Category: Children with Special Needs

Karaoke: A Night of Stars

Posted on by Roman Music Therapy

by Jennifer Ray

Our First Karaoke Night

On Friday, October 13th, Roman Music Therapy Services invited the community and the agencies that we serve to our first ever Family Karaoke and Open Mic night. The karaoke event was the kick off to a new menu of services we plan to offer, under the name of Project Harmony. When we first started planning the event, we hoped that people would be as excited as we were about it! It would be a fun night, bringing people from different backgrounds and with different abilities together for music making. When Meredith and I talked about it, we thought a turnout of thirty would mean we had a successful night.

Two weeks before the event and we realized we were offering something that the community was getting excited about! Social media started lighting up with groups and individuals tagging each other and referencing the karaoke post on Facebook. Registrations started pouring in online. Group homes started calling with residents RSVP’s. The week of the event we had ninety people registered for a room at Onset School of Music that could hold one hundred.

We had to close registration, a problem we could have never envisioned!

BJ Wass and his crew at Onset (a huge shout out and thank you for all of their assistance!) opened up two rooms for us, an impressive back room with stage, lighting and sound, and another great space where we could have a second sound system running. At many points in the evening, we had two karaoke singers performing at the same time!

I found myself throughout the evening in awe and deeply touched by what I was witnessing.

Seeing this broad representation of the community; families, kids, moms out with their friends, adults with special needs, kids with special needs, all these people having fun and cheering each other on, it was amazing. Thinking about it now, I still get chills. Everyone that night was so accepting, and so supportive of each other, it truly showed the power of music and the power of community.

When folks left that night, there was a smile on every face. We had all been a part of something special!

Special thanks goes to Onset Music School, for helping us with the logistics, as well as to The Optical House, The Bread Shop and Kelly’s Roast Beef, who all donated items for our raffle!

If you had fun at our karaoke event, or weren’t able to participate in this one, please call our office, 781-224-3300, to RSVP for our next Karaoke night at Onset on December 8th!

 

Music Therapy for Early Childhood

Posted on by Roman Music Therapy

Music Therapy For Early Childhood

Everyone can make music! It’s true! Whether singing along to your favorite song, tapping a beat on a bongo or experimenting on GarageBand©, everyone has the ability to create music. And you’re never too young to be involved with, or respond to, the benefits of music making. Watch any child, especially babies and toddlers, and you’ll see for yourself. They bang, they strum, they sing and dance without any care as to how ‘good’ they might be or if they are hitting the right note.

Music isn’t only fun for our little ones, it plays a critical role in overall development, helping to build neural pathways and unlock hidden potential. Before language skills are even developed, music can serve as a vehicle for communication with babies and toddlers.

Who can benefit?

Children of all ages and backgrounds are especially receptive to music! For those receiving early intervention services, music therapy can be a creative strategy to successfully reach children with identified developmental delays or other unique needs.

Children without delays, and those in daycare centers or preschools, also have fun engaging in music making that supports their emotional, social, cognitive and language development. Music making also provides young children a great opportunity to bond with caregivers and peers!

Program Offerings

    • Sprouting Melodies: Created for children, ages 0-5, and their caregivers, Sprouting Melodies is an award winning early childhood music program. Offering age-specific classes for infants, toddlers, preschoolers and sibling pairs, Sprouting Melodies classes are facilitated by Board Certified Music Therapists who have additional training in early childhood development.
    • Clinical Music Therapy: Music therapy sessions can be provided in conjunction with other early intervention therapies or pediatric therapies in both individual and group settings.

Does your little one light up when you sing to him or her? Are you looking for an activity that stimulates your child’s development while also fostering the bond between the two of you? If so, demo one of our Sprouting Melodies classes or contact us to find out more about our individual music therapy sessions.

I Have a Drum! Now What?

Posted on by Roman Music Therapy

Why Music?

A music therapist’s voice can be so important, especially when reaching out to populations that are not always able to respond and communicate by conventional means. Music has an impact on all areas of growth and development, making it a particularly valuable therapy in early interventionMeredith Pizzi, music therapist for various populations including early intervention work work. Bonding and attachment are just some of the areas that can be enhanced through moving together in music.

On May 9th, our founder, Meredith Pizzi, MPA, MT-BC and Laetitia Brundage, MT-BC, one of our music therapists, presented at the Massachusetts Early Intervention Consortium’s annual conference. Their presentation, entitled I Have a Drum and Maracas! Now What? provided guidance for music therapists working with children and families participating in early intervention work. Intended to offer colleagues some tried and true strategies and tools for behavior management, the training included large and small group experiences, song sharing and writing, as well as a prepared lecture.

