Session Themes: Friendship
Sometimes when I’ve been working with a group or client for awhile, I can feel stuck in a routine of using the same songs each week. A great way to add variety to sessions is to select a theme! One of my favorite themes I’ve used with groups is friendship.
There are so many great popular songs about friendship! Here are some of the songs I use:
- You’ve Got a Friend in Me – Randy Newman
- Count on Me – Bruno Mars
- With a Little Help From My Friends – the Beatles
- Friends Will Be Friends – Queen
- Lean On Me – Bill Withers
- We’re Going to be Friends – the White Stripes
- True Friend – Hannah Montana
- Umbrella – Rihanna
The theme of friendship can be utilized to work on social goals in a group setting. After singing a song about friendship, the music therapist can lead a discussion on what it means to be a good friend. This is an excellent opportunity for clients to practice communication skills and leadership in a group and generalize learnings to their own lives.
Friendship is an excellent subject for songwriting interventions. Many of the songs listed above work well for Mad Lib songwriting. The music therapist can prompt their client to share qualities they value in friends to fill in the lyrics. For non-speaking clients, music therapists can provide choices to fill in the blanks. Many clients benefit from using visuals or communication devices in songwriting.
Selecting themes is an excellent way to imbed structure into sessions and make learnings more memorable for clients.
-Emma
