyone now. Whether you are an adult looking to learn a new instrument, a caregiver wanting their child to explore instruments or work on social skills, or a mom or dad looking for a class for your newborn or toddler, we have something for you!
It was only two years ago that Rachel and I sat down and first talked about starting an LLC, leading weekly classes, and opening a studio space together. It was simply an idea two years ago and now things have taken off!! We are so excited by the incredible growth we have experienced and the immense support we have received from the community!
We want to continue to support the needs and requests of community members so we are continually trying to improve and expand our services. As the year progresses, we will work even harder to provide the services you want!!
Be sure to check out our new offerings and register today.
Want to see new classes in the future? Let us know! info@musictherapyconnections.org
by Alisabeth Hopper | Feb 9, 2016 | Intern's Corner, MTC
Hello Again,
As students, interns, and music therapists, I think it’s safe to say that we are a passionate bunch. And when you love what you do it can be very difficult to take a step back, even when it is absolutely necessary. This is something I have been dealing with for the past month, and it has been a great learning experience that I would like to share with you.
The week that I came back from the holiday break, I began to have back pain which soon made it difficult to even get out of bed. After a doctors visit I learned that this is not a quick fix, and that it would be at least a few months before I would begin to feel the relief I was searching for.
Now, this was all fine and dandy because I was entirely convinced that I could go full speed ahead and be just fine. Except the fact that it hurts when I play guitar. When I realized this, panic ensued and I felt the worry sweep over me… No, you cannot take my guitar. I understand that to other people, the attachment I have to my guitar might be odd, but I’m sure that I am in good company here.
Soon thereafter I noticed that I was getting behind on my work, and that sitting in a chair and standing all day was not helping in the least. I began to feel overwhelmed and disappointed in myself. I had just passed the mid-point of my internship and I wanted to be able to do everything as planned so as to make the most of my short six months. It wasn’t until my supervisors Rachel and Katey spoke to me that I began to understand.
They expressed to me the importance of knowing your capabilities, and knowing your limits. Playing to your strengths and understanding when your body has had enough for the day. Katey compared this to having a bad cold, flu, or losing your voice for an extended period of time. It is true of anything. This is how I have been working effectively in the midst of everything…
- Simplify. One of the first things my supervisors did for me after I returned was to list my weekly responsibilities in level of importance so when I sat down to work I knew what was most important to complete and what could be done another time. Simplifying also means accepting that I don’t have to use my guitar at every session. I have been strengthening my other accompaniment skills even more in the process.
- Streamline. Use your time practically, and effectively. I have been doing this by going to bed early and getting up early, because I have minimal pain in the mornings, and utilizing the bean bags at work versus a chair because they are much more supportive than an upright chair. These things increase my longevity, energy, and drive throughout my day.
- Self-Care. Here’s the big one. Stop, and self-care. It is essential. No questions asked.
What I have found is that working this way feels good. It is productive and the work I do gets done faster. What I have found is not just a way to deal with an illness, pain… it is much bigger than that. This is the recipe for burnout prevention. Working with this level of simplicity, and a “make the best of your situation” attitude has been very effective for me. These are tools that have been so helpful to me, I wanted to share them with you.
Have an amazing week!
-AH
by Alisabeth Hopper | Feb 7, 2016 | Intern's Corner, MTC
Hello everybody!
So far 2016 has been a whirlwind and we have already completed our first five-week session of Listen & Learn for Little Ones. This session we tried something a little different by splitting our little ones into two groups based on ages and development. We were all very excited to see how the parents and little ones would adjust to the change. As it turns out, they loved it!
What was most amazing is that the little ones who used to be reserved and quiet were coming out of their shells and participating throughout group in ways that they never had before. The change was instantaneous.
In our very first week of classes with the split, I was leading the older class and it was wonderful chaos. The little ones were laughing, dancing, singing, and playing; that is, until I took out the book. Then the running, screaming, and jumping stopped as they all quietly gathered around and watched in awe as I read The Little Blue Truck. They watched and listened with intent until the little blue truck in our story got stuck in the mud and I watched as the kids cried “Oh, no!” “He’s stuck in the mud!” and shook their heads with deep concern.
