Written by Joanna Vella
Entering your first year as a music therapist, everything is exciting, and you are ready to dive in. As you progress through the year, you will face challenges you may not have anticipated. Whether it’s a quick schedule change, keeping up with paperwork, or working on different IEP goals, the first year can be a whirlwind! I faced challenges I could have never imagined such as a global pandemic and standing up for my students’ rights. In each scenario, there were certain skills I learned that helped make my year more successful.
- Be Flexible – As you move through the school year you are going to build a strong rapport with each of your students. However, you also are going to hit bumps in the road. A student of mine came in one day highly distracted and demonstrating sensory-seeking behaviors. After altering the music and interventions, I knew working on his communication goal that day was not benefiting him and his current needs. Once we switched to sensory-stimulating activities, his behaviors changed in both his music therapy session as well as the other academic settings that followed. Be flexible. Sometimes you won’t address the student’s specific goal because they need something else in the session, and that is perfectly fine.
- Make Connections – As a traveling therapist, this is key to success. Being in five different schools and a daycare center, all of my responsibilities were different in each setting. Talking to your teachers, CSE’s, directors, principals, front desk clerks, and nurses gives you more connections within each school. Once COVID-19 school closures hit in our area, I was able to contact teachers, CSE’s, and parents to see how I could help. These connections I made early on in the year helped make this simpler when decisions were being made or meetings were being held.
- Take Time for You – There were nights where I would be working and would become overwhelmed as my original “to-do list” doubled in size. When prioritizing what needs to get done, it is important to schedule time for yourself. You are working hard, and we all want the best for our students, but you need time to unplug and take your music therapist “hat” off. A friend once told me, “you cannot pour from an empty glass.” So, practice some self-care – you absolutely deserve it!
- Trust Your Clinician Gut – Being a new therapist, you’re automatically the “new kid” on the block. You will likely hear about your students’ backgrounds in various settings from the connections you’ve made at each school. Although these are relevant points to take into consideration, don’t take them as final law. We have the highly motivating tool of music in our practice, so don’t be scared to test the waters and see what your students can do in the music therapy setting. You are fresh eyes to the team so do not be afraid to try something new. If it works, share it! Not only is this great advocacy for our field, but it is even better advocacy for your students and will help them thrive in other settings outside of music therapy.
- If at First You Don’t Succeed, Change the Music – You are going to have amazing sessions, but you are also going to have sessions that are not so great. Through these good and bad days, it is important to remember that you are doing your best. When you hit a bump in the road just remember to be creative, think outside the box, and as always, change the music!
Going through your first school year can be tough. However, you will learn more than you ever dreamed, especially from the students you work with.