"YOU WERE GREAT!
The principal said you were the best performer we've ever had,
and the kids had an absolute BLAST!"
The principal said you were the best performer we've ever had,
and the kids had an absolute BLAST!"
"I teach in an early education classroom, but there is something very special about it. In both my morning and afternoon classes, I have typically developing peers as well as students with autism that are fully integrated into the class.
The reason I am telling you this is that your songs have become a huge stepping stone for these children's success in our regular education setting. Some of our students have little to no spontaneous language, have significant difficulty following directions, and most importantly have little to no social skills. One day for our music time, I decided to pop in your Bean Bag Bop song. To our amazement, one of our students with autism was following all the actions. The bean bag was on his shoe... his belly... his ear and the other one, and the other one, and you better believe he put it on his other one. The song ended and we stood there in awe. His peers cheered! They were so proud of him! Well, needless to say it became a staple song in our room. Then, a couple weeks later, the other student with autism all of the sudden joined in for the whole song. I don't know what it is about that song, but it has been key in unlocking these children's true skills. I cannot tell you how amazing it is to not only see them participate in the song, but to also hear the comments of their peers: 'Look, he's doing it!' 'He knows where his knee is!' and 'That's (name)'s favorite song!'" -Teacher, Saint Louis |
|