stretchy bands Archives - Bear Paw Creek

Top 3 Movement Props with Activity Ideas for Music and Movement Month

Madison Stephens — Mon, 31 Mar 2025 22:05:41 +0000

Top 3 Movement Props with Activity Ideas for Music and Movement Month

For the last two years, Bear Paw Creek and Sandra Hendrickson from Sing Play Create have celebrated Music and Movement Month in April. While this isn't a nationally recognized event, we love to have a month dedicated to highlighting music and movement and all of its amazing benefits. This year, we're kicking it off by sharing our top 3 movement props with activity ideas for each one.

It is hard to pick a top 3 since we love all of our music and movement props and we know you do too. However, the three we are highlighting today have been among our best sellers since the very beginning of Bear Paw Creek in early 2000.

Keep reading to find out our top 3 movement props along with activity ideas for each one that you can use during this year's music and movement month (and year-round too!). Plus, find out how we will be celebrating all month long and how you can join in on the fun.

Movement Prop #1: Stretchy Band

Our Stretchy Bands have been without a doubt our best selling product since the very beginning. So it was a no brainer to include this prop in our top 3 movement props for music and movement month. Our brightly colored Stretchy Bands are made with latex or latex free tubing covered with fabric and include a hook and loop velcro closure.

They are great for practicing numerous goal areas and different skills such as: making shapes, rhythm, listening skills, color recognition, teamwork, and so much more. With five different sizes available, Stretchy Bands can be used in one-on-one settings, small groups, and during large group activities.

The activities you can do with the Stretchy Band are endless and we continue to be inspired by all of our amazing customers who share their ideas with us on Instagram and Facebook.

Here are some song and activity ideas to use with Bear Paw Creek's Stretchy Band:

Top 3 Movement Props with Activity Ideas for Music and Movement Month Share on X

Movement Prop #2: Streamers

Our hoop and wrist streamers have also been one of our top best selling creative movement props since early 2000. Streamers are great fun for dynamic movement activities and dance. Chiffon scarves or vibrant satin ribbons flow 24" off of either a 4 1/2" plastic hoop or fabric wrist scrunchie. The Streamers come in either rainbow or primary colors. You can choose between sets of 6 which come in a drawstring storage bag or, purchase streamers individually to fit your needs.

The fabric wrist scrunchie streamer was an idea from Kathy Schumacher MT-BC at www.TunefulTeaching.com. They are wonderful as you can put them on your wrist, elbows, arms, or even ankles to have your hands free for other movement activities. She discovered this need for those with different abilities who are not able to grasp items. With the ability to put them on your wrist, individuals can still participate in group settings since they can join in on the movements without having to hold on to a prop.

Here are some song and activity ideas to use with Bear Paw Creek's creative movement Streamers:

Movement Prop #3: Balloon Ball

Last but certainly not least in the list of top 3 movement props for music and movement month is the Balloon Ball. The fabric Balloon Ball cover is made out of cotton/poly broadcloth in bright rainbow colors (we have specialty balloon balls as well). You place a balloon through the slit at the bottom, blow it up, tie it off, tuck in the tail, and the music and movement fun begins!

This is a great way for little ones to learn how to catch and throw as it is so light weight. With the lightness and softness of the Balloon Ball, it's great to kick around without worrying about somebody getting hurt. All balloons come with warnings about the danger of choking. With the fabric covering the balloon, it makes it safer to play with and eliminates the worry of balloon pieces flying everywhere if it pops. They are also great to use with parachutes or our nine foot canopy scarves. Put it on top and watch it bounce up and down as you move the parachute or scarf!

Here are some song and activity ideas to use with Bear Paw Creek's Balloon Balls:

Stay Tuned for More Music and Movement Month Celebration!

To keep up with all of the different ways we are celebrating Music and Movement Month this year and different ways you can join in, be sure to follow us on Instagram and Facebook.

To check out all of our other products not listed in the top 3 movement props, click here.

We are thrilled to have you follow along and hopefully join in on the celebration with us!

Madison Stephens

Madison has been a part of BPC her whole life. As a young child, she and her siblings helped stuff stretchy bands and flip bean bags. Over the last six years she has become even more involved and is now an official BPC employee with the role of seamstress and social media manager. When she’s not working, you’ll find her spending time with family and friends, going on walks with her dog, working with horses, or cooking and baking. Madison feels honored to have the opportunity to work alongside her mom, Janet Stephens, and be involved with the family business.

The post Top 3 Movement Props with Activity Ideas for Music and Movement Month appeared first on Bear Paw Creek.

Our Story — The How and Why Bear Paw Creek Began

Madison Stephens — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 18:04:42 +0000

Our Story — The How and Why Bear Paw Creek Began

This January marks 25 years in business for Bear Paw Creek, this is a big milestone for us and we are extremely grateful to everyone who has supported us along the way.

We have been celebrating all month long by sharing some behind the scenes, a 25% off flash sale, and still have something extra fun planned for the end of the month. We also wanted to share a little bit about the how and why Bear Paw Creek was started. For those who have been following us for a long time, this story may already be familiar to you, but we have had a lot of growth over the last several years. Including more followers on social media and our blog, which makes this the perfect time to do a retelling of our story.