The age split allowed us as instructors to focus on more specific developmental markers to that age range and encouraged each child to come out of his or her own space and truly experience the class. I don’t think a single one of us could keep from sharing in the joy that these little ones experienced in music class that day and throughout the session.
-AH
by Rachel | Feb 5, 2016 | Class Registration, News, Parents
We are so excited about the next round of classes, which begins in less than two weeks. Not only are we offering our usual classes, but we have added several new ones: an introduction to guitar and social skills classes for two different age groups.
This session, there truly is a class for EVERYONE, no matter what age. I can’t tell you how many times a parent has said to me, “I really wish I had stuck with those piano lessons when I was a kid,” or “I’ve always wanted to learn the guitar”. That was our motivation for opening classes up to adults, and we are really looking forward to seeing them in action.
Our Mid Winter session begins the week of February 15, and classes are either 5 or 8 weeks in length. Registration is open now and space is limited, so we hope you’ll join us in you are located in central Illinois! Click here for details and to secure your spot.
by Katey Kratz | Jan 27, 2016 | News, Parents
Over the past few months, we have been truly blessed to have Shelbi Baker helping us out at Music Therapy Connections.
Shelbi approached us in the early fall to ask if we were hiring an administrative assistant. At that point, we hadn’t even thought about it. Shelbi asked for a position that didn’t exist and we created it. She helped us realize that we really did need the help! Since then, she’s been coming into the office once or twice a week to help with all of the behind the scenes activities that take place and we are soooo grateful for all of the help she provided!
Shelbi saved Rachel and I numerous hours creating packets, burning CD’s, prepping materials, emailing families, scheduling lessons, communicating with teachers, and more.
We are deeply saddened that this is Shelbi’s last week at MTC but are thrilled that she will be moving on to an exciting new adventure working full time in her field in St. Louis.
Congrats Shelbi!! We’ll Miss YOU!
by Alisabeth Hopper | Jan 21, 2016 | Intern's Corner, MTC
Hello All!
I am so glad to be back in the swing of things after the break and posting again!
It has been a whirlwind of a few months here at Music Therapy Connections. I am approaching my four month mark for my six month internship. I am now at the point where I am leading most of the sessions and interactions between students, clients, patients family, doctors, nurses, and so on. Every day I get asked questions like…“So you play guitar for the kids here?”, “You help them to relax?” or the most common response “What is music therapy?”.
So, what do you say? How do you explain what we do to parents, students, doctors, or someone who overheard you at the grocery store. Well..
- Who are you talking to? If you are speaking to a student or a child it is perfectly appropriate to use abbreviated terms and casual speech, but when parents, nurses, and other adults ask they usually want to hear the more clinical aspect of what we do and how we approach therapy.
- What is their need to know information? Are they asking about music therapy concerning their mother who has Dementia, their niece who has autism, or even themselves. If time permits it is very helpful to ask what sparked their interest. That can be help you to give them information and resources that cater to their interests.
- Finally, and this is a big one… TIME. Is this an inquiry via email, in a shopping line, in passing in the hallway or even on an elevator. What do you do when someone asks you the big question “So, what is music therapy?” and you have two floors to give them a clear and concise answer. AND GO!
I like to have my go to facts in my head to refer back to. They include…
- To be a music therapist you have to have a four year degree in music therapy and complete a six month internship full time totaling 1040 hours. After internship the student must take the board certification exam and pass to become a board certified music therapist or MT-BC.
- In music therapy we address non-musical goals like speech, cognition, social skills, emotions, and motor goals. If we were to focus on musical goals that would be more of an adaptive lesson.
- Music contributes to therapy in many ways including providing grounding and orientation, rhythmic stimulus for calming heart rate or promoting a steady consistent gait, and in general music comes with less verbal and physical expectations. There are many ways to achieve a successful therapeutic experience in music therapy without any speech at all.
