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Post by Alexa Rosenbaum, Toneworks Music Therapist

#alexatheintern is back on the blog, but I’m happy to report that this time I am writing as a full fledged Board Certified Music Therapist!  Before the summer ends and school starts back up, I wanted to dedicate a post to one of my favorite summer activities-bubbles!  This summer I have been teaching a music class for infants and toddlers and their parents, and after weeks of struggling to come up with something new and exciting to keep the kids’ attention, I went out and bought a bottle of bubbles from Walgreens. I can now confidently say that this $1 investment was well worth it, and it has inspired me to use bubbles with my 1:1 clients and hopefully my school groups as well.  My go to bubble song is “All the Fish Are Swimming in the Water” because the words bubble and pop are already in it, but you could incorporate bubbles into numerous songs.  I normally just blow bubbles quick in between lines of songs, but this also might be a good time to use recorded music if you have easy access to it.  I have also found that a fan can be your best friend, and will blow the bubbles for you while you sing!  There are countless activities that could incorporate bubbles, but in this post I wanted to share some goals that can be addressed with this fun activity.

Motor Skills: In my experience, the most appealing thing about bubbles for kids is popping them.  Whether that means running around like crazy to do so, and sitting and waiting for them to come your way, it is almost guaranteed that clients will move their bodies in some way to get their chance to pop a bubble.  You never know which way bubbles are going to move, so often chasing bubbles entails running and jumping and reaching-gross motor skills at their best!  Yet in order to actually pop the bubble, kids most often have to grasp it with their fingers, so fine motor skills are just as important when becoming a bubble popping champion.

Self-Regulation Skills:  This is a goal area that is included in the treatment plans for almost all of my clients, and the most common goals within this category are probably attention to task and turn taking.  In a group setting, bubble activities can be used perfectly to address these specific goals.  Because kids are often so motivated by bubbles, they are more willing to wait their turn rather than missing a turn altogether.  In my classes, I have kids form a semi circle and I call out a child’s name before blowing bubbles.  This means that only this child is able to pop that round of bubbles, while others must watch and wait their turn.  This isn’t always easy, but it definitely requires kids to practice waiting and turn taking that they need for so many activities in school and socially.  Whenever a group gets particularly rowdy, I know that I can get everyone’s attention by bringing out the bubbles.  I have found that the kids in my classes can attend to this activity for a lot longer than I even have time for normally, and it’s great for working on maintaining and sharing attention.

Academic Skills: I know that summer is supposed to be a break from school, but the therapist in me always loves working on academic skills no mater what time of year.  A lot of the kids I work with are motivated by time and/or competition, and a really fun activity is to see how many bubbles a child can pop within a certain amount of time.  This requires kids to work on their counting as well as introduces them to the concept of time.  I’ve spent many hours doing bubble popping contests with kids, and whether they are competing against a friend or just racing to beat their own time, it always provides plenty of entertainment for everyone involved.  Another concept that could be addressed is words that communicate objects in relation to other things.  Concept such as up/down, over/under, behind/in front of can be used when giving a play by play of where the bubbles are going!

I hope that all you readers are savoring the final days of summer, and hopefully you will be inspired to use some bubbles in your next session-or maybe just go out and buy some for your own enjoyment!