Keep reading to learn about the start of our business (before we were named Bear Paw Creek!), growth over the years, how our products are beneficial, and our goals moving forward.

The Start of Bear Paw Creek's Music and Movement Props

In January of 2000, sisters Janet Stephens and Kathy Schumacher MT-BC came together along with Janet's husband, Christopher Stephens, to create a business that was then called Props & Bags, Etc. With Janet looking to create an income from home and Kathy looking for someone to create products to meet a need in the music therapy community, they meshed their passion and ideas together to create products that would serve the music and movement community for years to come.

With Christopher's innovative mind, Janet's designing and sewing skills, and Kathy's experience in music therapy and knowledge of what that community needed, they introduced the creation of a unique line of movement props along with solutions for organizing and transporting them.

The Props & Bags, Etc. 2000-2001 catalog contained: stretchy bands, bean bags, streamers, tote bags, and instrument cases.

Our Story — The How and Why Bear Paw Creek Began Share on X

Our Development and Growth Throughout the Years

In 2001, Bear Paw Creek picked up their first wholesale customer, West Music, who we continue to work with to this day! The movement props continued to grow in popularity which encouraged them to continue going and also create more props to add to the product line. In 2008, the brand name was changed to Bear Paw Creek.

Fast forward to 2012, Janet had the opportunity to take a course on building websites with WordPress. With this knowledge added to her "tool belt", she was able to create a new website to better offer Bear Paw Creek's products to the public.

The new website allowed them to open up and quickly expand the business's retail market as well as connect with customers on a one to one level through emails, blog posts, and in later years, social media. Bear Paw Creek continues to expand and grow, reaching more retail customers, along with a growing list of resellers, stateside and internationally.

In recent years I, Madison Stephens (Christopher and Janet's daughter), have taken over the social media marketing for Bear Paw Creek. This opened up a whole other avenue of connection with our customers.

Seeing videos of stretchy bands, scarves, streamers, bean bags, and all of our other creative movement props being used in countries all around the world by people of different ages and abilities is both mind blowing and extremely humbling. It is an honor to be a part of this business my parents and aunt started and the impact it has.

We have learned so much and have been inspired by all of you sharing your movement activity ideas on social media and how you use our movement props with your children, students, and patients. It has also led to some new product ideas, wonderful collaborations, and big growth for our business. If you aren't already connected with us on Facebook and Instagram, please give us a follow! And keep tagging us in your videos and pictures, it truly is one of our favorite things to see our products in use.

Bear Paw Creek: Retailer, Wholesaler, and Manufacture of Handmade in the USA Movement Props

Something that not everyone knows about Bear Paw Creek is that, for the last 25 years we have been the manufacturer, retailer, and wholesaler for our company. People are sometimes shocked to hear that our movement props are handmade by us in Missouri, USA!

When we first began in 2000, our target audience was music therapists. The music therapy community is wonderful and has been huge supporters of Bear Paw Creek. We are extremely grateful for them and all of the important work that they do! Over the years as our product was being purchased and shipped all around the world, we realized that music therapists are not the only ones that have a need for these props.

Our music and movement props continue to be used by music therapists, but are also being used by music teachers, activity directors, recreational therapists, parents, dance instructors, grandparents, physical therapists, early childhood educators, special education teachers, occupational therapists, rehabilitation specialists, and so many more.

All of these amazing people combine our props with music to help their patients target specific goal areas, work on a variety of skills, and sometimes, to just have fun with music and movement. A few of the skills movement props help target are:

Physical development: Props can help with coordination, balance, and gross motor skills.
Cognitive development: Props can help with spatial awareness, teamwork, and understanding of locomotor and non-locomotor movements.
Creative expression: Props can help with creativity and musicality.
Social-emotional development: Props can help with social-emotional development.
Strength and flexibility: Props can help with strength, mobility, and flexibility by encouraging movement.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Bear Paw Creek | Music and Movement Props (@bearpawcreek)

A Thank you for Your Support and Our Goals Moving Forward

We cannot say thank you enough to all of our loyal supporters for the last 25 years. Bear Paw Creek would not be the successful business that it is without all of you trusting us to provide high-quality made in the USA movement props, sharing about them with friends, using them with your children and patients, sharing your music and movement activity ideas on blogs and social media, and coming back again and again to purchase our products.

Bear Paw Creek is honored to have the opportunity to make a small impact in the world with what we provide. But it's all because of our amazing community of people all around the world that our products have been as successful as they are.

Looking back on the last 25 years there has definitely been a lot of change and growth. However, our core values have remained and will continue to remain the same: commitment to the people who use our products, and enthusiasm for the manner in which our customers improve the lives of others.

It is our goal to continue to equip teachers, therapists, and parents as they seek to enrich the lives of others through creative movement products and music. We understand the importance of music and movement for developing healthy minds and bodies of all ages and are honored to have your trust and support as we continue to create high-quality movement props.

Here's to the next 25 years!

