Friday Five: Art Therapy Blogs

I know, I know... what are we doing talking about art therapy in a music therapy blog??

I have been lucky to work with some art therapists and art therapy interns during my time here at the BHC. I really should have made a post regarding art therapy much sooner, because it is a very cool thing to collaborate with art therapists in session. Even without an art therapist to collaborate with, there is much we can learn from the field. Today's Friday Five is a list of top-rated blogs that pertain to the art therapy world. Art therapy is very different from music therapy, but I challenge you to learn from these sites and incorporate some art therapy techniques in your session while still using music. For some clients, the therapeudic value can be greatly increased after putting time into creating something tangible.

1. The Healing Arts
2. Creative Everyday
3. Adventures in Art Therapy
4. Turning Turning
5. Paint Cut Paste

For more top art therapy blogs, visit this website.

Missing Costume Game

I was recently asked to plan a music session for a child's birthday party (the many shoes we wear as MTs, right?). This is a child I know well, diagnosed with autism, cerebal palsy, and epilepsy. Many of his friends are also on the autism spectrum. This is one of the many activities we did, perfect for use in special education and adaptable to other populations as well.

Being that it is the same month of Halloween, I prepared a Halloween-themed game for kids. It takes a small amount of time to prepare.

To begin, I got a thick, sturdy board (the foam posterboards work well). I used a few websites (listed below) to make several cards of costumes. To see and use what I made, click this sentence. I used small velcro pieces to attach the cards to the board so that they can be easily removed.

To begin the game, show each costume card one at a time to the kids and talk about what it is. Stick it on the board as you introduce each card. When all the cards are on the board, tell them, "Get a good look at what is on this board..."

Then turn the board toward you (so that no kid can see it) and remove one costume while you sing:

To the tune of "Frère Jacques"
What is missing, what is missing?
Can you see? Can you see?
We're missing a costume, we're missing a costume
Please help me, please help me.

Turn the board around and have the kids figure out which costume you took away. Return the missing card to the board and play again.

With a little more effort, this game can be used all year round using colors, animals, numbers, other holiday themes, etc.!

The websites I used in making the costume cards:
http://www.jupiterimages.com
http://www.picnik.com