Using Bitsboard in Music Therapy + A Bonus Song!

A couple weeks ago I shared all about my favorite must have app: Bitsboard.  Read all about it here. It has so many amazing features, and I really do use it daily in my music therapy sessions!

Part of the reason that I love this app is that it reduces the amount of “stuff” I have to carry around.  Many of my clients are working on expressively and receptively identifying items, and they all have different target words.  With Bitsboard, I can create boards (sometimes multiple boards!) specific to each client and not have to worry about keeping up with paper lists or physical flashcards.

What does music therapy + Bitsboard look like?

My favorite games include “reader” and “flashcard.”

I frequently write short, repetitive songs for use with various boards.  For example, I may sing, “Tell me, tell me, tell me what you see!” My client must then verbally identify the item pictured.  We often start in the learning phase where I provide the answers and the client observes or imitates the targeted words.  As the client progresses, prompts are faded.  I have done this for nouns, action words, simple sentences, etc.

In “reader” mode, I can select a number of choices to be presented.  I may then sing “Show me, show me, show me the _____.”  The client must touch the correct picture.  The great part about this game is that I can start with only 1-2 pictures choices and gradually increase the complexity to include lots of choices.

I have found that this pairing of simple songs with targeted words or phrases is beneficial in several ways.

1) The musical environment is more motivating that simply drilling words over and over.

2) The short, repetitive song presented between each item allows students who need more processing time to provide a correct answer.

3) Often the student who may initially be giving a one word reply begins to incorporate an entire sentence.  For example, I may sing, “Foods I like to eat.  Foods I like to eat.  I like to eat (student fills in depicted item).”  Eventually the client may begin to tell me the entire sentence “I like to eat grapes!” thus expanding their length of utterance!

Listen below to hear the simple yet effective “Tell Me” song.

Are you using Bitsboard in therapy or at home?  I would love to hear all about your experiences or any other creative ideas that you have come up with.  “Tell me” in the comments below!

Til Next Time, Mary