Stephanie Leavell, Author at Bear Paw Creek Movement props, bags and totes made in the USA. Tue, 15 Mar 2022 04:45:14 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://musicandmovementproducts.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/cropped-Bear-Paw-Creek-Full-Color-Icon-Round-Crop-100x100.png Stephanie Leavell, Author at Bear Paw Creek 32 32 My Music Therapy Journey: Stephanie Leavell https://musicandmovementproducts.com/my-music-therapy-journey-stephanie-leavell/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=my-music-therapy-journey-stephanie-leavell Sun, 06 Mar 2022 13:59:12 +0000 https://musicandmovementproducts.com/?p=58181 My Music Therapy Journey: Stephanie Leavell My path to becoming a music therapist is kind of an interesting one. I didn't start out being interested in music therapy, mostly because I didn't know about it. Initially, I went to school to study composition, but it […]

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My Music Therapy Journey: Stephanie Leavell

My path to becoming a music therapist is kind of an interesting one. I didn't start out being interested in music therapy, mostly because I didn't know about it. Initially, I went to school to study composition, but it didn’t take me long to realize that composition wasn't really my thing.

Why? I'm a songwriter… not a composer. (They’re more different than you’d think!) This realization, combined with a deep love for contemporary music and improvisation, encouraged me to transfer to Berklee College of Music. But my journey as a music therapist student did not start there either! I planned to study music business and I imagined myself living in New York City and working for a record label. It’s funny to think back on now!

Best Music Education Tools Community Music Therapy Music for Kiddos Stephanie Leavell Music Therapists (1)

The Dream

Here comes the weird part: Three weeks before I started my first semester at Berklee I had a dream. I don’t remember what it was about, but I remember the next part very vividly. At some point in the dream, I woke up with one very clear thought in my mind: I needed to be a music therapist. Huh?!

By that time, I had heard of music therapy because I had looked into each of the majors at Berklee. And my composition instructor at the time, who used to provide music in correctional facilities, kept assuring me that I was not really  a “music business major” type. She was right. I ended up taking Music Therapy 101 my first semester at Berklee and each and every class confirmed that I was made for this.

 

Read about Stephanie Leavell from Music for Kiddos journey to becoming a music therapist here!
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15 Years Later

Best Music Education Tools Community Music Therapy Music for Kiddos Stephanie Leavell Music Therapists (2)

Fast forward fifteen plus years to the present day, and I’ve had the opportunity to work as a pediatric music therapist at a children’s hospital, work at a sensory integration clinic, facilitate early childhood music groups, and create music and educational resources for other music therapists and music educators through MusicForKiddos.com. The bulk of my music therapy work has been focused on working with children from 0 to 6 years of age.

Upon reflecting on my role as a music therapist and the impact it has made in my life, I realize that it has made me a more understanding and empathetic human. It has also had a significant impact on the way that I parent my own child.

For example, everything that I learned while working as a music therapist in a sensory integration center has helped me to understand people in a deeper and more profound way. Similarly, working in a children’s hospital made me realize that there's a lot more going on in the world than what meets the eye. People are complex! Music therapy has opened my eyes and broadened my mind, and I’m very grateful for that.

Check out the Music for Kiddos podcast, community resources, music and more!

Stephanie Leavell

Stephanie Leavell

Stephanie is the creator of Music for Kiddos, a website that provides high-quality music and music resources for music therapists, music educators, and parents. She's mom to a spunky young daughter, a seasoned performer, an experienced music educator, and a board certified music therapist. Stephanie is a Berklee College of Music graduate and is passionate about using music to help kids succeed. She specializes in working with babies and kids through age 6.

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]]> How to Use a Stretchy Band For Creative Movement https://musicandmovementproducts.com/how-to-use-a-stretchy-band-creative-movement/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=how-to-use-a-stretchy-band-creative-movement Fri, 15 Oct 2021 13:14:20 +0000 https://musicandmovementproducts.com/?p=57729 How To Use a Stretchy Band for Creative Movement A guest post by Stephanie Leavell from Music For Kiddos Have you ever used a Stretchy Band? The Stretchy Band by Bear Paw Creek is one of my *favorite* creative movement props for early childhood music […]

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How To Use a Stretchy Band for Creative Movement

A guest post by Stephanie Leavell from Music For Kiddos

Have you ever used a Stretchy Band?

The Stretchy Band by Bear Paw Creek is one of my *favorite* creative movement props for early childhood music and therapy sessions. My favorite time to use it? Early childhood music groups! We can use it to work on different goals, movements, and to help our students get their wiggles or “sillies” out.

What is a Stretchy Band, you might ask? The stretchy band is exactly that, a big band that is flexible, stretchy and made with tubing and a soft, colorful fabric. It’s machine washable. Yeah… machine washable! And Bear Paw Creek’s stretchy bands are practically indestructible.

How to Use a Stretchy Band for Creative Movement

Play With Creative Movement

A stretchy band is a great way to PLAY with movement. Here are some of our favorite things to play with:

  • in and out
  • up and down
  • above (i.e. above your head) and below (i.e. below your knees)
  • shaking
  • making a circle or pedaling a bike with our hands
  • fast and slow
  • side to side
  • open and close

Within this creative movement, we can also practice a steady beat and explore other rhythms. Visually, the stretchy band can reinforce discussions about space and boundaries (i.e. personal space).

Colorful Creative Movement Products Community Music Therapy Large Stretchy Band

 

Guest post by Stephanie from Music for Kiddos shows how to use creative movement with the stretchy band. New song, too!
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Here’s a video by Kathy Schumacher, MT-BC, WMTR of TunefulTeaching.com using the Stretchy Band to teach literacy skills. Specifically, she is using the Stretchy Band to focus on the skill of alliteration (or “sound matching”), an important skill for learning to read. Along with the skill of alliteration, Kathy is using the Stretchy Band to teach “beat competence”, or the ability to move in a steady beat which matches the tempo of music.

“At the stage shown in the video, kids are being asked to generate a word. In earlier stages, kids may be asked to decide whether two words start with the same sound. For some, generating the word is actually easier.”

Fun and Engaging Movement Song For The Stretchy Band

I have my own fun and engaging movement song for the Stretchy Band that you can find on Music For Kiddo’s YouTube channel. It’s called “Stretch It Out”, and this fun, funky song supports a child’s creative movement while keeping them in a designated spot (“who is going to hold the red?”) and motivating them to work as a team!

There are other songs, too! Here are two songs by Music With Mar. for the Stretchy Band that you can find on Spotify.

Who Can Pull The Stretchy Band

Stretchy Band Jam

So, what are YOUR favorite ways of using the Stretchy Band in your early childhood music groups?

Stephanie Leavell

Stephanie Leavell

Stephanie is the creator of Music for Kiddos, a website that provides high-quality music and music resources for music therapists, music educators, and parents. She's mom to a spunky young daughter, a seasoned performer, an experienced music educator, and a board certified music therapist. Stephanie is a Berklee College of Music graduate and is passionate about using music to help kids succeed. She specializes in working with babies and kids through age 6.

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