Fall and Halloween in Music Therapy

Photo from Google Images

The leaves are changing colors and the spookiest time of year is almost here. Music therapists all over Fulton County have been gearing up for the season and holiday with all sorts of interventions to address many needs.

Photo: Brittany Taylor-Stewart

"Reach into the cauldron, tell me what you feel. Can you describe it before the big reveal?"

Brittany Taylor-Stewart's students were reaching into the cauldron and using their descriptive words and sense of touch to help decipher what might be inside the cauldron before they saw it with their eyes.

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Photo: Brittany Taylor-Stewart

​Students with music therapist Brittany Taylor-Stewart were using their expressive communication skills to rank spooky songs/videos on a "Spook-o-Meter" scale. 

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Photo: Kirby Carruth

"3 Little Pumpkins were sitting on the hay, one little pumpkin rolled away!"

​What a great opportunity for our little ones to practice left to right progression, number concepts, and turn-taking with our music therapy  intern Miss Kelly.

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Photo: Kirby Carruth

​"It's Fall, That's All!"

​Students of music therapist Kirby Carruth enjoyed sensory play as a group
​to celebrate the fall season.

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Photo: Tasia Carter

Photo: Tasia Carter

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Never underestimate the the power of music to teach skills! Tasia Carter's students practiced their daily living skills by making english muffin pizzas.

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​Using their creativity and expressive language, students with Ms. Tasia at Paul D. West Middle School participated in a 13 nights of Halloween songwriting activity. ​

Photo: Tasia Carter

Photo: Tasia Carter

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At Wolf Creek Elementary, music therapy intern Ms. Carlee led the students in a Halloween/Fall sensory activity. Can you describe what you feel? 

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Over at Cambridge High School, music therapist Brianna Henderson led the students in practice their daily living skills by making mini apple pies. 

Photo: Brianna Henderson

Photo: Missy Worden

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​Missy Worden made Halloween Song cards to the tune “Brown Bear" with her kindergarteners to practice identifying seasonal/holiday items, color identification, left-right reading, and group singing, with the last verse including a mirror for kids to sing the verse with their own names.

​Marsha Lane has been having lots of ghoulish fun in music therapy lately. Pre-K students played peekaboo “Under the Sheet”. Other students made “winds howl” and “chains rattle” by adding instruments for sound effects in the song activity, “Tell Me, Tell Me What Do You Hear” which is great for listening skills, receptive communication, and creativity.  Beginning reading skills and sequencing were addressed with the book “There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Bat”,  while finding candy that matched the chosen descriptive words helped with ELA skills in the “Halloween Goodie Bag” activity. No tricks, just treats!

Photo: Marsha Lane

Photo: Jessica Brodley-Lopez

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Therapist Jessica Brodley-Lopez and intern Carlee used music therapy to practice prepositions with a spooky twist.

​Emily Minkow used her gathering drum with her younger students to sing about walking through a haunted house. The students were following directions, working on their motor skills, as well as practicing impulse control.

Nicole Wright got frightfully spooky with her ghostbusters rhythm stick intervention this week. The students worked on their impulse control by only playing a specific rhythm on the slide, as well as worked on increase attention span. It was a great group activity that also included reading some music notation. See below for an example.

​And finally, Nicole Wright also had her students write a spooky music soundtrack to go along with a Halloween poem. Goals included playing together as a group, evaluating their performance, and creating music while increasing attention span.