Music For Kiddos Podcast
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I’d like to share with you how I use music with transitions, which basically is, how I can get kids to “work with me” instead of “against me” by using music.
Transitions can be difficult for young kids, and I think it may be because when we're moving from activity to activity or from place to place, a child may be in the middle of something and may not have gotten quite enough advanced notice that a transition or change is happening. A song can really them prepare and go through that change successfully. Of course, we’d still want to give them as much advanced notice as we could, but a song can also serve as that gentle reminder & “timer” before they transition to something else.
There are four main instances that I use music during transitions:
1. Instead of telling kids or asking them to do something, sing them a song. Reduce verbal instructions.
Kids have these verbal instructions thrown at them all the time. “Tie your shoes!”, “Time to go eat your food!”, “Take another bite!” It gets really exhausting and kids turn their ears off, which makes a lot of sense to me. But if you can use music instead of verbal instructions, you're going to be more successful and there's a better chance that they are going to respond to what you're doing or what you’re asking them to do.
2. Use a song when it's time to stop and/or move on to something else.
You can play or sing songs to give children plenty of notice that whatever we're doing is ending. This will also help them transition to the very next thing.
In music therapy, it’s common to give kids advanced notice so that they're not surprised when our session or a music experience is coming to an end. We tell our client “We're going to do one more song and then we're going to do the goodbye song to say goodbye.” In this way, we’re giving kids advanced notice so that they're not surprised by what is coming next.
3. Try music with a challenging drop-off or transition with a new person
Another time that using music for transitions works really well is if you have a child who has a hard time getting in the car. Instead of having a constant back and forth verbal struggle, you can work on a routine where you use a song that matches whatever they need (i.e. if they need something like “Bohemian Rhapsody” to get them in the car, that's what they need. If they need a quiet piano piece to get them peacefully in the car, that's what they need.) You can experiment with it.
The chosen song can give them a warning before they need to get in the car. When you turn on their song, they will know that when the song ends, it's time for them to be in the car with their shoes on, their backpack, etc. Keep in mind, it's going to work differently for every single child!
Once you are in the car, what music do you play?
If you have a child who has a hard time with staying with a babysitter or school drop-off, you can play a “special song” the last few minutes in the car to emotionally support the child for this transition. It can be a simple song like “You Are My Sunshine”, or “A Bushel And A Peck” that you make it a part of your goodbye routine. They will know that at the end of the song, they are going to get a hug and then it's time to go into school or their class.
4. Use music at bedtime
I have spent countless hours talking with parents about using music as part of a bedtime routine to help their child go to sleep more peacefully. Does it always work magically? No. Sometimes there are other things going on (i.e. reflux) and no matter what kind of musical routine you put into place, it still may not work. At the same time, I have had families show up practically in tears saying it was the thing that helped their child suddenly get more sleep and therefore, it helped them get more sleep.
If you’d like to read more about using music during a bedtime routine, you can visit this post.
I could share so much more about using music during transitions on this blog post, but you may want to listen to episode 29 of the Music For Kiddos Podcast where I go more in depth about this topic.
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