Friday Five: Hap Palmer songs you should know

So I'm going to take you back a couple decades to the Hap Palmer era. Hap Palmer earned a Master's degree in dance education in the early 80s, but was writing children's songs years before that, in the late 60s. The songs were written to enhance a number of developmental skills in young children. Below are five videos I found when conducting a youtube search, though you'll find he composed hundreds more.

The videos below can be used as is in session. But if you find these dated, I encourage you to let them inspire your own creativity! If you have any Hap Palmer songs of your own that you love, or any other ideas for that matter, please share!

Weekly Rap


Tap Your Sticks


Bean Bag Alphabet Rag


Let's All Clap Our Hands Together


The Mice Go Marching

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

Tearing down and rebuilding

I do a little bit of babysitting on Saturdays, and there is a child I sit for that has autism, cerebal palsy, and epilepsy. Part of the agreement for babysitting was that I would sit with him and do a 20 to 30 minute music session (without being paid for it since I'm not yet graduated/certified). For a while the sessions were awesome! He and his brother would attend and we'd work on goals of social, motor, speech/language, and academic skills. The sessions were really successful until one day, the boy was no longer interested in music sessions.

I tried unsuccessfully for a couple weeks to engage him in any activity I could think of, but he would tell me "no" and leave his chair. Without the parents there to reinforce I was at a loss for a solution. A couple more weeks passed, and for various reasons I was not babysitting, thus no music.

So we started the regular routine again the other week, and I decided to approach music in a new way. I brought my keyboard with strips of colored paper taped to an 8-note C scale. The first week I tried this, I let the boy play as he wished on the keyboard. It was my goal simply to get him engaged in music again and hold his attention for a period of time. It worked! He took a special joy in hearing all the pre-recorded songs. To continue where I left off, this past week I began the session by reviewing colors. He played up and down the C scale with my cue to play "red," "orange," etc. Then, I let him again play with the songs, throwing in little tasks occasionally. We worked on colors, numbers (pressing certain numbers to get songs), and sequencing (color, number, number). Then we played a game to address impulse control. When the music played, we danced. When the music stopped, we stopped. Then it was his turn to lead.

This was a really good way for me to build up music again. The point of the story is to be creative, and if you really need to build from scratch, don't be afraid to do so. I hope to do a little more with him this coming Saturday. If all goes well, I will post about it here. Even if all does not go well, I'll still post. There is always a lesson to learn out of everything in life.

Adapted instruments

One of my favorite projects in school was an assignment from Dr. Alice-Ann Darrow. In our Music in Special Education class, we were asked to adapt an instrument as though it were for a student with a physical disability. We could either find an adapted instrument or create one. The adapted instrument I chose was deskbells.


I'm sure most of us are pretty familiar with the colorful handbells sold at West Music. But fewer of us know about the adaptation to those same handbells that make it much easier to produce a note. With a button on top of its handle, the bell can be set on top of a flat surface and ring by being tapped. If a person can move a part of their body, they can play this instrument.

Many of my classmates constructed their own awesome adaptations using household items. If your client is limited in mobility, think carefully about what sort of accommodations you can make. Some assembly may be required.

If you are not up to creating your own device, you can find deskbells at West Music, or check out other companies that specialize in other adapted instruments. A Day's Work is one of these. If you are reading this and know of another place to find adapted instruments, please leave a comment.

Three bears with a beat

I really love this activity! I first heard it from Darcy Walworth in our Music Therapy Lab class. It is perfect for young children. For each character in the rhyme, there is an action/sound/facial expression:

Papa bear: Hold hands up as though they are claws/"Rawrrrr," low-pitched growl/teeth bared, nose wrinkled, eyebrows furrowed.
Mama bear: Hold hands up with palms out, wiggle hands/"Ahhh!"High-pitched scream (not a real scream, please)/mouth open in surprise, eyes wide
Wee bear: Fold arms, shrug shoulders, hunch over/"Hmph," little-kid grunt/lip pout, eyebrows furrowed

At the request of the website owner, I will not copy/paste the rhyme here. However, here is the website. Pat knees in a moderate tempo. Each word with (parenthesis) is a downbeat.

Use this activity to work on emotions, facial affect, and listening skills.

New article posts music ideas for children with Down's

I discovered an awesome article! The title says it all: Activities Using Music With Down's Syndrome Children.

It gives ideas that would be very useful in therapy. It includes:

Mirror songs
Sing songs in front of a mirror so the child can see how he/she looks when the tongue or mouth is moved. You might also sing songs about the parts of the face, emotions, and facial affects.
Memory
Use a song to teach sequencing. Teach a child to count, learn their address name, learn their phone number, etc.
Music Movement
Dance activities are always awesome. Catch a ball in rhythm to music. To work on cognitive skills, ask the child a question every time they catch the ball (e.g. name a word that rhymes with "cat").