Madison Stephens

The post Our Story — The How and Why Bear Paw Creek Began appeared first on Bear Paw Creek.

6 Stretchy Band Songs and Activity Ideas from Music Teacher, Lena Leon

Madison Stephens — Fri, 27 Sep 2024 20:04:11 +0000

6 Stretchy Band Songs and Activity Ideas from Music Teacher, Lena Leon

Are you looking for more Stretchy Band songs and activity ideas?

Lena Leon is an Elementary Music Teacher who shares inspiration for fun, creative, and purposeful music lessons. All of her activities are wonderful for music class, circle time, group settings, and could also be adapted for one-on-one sessions.

She has been sharing so many great Stretchy Band songs and activities and I am thrilled to compile them here, in a blog post.

Keep reading to learn more about Lena Leon and the 6 Stretchy Band songs and activity ideas she has shared!

Lena Leon — "The Crafter Teacher"

It has been a pleasure connecting with Lena the last few months over social media as she not only shares Stretchy Band songs and activities but other movement ideas and resources as well. It's easy to see her passion for teaching in the videos and the genuine love and care she has for her students is beautiful and inspiring. Here is a little bit about why Lena calls herself "The Crafter Teacher":

"Hey Everyone!
A few of you have been asking me why I call myself “the crafter teacher” when I’m not even an art teacher lol. Fair enough, fair enough. Bear with me, it’s not about being crafty in the traditional sense. In my little corner of the world, I see myself as someone who tries, every day, to tailor and craft the learning journey to each of my unique and wonderful students. It’s like being a crafter for the mind, putting together music lessons that fit each student, with all the love and care in the world I can possibly bring to my classroom every day. SO these are a few of the things that are VERY close to my heart, and that’s why I feel I am a crafter teacher:

Personal touch: I believe every student shines in their own way, and I do my best to make sure the learning fits them, not the other way around. Even though I fail sometimes.
Creativity: If possible, I try to sprinkle a bit of magic into our lessons.
Diving deep: I’m always diving deep into the ocean of knowledge, hoping to light up their eyes with wonder.
Connections: More than anything, I want each of my students to feel seen, heard, and supported.
Forever a Student: The world is my classroom, and I’m constantly learning new ways to bring joy into our music class.
Flexibility Is Key: If one path doesn’t work out, I’m all about finding another.
Growing: It’s not just about the mind; it’s about nurturing the heart.
Passions: If I can light even a super mini tiny spark of passion for learning music in my students, then I feel like I’ve done something truly meaningful.

So, here I am, just another crafter teacher on her journey of learning, hoping to make a tiny little bit of a difference.
Here’s to the magic of teaching and the joy of learning, shared together."

6 Stretchy Band Songs and Activity Ideas from Music Teacher, Lena Leon. Share on X

6 Stretchy Band Songs — Perfect Music-Based Activities with the Stretchy Band!

The Stretchy Band songs listed below were shared by Lena Leon @the_crafter_teacher.

Row Row Row Your Boat from the album “Songs of the Sea”
Larry the Lobster by Lynn Kleiner
The Pianists of Carnival of the Animals
A Ram Sam Sam Version by Ensemble Robby Schmitz on Spotify
Mary Poppins (Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious)
Carnivalito (Traditional Dance from Argentina) version by Shenanigans

All of these Stretchy Band songs and activities are not only fun but also target a variety of skills and goal areas. With the Row Your Boat activity, Lena and her 1st grade class explored the changes in tempo: Adagio, Moderato and Allegro. The children did a great job listening and responding to the music. This also helped train their internal hearing since they sang the song in their heads. While using The Pianists song with the Stretchy Band, Lena and her class rotated the Stretchy Band in opposite directions while also incorporating up and down movements depending on the section of the song.

I have to say, I think my favorite Stretchy Band song and activity shared by Lena so far is Mary Poppins (Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious). I never would have thought to use that song with the Stretchy Band! She also incorporated two Stretchy Bands into this activity. Lena had students using an XL Stretchy Band and then put students in the middle with a size Large Stretchy Band. This adds an extra element of fun and encourages active participation.

A few of the other skills Stretchy Bands can help children develop include: gross and fine motor skills, spatial awareness, cognitive skills, social skills, creativity/creative expression, and listening skills. With a large group of students Stretchy Band activities can also encourage and assist with teamwork, turn taking, and sharing.

Each of the photos below are clickable and will take you directly to the video. That way you can see these Stretchy Band songs and activities in action!

A Special Coupon Code to Save on Movement Props

If you don't have your own Stretchy Band yet, you can click here to shop our different size options. You can also use the code LENA10 to save 10% on your entire purchase!

For links to Lena's TPT store, YouTube Channel, Amazon Store, and a link to subscribe to her email list, click here.

I hope you and your kiddos enjoy these Stretchy Band songs and activities, if you share any photos or videos on social media be sure to tag us @bearpawcreek and @the_crafter_teacher. We love seeing our products in use and I'm sure Lena would love to see her activity ideas in action.

As Lena said, "Here’s to the magic of teaching and the joy of learning, shared together."

