Monday, August 31, 2015

Let's Go, Go, Go!

Welcome back to More with Music!
I've been writing many songs lately for classroom rules, names of students and daily classroom routines.
One daily classroom routine in particular happens at the end of the day.  Each classroom has their own structure and schedule for the process that involves packing up to go home.  A teacher I work with asked for a song for this routine and that is the song I'm sharing today.
Most students get excited about going home at the end of the day.  There are a few students however, who experience anxiety with the transition of getting from school to home.  They need a little extra assurance that this is okay and eventually a routine will be established with daily repetition.
I kept this song simple and to the point.  This song talks about getting ready to go, cleaning up first and then packing our bags.  I added a short reference to the next school day to further reinforce the concept of this daily routine.
The teacher that requested this song plans to sing and play the song to help the students get accustomed to the daily routine and to learn what to do during this transition.



What classroom routines do you sing?  Need a song for a classroom routine?  I'd be more than happy to help with a song personalized to your needs and routines.
Email me at morewithmusic@gmail.com if you have any song requests.
Thanks for stopping by!

Monday, August 24, 2015

Give Me Space!

Today I'm posting a brand new song.  This one is hot off the press (as in recorded last night)! :)

I have to be honest and admit that I have been trying to write a song about personal space for about a year now.  Every time I sat down to write down a few ideas,  I ended up getting stuck.  I tried to figure out how to best word the song so that the majority of the people the song is intended for would understand it and learn from the song.  (I won't mention the exact number of times I experienced being stuck...)

Anyhow, I really felt the need to keep pressing on.  I had to figure this out because personal space is something that has to be taught to many of the students within the classrooms I serve.  It's a social skill that many students who have autism have to learn by doing.

So, I finally (and I mean finally), put something down that made sense.  Then I revised it for about a week.  I sent a portion of the lyrics to a teacher friend of mine and asked for her thoughts.  This helped a lot!  A few days later I had the song lyrics down on paper!

Here it is below.  Feel free to comment if you have additional ideas on this topic!



As always, thanks for stopping by!

Wednesday, August 19, 2015

I Pledge Allegiance

Welcome back to More with Music!
Thanks for stopping by!

This is my first week back to work and I've been going through my mass collection of songs that I've written and recorded and have been filtering out songs that teachers mainly want to start singing at the beginning of the school year.
Today's post is a song I recorded to accompany the Pledge of Allegiance.  Students across the country recite the pledge of allegiance every morning.  I recorded this to make it a little more interesting (perhaps), and to help the students learn the words of the pledge of allegiance.  I chose a slower tempo and created slight pauses in the song so that the the students can focus on the words of the pledge.



Don't forget that I take requests and would be happy to write a song for a topic or routine you do with your class daily or for special occasions.  You can email me at morewithmusic@gmail.com

Thanks for stopping by and stay tuned for additional song posts.  :)

Monday, August 17, 2015

Getting back on the bus

Summer is officially over for me.  Today is my first day back at school.
While I love what I do, I have to be honest and admit I don't miss the busy schedule of coming and going as a music therapist and working mom during the summertime.  Free time is a great thing to have and appreciate!

Next week the students will return to school and many of them will be riding the bus.  I wrote lyrics for a song about bus safety a few years ago.  The song follows the tune of "The Wheels on the Bus".  For many students with special needs (which is the population I serve), simple and easy to follow rules are needed.  These rules also need to be reviewed daily in order for the students to have retention of the rules. I also pair each rule with a picture to further represent the rules.  What better way than to sing the rules?  :)

So today as I "get back on the bus," I'm reposting the Bus Safety song.
Check back soon for additional posts! :)