Suitable for All Ages: A Reference for Therapeutic Music Making Experiences

abstract: This collaborative, creative project includes 100 music therapy interventions for all ages including children 0-18, young adults 19-25, adults 26-65, and older adults/geriatrics 65-death. Five goal areas are focused on for each of the four populations. These goal areas are cognitive, social, physical, emotional, and behavioral. Each intervention was modeled after Duerksen's (1978) five ways in which music can be used as a organizational, helpful, learning tool: (1) Music as a carrier of information (2) Music as a reinforcer (3) Music as a background for learning (4) Music as a physical structure for the learning activity (5) Music as a reflection of skills or processes learned. The creative possibilities of interacting musically with clients of all ages and levels of functioning are what led us to create this project. The wide variety of populations covered in this project include children on the autism spectrum, young adults suffering from depression, and geriatrics exhibiting symptoms of Dementia. This book encompasses all of these populations and more, providing client-centered activities to use in music therapy sessions. This project was created with the intention of sharing it with fellow students and peers, as well as for the future use of ourselves in our internship experiences and careers