Madison Stephens

The post 6 Stretchy Band Songs and Activity Ideas from Music Teacher, Lena Leon appeared first on Bear Paw Creek.

Buy Missouri: Bear Paw Creek — TV Interview with Ozarks Fox AM

Madison Stephens — Mon, 18 Dec 2023 18:12:11 +0000

Buy Missouri: Bear Paw Creek — TV Interview with Ozarks Fox AM

A few months ago my dad saw an ad for Buy Missouri and thought Bear Paw Creek would be a good fit. After reaching out to them and becoming an official member, the Ozarks Fox AM contacted us about doing a live TV Interview. While the opportunity was exciting, it was also slightly nerve-racking as it was our very first time showcasing Bear Paw Creek on live TV.

My mom, Janet, and I took some of our best selling music and movement products such as the Stretchy Band, Bean Bags, and Scarves, and successfully did a live TV interview without making any embarrassing mistakes.

Keep reading to learn more about the wonderful Buy Missouri program and our Buy Missouri Bear Paw Creek interview.

Buy Missouri: Recognizing and Promoting Missouri Companies and Manufacturers

First, a little bit more about Buy Missouri. The program was created by The Office of Lieutenant Governor and is a national economic developmental initiative to actively promote to other states and the world the products that are grown, manufactured, processed, and/or made in Missouri. All products must have a 51% or greater Missouri content to qualify.

Buy Missouri is an initiative created to recognize and promote Missouri companies and manufacturers to the public, and strengthen our state’s economy. The more we support and buy Missouri products, the better our entire state will do! Missouri has hundreds of products made within our borders. Our goal is to identify and compile these products so all Missourians, as well as the Nation will know, which will help our state. The Buy Missouri website was developed and designed in cooperation with Southwest Baptist University's Computer and Information Sciences Department by a team of three students in the graduating class of 2018.

You can check out their website here: https://buymissouri.net/. They also have a YouTube channel and can be found on Facebook and Instagram.

Buy Missouri: Bear Paw Creek TV Interview with the Ozarks Fox AM Share on X

Bear Paw Creek Music and Movement Props: Buy Missouri TV Interview

During our interview we were able to showcase and talk about some of our best selling music and movement props. Along with the benefits they bring when used on their own and when used in a music therapy setting. The hosts of the Ozarks Fox AM, Jeremy and Maddie, also mentioned Music Therapy of the Ozarks, another local business that we are excited to connect with.

You can click here to watch the interview and be sure to check out Buy Missouri and the other local business they have listed in the Business Spotlights.

Madison Stephens

The post Buy Missouri: Bear Paw Creek — TV Interview with Ozarks Fox AM appeared first on Bear Paw Creek.

Back to School Giveaway — Worth Over $900!

Madison Stephens — Sat, 22 Jul 2023 14:43:46 +0000

Annual Back To School Giveaway — Worth Over $900!

It's time for our annual back to school giveaway with a prize package FULL of music and movement resources! At Bear Paw Creek, we love to do giveaways. They are a fun way to give back to all of you and to show our appreciation for your continued support. We always look forward to our big annual back to school giveaway a this year we have asked several of our friends to join in. Not only are we giving away some of our best selling creative movement props, we also have some children's books, some awesome music, miniature items, and more that have been generously donated!

On top of that, we are also opening up this year's back to school giveaway to not only our USA followers, but to all of our international followers as well. Keep reading to get all the details on what's included in the giveaway and find out how to enter. This is a giveaway you are not going to want to miss!

Everything Included in the Back to School Giveaway

Our creative movement props would not be as successful or as beneficial as they are without combining them with music, books, manipluatives and more. We are so excited to be able to include some of our close friends and fellow businesses in this giveaway. We love each person listed below and want to say a big thank you to all of them for joining this years back to school giveaway.

One of the very first books given to me when I was a baby was a copy of I'm A Little Teapot, illustrated by Iza Trapani (which I still have!). My mom and I are big fans of her work and to say we were excited when she agreed to participate in our back to school giveaway is an understatement. Iza Trapani was born in Poland and immigrated to American at seven years old. Upon arriving to America, she was given a large collection of Mother Goose nursery rhymes. These nursery rhymes are what helped her learn to speak English and what inspired her to become an author and illustrator. Now, her first book The Itsy Bitsy Spider has sold over 2.5 million copies and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star has sold over 1.3 million copies. Her illustrations are beautiful and nursery rhymes always manage to keep children engaged. Iza has generously donated SIGNED COPIES of three of her books:

Old MacDonal Had a...Zoo?
Froggie Went A-Courtin'
Baa Baa Black Sheep

Nancy Kopman is an Early Childhood Educator, recording artist, performer and music curriculum builder. Her "Music With a Purpose" is used by educators, therapists, caregivers and families worldwide. Nancy's songs and classes (both in-person and online) focus on movement, connection and learning together while having fun. We have loved connecting with Nancy this year and are very excited for you to have the chance to win her music! Her songs fit so well with many of our music and movement props. You can also check out her Patreon community here. Nancy is generously donating a six pack of CD's from her music collection:

