Movement Prop & Musical Instrument Organization
As a traveling professional, organizing on the go is a must. Your vehicle serves as your office, lunch room, and closet all at the same time.
In part 2 of this organization series, we explore the intricacies of being a traveling professional who travels from site to site.
Organizing for Traveling Music Therapists, Educators, Caregivers, and Professionals
- Utilize a large tote bag for your various materials and for your larger instruments like hand drums, paddle drums, sound shape drums, tambourines, and all of the accessories (BONUS TIP: I recommend contacting a vendor who sells Thirty-One bags and accessories – they have a nice selection of sturdy bags of all sizes that may hold your materials, instruments, and movement props very well)
- Organize your smaller materials, like small rhythm instruments, streamers, and scarves, in totes and bags — doing this makes it super simple to grab what you need right in the middle of a session or class
- Use a rolling cart, rolling luggage, or even a wagon (more on this in a bit!)
- Find and use a good quality gig bag for your guitar and invest in a Guitten
- Use a BoomTote to keep all of your Boomwhackers together instead of letting them roll all over the car trunk
Are you a traveling professional? Organization tips and tricks via @BearPawCreek Share on X
Getting from Point A to Point B:
Transporting all.the.things from place to place can be a tricky job!
Rolling carts are always a plus — two traveling music therapists share their favorite traveling accessories below:
Just Keep Rollin’
Jody Tucker of Access Music Therapy, LLC in Duluth, MN, shares her favorite rolling bag, her visuals, and other cool materials she can keep in her HUGE travel bag…pssst, think ocean drum!
Bumping Up And Down in an EasyGoWagon
Linda of RhythmWORKS Music Therapy, LLC in Chicago, IL, shares her favorite music wagon – and it’s easily foldable and carries a ton of equipment. Check out her post!
Additional things to help you along your way:
- Phone and phone charger
- Podcasts (for when you are stuck in traffic or have a longer commute between sites)
- Mileage log or app
- Voice memo app (for when you think of a great idea, you can quickly record it for future use)
- Hand sanitizer
- A good ice scraper/snow brush or sunshade for your vehicle
- Umbrella
Katey of On a Good Note has written an entire Traveling Music Therapist blog series on apps, podcasts, and tips just for traveling music therapists. Check it out!
Take care of your vehicle:
Carve out time to take care of your car. Get regular oil changes and car washes, vacuum all of the seats and trunk, and throw away all the coffee cups.
Also, take some time to organize all of your materials. This is the most important step. As I wrote in Part 1 of this series, having an organized space certainly makes your life as a therapist, educator, or professional much easier.
Be flexible as a traveling professional:
Amy Buser, music therapist and owner of Wholesome Harmonies, LLC, in Miami, FL, shares about the one day she forgot all of her materials for her music therapy sessions. She relied on her music therapy training, as well as her spontaneous creativity to get through the day.
And finally, a little humor to lighten your way:
Do you have a great organizing tip or resource for those professionals who travel frequently? Please share in the comments below.