Music therapy is a wide reaching profession. It is impossible to explain all of what we do in a few sentences in a line at the grocery store, but with a few go to facts we can all advocate for music therapy every day.
Best of luck!
-AH
by Rachel | Jan 20, 2016 | Business Bits, MTC
Last week we did something we’ve never done before: we sent an email to all of our class participants asking for their feedback in the form of a short survey. The results have been eye-opening (in a good way).
I’ll admit, it’s a little scary reaching out and asking people for their honest and anonymous opinions on the work we do. We pour our hearts into creating and implementing each class, but we know they are far from perfect. There’s always room for improvement, and we wanted to take the guesswork out of making them even better for our families.
Awesomely, the consensus so far is that we should keep doing what we’re doing, with some tweaks here and there. Many parents have suggested specific types of songs and activities they would like to see added, along with ways to elicit even more participation and opportunities for learning.
We’ve also gotten feedback regarding the length of our sessions, class sizes, and days on which classes should be offered. It’s been super helpful for future planning.
If you’re interested in asking YOUR families for feedback, you can check out the survey we sent here. It’s super simple, and at some point we’ll probably send out something more in-depth, but for now, the types of responses we’ve been receiving are exactly what we need.
One last note: my favorite thing about the survey results is getting to see just how comfortable our families have become with us. There were more than a few witty comments and suggestions that had us lol’ing as we read through them, and lots of sweet words about how the impact we’ve made on their children. There is absolutely no better feedback than that!
by Katey Kratz | Jan 14, 2016 | About Listen & Learn for Leaders, MTC
When Rachel & I sat down for a quick coffee date in January 2014, neither of us had ANY clue where it would lead. We talked about life, goals for the new year, and she gave me some reading recommendations. She asked about wedding planning, I asked about Parker. You know, the normal stuff. Then she dropped the single sentence idea that would change everything.
I’m sorry… what??? Like a freestanding building dedicated to music therapy??? Of course!!
The following two years were an absolute whirlwind of amazing things I could never have imagined. We joined practices, rented space at Capital City Music , took on subcontractors, added an internship, moved into a 2,300 sq. ft. space of our own, and so much more. We have met and exceeded almost every one of our 2-5 year goals in only 18 months. The past two years have been a constant state of growth and movement. However, with growth comes the need to create new goals and re-examine the business.
A couple weeks ago, Rachel and I sat down for a long business meeting to re-assess where we are at and what the next steps need to be. Over the course of this meeting we developed our three focus words for the new year.
We’ve each written a little more about what these three words mean to us and how we plan to implement them in 2016, but I believe we can ALL benefit from is implementing the words above. Check out our posts for some ideas:
Three Words for 2016
Simplify
Streamline
Self-Care
by Rachel | Jan 7, 2016 | MTC, Tips & Tricks
One of the biggest frustrations we faced during early childhood classes at our previous location was the placement of our instruments and equipment. We were constantly redirecting our students away from the guitar, which sat in a floor stand when we weren’t using it, and trying to keep little hands out of the drawers of our rolling instrument cart.
So when we moved to our new studio and had complete control over how the room was designed, our first priority was to structure the room in a way that instruments and equipment were out of reach and no longer a distraction for everyone.
We considered a few different solutions, and then one day Katey sent me a photo of the slatwall that was hung all over the walls of the music store in which we were previously located. Why didn’t we think of that sooner!?
So we picked up sheets of slatwall from our local hardware store, which were easy enough to drill into the walls and then stock with accessories for hanging and storing, which were purchased here.
We also installed guitar wall mounts in our group rooms and in our individual lesson/session rooms so that our guitars and ukuleles could be kept out of reach.
Our storage solutions have not only allowed us to keep our instruments and equipments better protected, but they have also made lots more floor space for our students and families during classes. This has come in very handy as our numbers have grown quite a bit since moving to our new studio!