"I Am A Tree" album
"Senses" album
"Shadow" album
"The Seasons" album
"Wonderful You" album
"I Know I'll Grow...." album

Music for Kiddos was created by Stephanie Leavell MT-BC and is dedicated to providing high-quality children's music resources for music therapists, music educators, and parents. Not only does Stephanie write truly amazing music, she also has continuing education courses, a podcast, and offers an online resource membership community. On top of all that, she hosts an online conference each year created exclusively for music therapists and music educators who work with kids. Stephanie has generously donated these items to our back to school giveaway:

The Shy Little Monster book
A signed physical copy of her newest album, "Bloom"
Movement Songs for Kiddos: Digital Album, Online Courses + Workbook

Rachelle is a Speech-Language Pathologist and started Speech Tree Co in December of 2018. She had the idea to make mini object kits targeting speech and language goals while working as a pediatric SLP. After using the mini items with her students, she quickly realized just how much more engaging the mini toys were than traditional articulation flashcards. As longtime fans of anything miniature, we are beyond excited to connect with Rachelle and share her resources with all of you. You can enter for the chance to win two themed units from Speech Tree Co:

Oceans Unit
Sports Unit

We have been following Rhythm and Strings Music Therapy since fall of 2022 when Marie released her singable book, Where Do You Sleep? She has been marketing the book in such a fun way using different miniature items, you can check it out by visiting their Instagram or Facebook page. Marie is a Neurologic music therapist in Southern Maine, is a children's book author, and provides resources with a rhythm. She is adding several items to the giveaway including:

A copy of Where Do You Sleep?
Bookmark (featuring an animal from the book!)
Animal Stickers

DiscoverDance is a dance community dedicated to learning, creating, and educating the early years. In 2018, DiscoverDance partnered with Bear Paw Creek to create the DiscoverDance Music and Movement Prop Collection. Incorporating creative movement props with the DiscoverDance conceptual explorations enhances the early childhood learning experience. Andrea Trench from DiscoverDance is donating:

44 DiscoverBALLET Coloring Pages: Skills include both boy and girl images

Patina Jackson is a board certified music therapist and is the creator and owner of Music Therapy Joy. She offers many amazing resources from engaging songs with high-quality, visual aids, to forms for data, planning, organization and evaluations. She is donating a bundle includes recordings for 10 songs that support social emotional learning for kids and teens! PLUS a 98-page PDF packed with chord sheets, intervention ideas, worksheets, printable visuals, and slide presentation links (for classroom screens, tablets, virtual sessions and more)! On top of all that, Patina has also been releasing some wonderful music! You can check out her Spotify here. Enter for your chance to win the:

Friends and Feelings Bundle

This year for Bear Paw Creek's contribution, we are giving away a little bit of everything! Scarves, Stretchy Bands, and our newest movement prop, the Small Play Parachute. We are also adding Maryann "Mar" Harman's new book to the giveaway along with Miss Carole's CD's. Be sure to check out both of their websites and social media pages. Here is everything you could win from us:

Click Here to Enter our BIG Annual Back to School Giveaway - Worth Over $900! Share on X

How To Enter for Your Chance to Win the Giveaway

After sharing that list of all of the amazing music and movement resources included in this years back to school giveaway you're probably thinking, "How do I enter ASAP!?".

All you have to do is head on over to either Instagram or Facebook, like the post, then comment and tag some friends. Tip: If you enter on both Facebook and Instagram, you'll have even more chances to win.

We understand that some of you may not be on social media and want to make sure you still have a chance to enter. If you are not on social media, go ahead and click here! Enter your email to make sure you are subscribed to our mailing list and you will be entered in as well.

Again, we want to say a huge thank you to all of our good friends for donating their products and resources to this giveaway. We are so excited to kick off the school year in this fun way. Be sure to stay tuned as we will be announcing our back to school sale information soon!

Madison Stephens

The post Back to School Giveaway — Worth Over $900! appeared first on Bear Paw Creek.

Bear Paw Creek Creative Movement Literacy Lesson Plans Back to School Giveaway 2019

Janet Stephens — Wed, 31 Jul 2019 12:24:14 +0000

Bear Paw Creek Back to School Giveaway 2019

It’s back to school time and time for our 5th annual Back to School Giveaway and SALE! All month long there will be discounts and a giveaway that is worth over $400!

August 1 -7 20% off – Code: 20for2019

August 8-15 15% off – Code: 15for2019

August 16-31 10% off – Code: 10for2019

I am excited to partner with a few of our friends to bring a prize back full of music, movement props, instruments, and books! Read on to learn more.

Look What Our Friends Have Contributed

Check out this year’s sponsors, with a prize pack valued over $400!

