Greetings! Alex here. This month, I found myself in a rut trying to plan for sessions. It’s typically pretty easy to plan when you have a “theme”, like the holidays. But now that those are over, I’m trying to incorporate fun snow/winter/New Year’s experiences into my classrooms and groups. Here are three interventions that I’m looking forward to using this winter!
1. Winter Lights Sensory Activity
For this intervention, I use a song I wrote called “Winter Lights” and fill a frame drum with sensory objects, such as soft glittery snowballs, push bells, and of course…lights! I have even included the Hapi drum to really amp up the relaxation aspect, and every client has loved this activity.
2. I Can See Clearly Now (New Year’s Rewrite)
This is a really simple way to bring up the topic of the New Year. I think it’s important to bring up how we’re feeling and what we’re looking forward to, and this short rewrite does just that!
3. Snowball Movement Song
Originally created by Abby Petrey, MT-BC, see example here.
I have brought this in to all my groups (preschool-older adults) and it has been a HIT! This rewrite of “Proud Mary” talks about winter time and goes through the steps of making snowballs. I use a karaoke version of the song I found on Spotify, and I found it really fun to do with scarves, because when we throw them at the end it looks beautiful!
This blog post was written by Alex Mullenax, music therapy intern with The Groovy Garfoose. Alex supports clients individually in our two office spaces and via telehealth, and groups in schools and in the community. Outside of music, Alex enjoys spending time with friends and family, journaling, and listening to podcasts.