Developmental Framework

Elizabeth Schwartz, LCAT, MT-BC, Meredith’s co-founder of Raising Harmony and Sprouting Melodies, created a developmental framework that breaks down skill development into five categories or areas: awareness, trust, independence, control and responsibility. Music therapists can stylize their sessions to target specific traits exhibited in these five categories. For example, if a music therapist is working on control with a group or individual, he or she may use a song that allows for instrument choice.

Learning ObjectivesLaetitia Brundage, music therapist for various populations including early intervention work

Key learning objectives established the goal of the session. The first objective involved participants being able to identify ways that music can be used to facilitate skill development in the areas of gross and fine motor skills, language, communication and social interaction.

The next objective was learning songs that targeted these specific developmental skills in addition to songs that do not require instruments or musical materials. Songs that were shared included:

  • Row It Faster by Elizabeth Schwartz, LCAT,MT-BC (skill development – Awareness)
  • Dancing Kids by Laetitia Brundage, MT-BC (skill development – Independence)
  • Train Ride, by Alison Albino (skill development – Trust)

At the end of the two hour presentation, participants left with the ability to list three ways to support and encourage positive behavior through music, create solutions to challenges with behavior and sing three new songs and suggest functional uses for the songs.

Music therapy can have a profoundly positive effect with early intervention populations. If you are a parent or early intervention provider looking to incorporate music therapy, please contact us!

 

Autism Awareness Month

Posted on by Roman Music Therapy

autism awareness ribbonApril is Autism Awareness Month

Autism Awareness month was launched by activists and individuals with autism, to counter the negative language and imagery associated with the disorder. Autism is considered a spectrum disorder, with the severity of symptoms varying by individual. For some on the high functioning end of the autism spectrum, these symptoms may result in relatively mild challenges. For others with more severe symptoms, repetitive behaviors and lack of spoken language can interfere with everyday life.

The focus during Autism Awareness Month is on sharing positive, respectful and accurate information.

Exactly what is Autism?

Autism, or autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is a bio-neurological developmental disability that typically appears before the age of three in children. It affects the areas of language, communication, sensory processing, social interaction and motor skills. Some characteristics of ASD are social-interaction difficulties, communication challenges and a tendency to engage in repetitive behaviors. Often other medical conditions and challenges accompany the basic symptoms of autism.

While there is no single cause or “cure” for autism, increased awareness and access to early intervention and other support services often lead to significantly improved outcomes. In some cases, the diverse symptoms of autism can be completely overcome.

In 2016, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported that the prevalence of autism had increased to one in every 68 births –  nearly twice the 2004 rate. Although autism is the fastest growing developmental disorder, it is also the most underfunded.

Music Therapy and Autism Spectrum Disorders

Individuals with ASD often respond positively to music. Considered to be a “universal language,” music can provide a bridge for those who have trouble expressing themselves or communicating. Due to the multisensory stimulation (auditory, visual, and tactile) of a music therapy session, music therapists can address a multitude of symptoms and behaviors.

Music stimulates both hemispheres of the brain, allowing a music therapist to use songs or instruments to support cognitive activity, building self-awareness and improving relationships with others. For individuals dealing with autism, personal interactions are often difficult, but by introducing an instrument into their therapy, they may first connect with the object and then open up to the therapist or group. Music serves as an alternative form of communication and expression.

Rock Out For Autism on April 29

Erin Savage is the frontwoman in the rock band SeaKing Heir, as well as an educator in the autism program of a private special education collaborative. SeaKing Heir is one of five bands playing at O’Brien’s in Lynn on Saturday, April 29th. Door funds from the concert will be donated to Roman Music Therapy Services to be used for music therapy scholarships for children with autism and other special needs. For more information about the event, see the SeaKing Heir Facebook page.

If you are a parent with questions about how music therapy could help your child, or an educator or program looking for more information, please contact us today!

Roman Music Therapy on Ablevision

Posted on by Roman Music Therapy

Roman Music Therapy Services is excited to have worked on a project with Ablevision of Malden to create a television segment about music therapy. As their website says:

Ablevision is a show produced entirely by people with disabilities. We are a group of video producers dedicated to educating and promoting awareness of the disabled community.

We are really excited to share the work of Roman Music Therapy Services with this great organization and the 44 communities in Massachusetts that receive their television program.

Ablevision was recorded in Roman Music Therapy Services’ first studio located in Malden, as well as on site at Charlestown High School during a class music therapy session and at the Melrose Public Library in March. Thank you to all of those who participated and were interviewed for this special music therapy feature.

The taping was completed in April of 2009 and the show aired in late summer of 2009. To learn more about this great organization, check out their website at www.ablevision.org. They also have a youtube channel at www.youtube.com/ablevision. Please check it out!