Barefoot Books Singable Books: “If You’re Happy and You Know It” and “Dump Truck Disco” – $30
Bear Paw Creek set of connect-a-stretchy bands – $60
Bear Paw Creek’s Square Bean Bags – $20
Bear Paw Creek’s NEW set of 12 27″ scarves with aeIDEAS music– $42
Bear Paw Creek Basket by Sara – $35
Discover Dance Coloring Pages – $10
Let’s Play Music Teddy Bear Cd Set and Mixed Instrument Set – $56.50
Listen Learn Music monthly session plans – $120
Miss Carole of Macaroni Soup “Welcome” cd – $15
Music with Mar “Froggy Fitness” and “Music Makes Me Wanna Move” – $24
Sing Play Create Stretchy Band Bundle – $41
Tuneful Teaching “Alphabet Stew and Chocolate Too”- $20

GRAND TOTAL: $473.50

HUGE back to school giveaway of movement props, literacy, lesson plans, and more. Over $400! Share on X

New Music and Lesson Plans

I am SO far behind sharing all the wonderful music, lesson plans, and ideas our friends have been sharing to use with Bear Paw Creek creative movement props.

I’m working on sharing some great resources for over this month and upcoming year.

Here is one from one of our newest Stretchy Band distributors: Let’s Play Music

Janet Stephens

Janet is the founder, designer, and one of the seamstresses behind Bear Paw Creek's made in the USA line of creative movement props, and bags. She is passionate about her faith, family, and loves the journey of learning and growing this life provides.

The post Bear Paw Creek Creative Movement Literacy Lesson Plans Back to School Giveaway 2019 appeared first on Bear Paw Creek.

15 Stretchy Band Music and Movement Favorites from Bear Paw Creek Customers

Janet Stephens — Thu, 12 Jul 2018 10:09:10 +0000

15 Stretchy Band Music and Movement Favorites from Bear Paw Creek Customers

Back in December I had fun in our Bear Paw Creek Facebook Group showing gratitude to our customer with a month long giveaway!

In one of the giveaways I gave away our newest addition to the stretchy band family, the primary set of 6 connect-a-stretchy bands. To enter they shared how they would want to use a stretchy band, if they didn’t have one, and favorite music and movement ideas if they do use one.

I have finally put them together to share. I hope they bring some inspiration for new ways to use the stretchy band!

List and Link to PDF

These ideas all come from Bear Paw Creek’s Facebook Group. I use this group to offer special promotions, get feedback on new product development, and a place to get to know our customers more. All of these ideas are credited right back to the people that suggested them! Come join us using this link.

I had fun creating a infographic and also a pdf file you can download and print. This will make it easy to share or save to your files for your easy access.

15 Music and Movement Ideas to use with Bear Paw Creek's stretchy band, straight from our customers! Share on X

List and Link to PDF

Here are the fifteen favorite suggestions and you can also choose to download the file to save.

15 favorite music and movement activities with the stretchy band

1 – “Walkin’ Ol Joe” – The kiddos love to pull back and stretch on the Whoa!

2 – My favorite activities incorporate speech and language goals while working on range of motion, as well, with little ones.

3- Eldercare: It keeps everyone connected in a circle and we can make the stretchy band travel around the circle go up and down, side to side, etc. to increase range of motion and exercise. The connection concept is used for talking about the connections we have in life and how it changes over the years, from childhood into adulthood.

4- I love our stretch band and use it to teach directions to our preschoolers – while sitting we do forward and backward, up and down, side to side and freeze! The older ones do the exercises standing and moving around the circle. Our students love the colors and the stretchiness adds to the excitement in class!

5- One of our favorite activities with my older students is “Riding that Train” when all kiddos work together to walk/run the band though the classroom!

6- I rewrote the verse of Zum Gali Gali to include movement directions, this is especially useful for my younger preschoolers since it is very simple and includes a section for free movement.

7- I love my rainbow stretchy band. My early childhood groups sing “I’ve got a rainbow in my hand” to the tune of he’s got the whole world in his hands. We do color identification, movement, and body part identification with it.

8- Stretchy bands are great for any kind of circle dance, but I especially love using it for Lukey’s Boat with a rowing motion and asking kids to name colors to paint lukey’s boat.

9- My early childhood groups sing “I’ve got a rainbow in my hand” to the tune of he’s got the whole world in his hands. We do color identification, movement, and body part identification with it.

10- My kinders LOVE using the stretchy band with Jim Gills song “Took a Bath in a Washing Machine.” We use different motions for the verses, and then pass on the chorus!!

11- I love using a stretchy band for Lynn Kleiners “Waves”, and Artie Almeida activities! I use it to learn the note durations with the song Rocky Mountain too!

12- I use them for a song in Spanish. We all fall back on “Nooooo”. They also work very well to engage our students with Autism.

13- The song is “If You’re Holding”

14- Pretending we are riding horses while listening to the William Tell Overture!

15- We love our connect a stretchy band for Wheels on the bus, row your boat, clippity clop, movin in a circle and a few more favorites. Our recent favorite was sliding circle jingle bells (like the kind made to hold and ring) onto the stretchy band and reconnecting the stretchy band and doing the Jingle Bells and Stop song by Miss Carole.

Janet Stephens

The post 15 Stretchy Band Music and Movement Favorites from Bear Paw Creek Customers appeared first on Bear Paw Creek.

Magical Moments With Music Props in Church Choir Rehearsal

Leah Murthy — Fri, 19 Jan 2018 11:04:27 +0000

Magical Moments- with Music Props in Church Choir Rehearsal

Now that we are in the New Year, it is time to begin afresh, and make some magical moments with those wonderful props you have from Bear Paw Creek. But, have you noticed there aren’t a lot of resources out there for church choral directors to draw upon when searching for music and movement activities?

I did notice the lack of resources, and certainly very few mentions of activities for more mature adults as well. So I set out to create some new activities and share some resources with you Bear Paw Creek fans and church choir directors to maximize the props you have.

If you do not yet have the budget to purchase the high quality props the BPC has to offer, then I will give you some alternative ideas for until your funding comes through. In addition, if you are like Janet and I and enjoy being makers, I am providing ideas, instructions and resources for you to make away!

Where is the magic?

Where is the magic I mentioned? To me, the magic rushes in in the moment when I take out a prop and see the excitement and expectation on the faces of those young and old in my choir, wondering what I will suggest they do with the prop! Then, just as thrilling, seeing the concept I wanted to impart take hold so quickly because manipulating the prop engages those kinesthetic and tactile learners in my group.

In this first of several blog posts on magical moments with music props in church choir rehearsal, I will provide you with activities using the stretchy band that will be just right for the church setting. There will be suggested church-appropriate activities for adults and children, recommendations on how to acquire a stretchy band for your rehearsal space on any budget and two ways to make your own stretchy band.

The magic rushes in when I take out a prop and see the excitement and expectation on the faces of those young and old in my choir! Share on X

Stretchy Band Activities that are fun and engaging!

Adults and/or Children-

Breathing Technique- Everyone breathe with the following motions- step back on the inhale and forward on the exhale, but never fully collapsing their ribcage by moving all the way to the middle, this creates a visual for good breathing technique.

Musical Learning- Adults and children together or separate, work together to make the stretchy band into note shapes and dynamic markings, this helps them to team build and work together.

Musical Form- Analyze the form of a current anthem or hymn using teamwork, by making a triangle as group for the A section, circle for B, square for C and so on.

Children- Song Movements- Use the band for movements to songs such as: Michael Row the Boat Ashore, My God is So Big, Father Abraham, Zaccheus or Deep and Wide.

Highlight Individual’s Movements- Sing songs that highlight individual’s actions, for the larger group to imitate such as Did You Ever See a Lassie or Walking, Walking.

Fisherman Song- Use the chorus of the tune Blow the Man Down to create fishermen lyrics such as: Gather the net and pull in some fish in yea hey, like Peter did

Preschoolers- Stretchy bands can work on fundamentals like: high and low, soft/loud, up/down, in/out, colors and shapes through movement and visuals.

Putting away the stretchy band: Teacher “How big is Jesus’s heart?” The children stretch the band back and say “Sooo big! and release. Or simply have everyone pull back and have everyone let go simultaneously, either way leaving the band in a nice, easy to pick up pile, and it is fun!

Leah Murthy

Leah Murthy is a music educator, performer and military spouse. She is currently a Doctoral candidate in Music Education at Boston University, holds a Master’s in Music Education from The Boston Conservatory, has 15 years experience teaching music and recent contributions to professional journals such as The American Organist and The Chorister. When she is not teaching music in Maryland, or playing with her two little girls, she is in Washington D.C. conducting for The National Children’s Chorus.

The post Magical Moments With Music Props in Church Choir Rehearsal appeared first on Bear Paw Creek.

A Music Therapy Prop Stretchy Band for Every Skill

Alyssa Wilkins — Mon, 24 Apr 2017 10:44:29 +0000

A Stretchy Band for Every Skill

I have been using products developed by Bear Paw Creek for years, and I just cannot get over the versatility of the stretchy band. Whether you are working on motor/physical skills, cognitive skills, or communication development; the stretchy band can do it all! Here are 6 ways to use the stretchy band to work on skills across clinical domains.

Six Ways the Stretchy Can Teach

1. Cognition – If You’re Holding __________ Stand Up!

This is probably my most requested song in session. I have each child in the group sit crisscross on the floor and hold the stretchy band with two hands. They have to listen to the colors in the song, and when they hear the color they are holding (they might even be holding 2 colors), they stand up and do a dance move!

2. Motor/Physical – Bounce it Out

I recently got this idea from a Music Therapy conference from Kathy of Tuneful Teaching. Sitting on the floor, each child holds the stretchy band with two hands. I put on some fun background beats (I suggest using the newest loops on Garage Band or creating your own loops in LaunchPad – and the children have to bounce the stretchy band to the beat. You can have them bounce high and low, side to side, in and out, make a wave – you name it!

3. Communication – Sound it Out

Beat competency is a precursor for language development. Bouncing to the beat, like we did above, helps prime the brain to take in information and aids in future skill development. Bouncing also provides a visual and tangible prompt for speech skills, which is very helpful for children struggling with the motor planning aspects of speech. You can use the same beats as above and have your children bounce specific words to the beat such as po-ta-to or ma-ca-ro-ni. Or you can make your own song and bounce out syllables, consonants, words, or even whole sentences.

“6 ways to use the stretchy band to work on skills across clinical domains; motor/physical, cognitive, or communication development. Share on X

4. Social/Emotional – Take the Band

I have found that my groups are sometimes the only opportunity a child gets to engage in cooperative play with a peer, since it is provided through an engaging and well-structured medium. I created this song for one of my families, and it has quickly become a hit in all of my sessions. Each child stands and holds the stretchy band, and completes the movements along with the lyrics of the song. I emphasize the idea of working together and completing the move with a friend – which is made much easier by holding the band together.

5. Sensory Integration – I’m Flying

In previous posts, I have mentioned how I use the stretchy band for both vestibular and proprioceptive input through the popular songs Row, Row, Row your Boat and London Bridge. One of my new favorite ways to use the stretchy band is for “flying”! In my individual sessions, I hold one end of the stretchy band and a parent holds the other end. The child steps in the middle and we gently fly them from one side of the band to the other. They are in control of how fast they go, how far they stretch, etc. I sing the song I’m Flying from Peter Pan, at a slow to moderate pace, along with their movements to provide musical structure and anticipation of when the activity will end.

6. Relaxation – Breathe In, Breathe Out

We practice coping strategies and self-regulation in both my music therapy sessions and yoga groups. Breathing techniques are one of the easiest coping strategies to access, but can be tricky to teach. I love using the stretchy band as a group to show the movement in and the movement out of the breath. Sitting in a circle, each child holds the stretchy band and we stretch the band all the way out with the “breathe in” part of the song, and shrink it all the way in with the “breathe out” part of the song. Check out the song!

I hope these ideas give you some inspiration for your own sessions, groups or classes! I can’t wait to see how you use the stretchy band to target skills in even more clinical domain

You can listen to and purchase the songs I mentioned above for $2.50 each at Dynamic Lynks.

Alyssa Wilkins

Alyssa Wilkins, MT-BC, owner and founder Dynamic Lynks Alyssa is a passionate Autism provider, Board Certified Music Therapist, music educator and adaptive yoga instructor.

The post A Music Therapy Prop Stretchy Band for Every Skill appeared first on Bear Paw Creek.

Singing for Autism Shares Stretchy Band Movement Guide

Janet Stephens — Thu, 02 Feb 2017 18:15:00 +0000

Singing for Autism Shares Stretchy Band Movement Guide

Back in 2012 I stumbled across a blog written at by Singing for Autism. This website has since been taken down, so I am extra glad I shared what she wrote. This was the first blog post I had found that someone wrote about Bear Paw Creek’s stretchy band.

I was thrilled to see the picture (which is now gone) and read her review. Hope it gives you some more ideas what you can do with your clients or kids with the stretchy band!

Here are some of the key points she shares below:

Beat Competency (micro/macro beats)
Spacial Awareness
Teamwork
Socialization
Circle Dances

Stretchy Band

This week I want to share different instruments and props that I feel are must haves in the music classroom! The first is the stretchy band, a fun prop that will get the students and adults in the classroom participating.

There are 4 different sizes:

Personal: for 1 or 2 people
Medium: for 5 to 8 people
Large: for 8 to 11 people
Extra Large: for 11 to 14 people

You can use the stretchy band with songs, chants, or recorded music. Everyone holds on, I encourage two hands, and bounces the stretchy band to the beat. I place the paraprofessionals either near students who need help keeping the beat or evenly around the circle. The wonderful thing about the stretchy band is that students are forced to keep the steady beat, since it is very hard to go against the direction the band is going. For example, holding it down when everyone is lifting it up takes a lot of energy!

For the microbeat, we simply bounce the band on our lap. I hold my hands farther apart on the band so that my hands don’t tap my lap, only the band does.

For the macrobeat, we do a variety of movements:

Lift up over your head for one beat and down to your lap (or the floor) for the next
Reach in the circle for one beat and back to your lap for the next
Pull back like you’re rowing a boat for one beat and back to your lap for the next
Reach in the circle for one beat and back like you’re rowing for the next

I often switch between microbeats and macrobeats for each repetition of the song/chant. That gives you 8 repetitions! Then, sometimes I’ll have the students move their chairs back for more tension and we’ll do it again – easily 8 more repetitions! The stretchy band is a great way to introduce a new song or chant and is great for developing beat competency and spatial awareness. It also encourages teamwork and socialization.

Stretchy Band is a great way to introduce a new song/chant and for developing beat competency, spatial awareness, teamwork, socialization. Share on X

Circle Dances

You can also use the stretchy band when practicing circle dances. Have the students hold the band as they walk around the circle. It gives a visual cue for the students as they walk around the circle. Also, you can play around with shapes for a great spacial awareness activity. Have some students walk in, others walk out, some hold it high, and some hold it low.

I have both the medium and large stretchy bands and will be purchasing some personal ones this year so that I can work individually with the students. I use it with students of all ages. It is definitely a popular activity!

Click here to learn more about Bear Paw Creek’s stretchy bands.

Janet Stephens

The post Singing for Autism Shares Stretchy Band Movement Guide appeared first on Bear Paw Creek.