May 2026 Newsletter
Dear Medley friends and colleagues,
The last month was eventful for the Medley team. We officially welcomed visual artist Isaiah Eddington on our website, we released new original songs including the popular Pizza Night bundle, we added new public Professional Development sessions to the calendar, and our social media reach grew.
One upcoming highlight: Jen and Jess will teach their graduate course Adaptive Music Education at Hartt School of Music in West Hartford, Connecticut, July 27-31. Not only is this some of the most relevant, useful and joyful professional development available to music teachers right now, it earns three graduate credits toward a lane change.
Classroom activity videos and supporting materials below! Let’s start the information roundup.
In-person Learning Opportunities
July 17-19
Feierabend Association for Music Education (FAME) conference
Chicago, Illinois, USA.
July 27th-31st, 8:30 am-4:30 pm.
Graduate course:Adaptive Music Education
Hartt School of Music, University of Hartford, West Hartford, Connecticut, USA.
3 graduate credits. Tuition $775.
Course description is here, housing information is here, and registration is here.
August 13th, 9 am-3 pm
Intro to Adaptive Music Education
Natick, Massachusetts, USA.
6 PDPs/professional hours. Tuition $270.
November 3rd, 9 am-3 pm
Intro to Adaptive Music Education
Northampton, Massachusetts, USA
Registration info coming soon.
Online Learning Opportunities
July 20th, 21st & 22nd, 1-3 pm Eastern time (Boston/New York)
Online Intro to Adaptive Music Education.
Tuition $175. Register by May 31st to receive the discounted rate of $150.
Registration and info. Please note that we will NOT hold Online Intro in August, only July this year.
September 21st & November 2nd, 4-5 pm Eastern time (Boston/New York)
Adaptive Music Independent Study. This independent study is for teachers who have completed Intro to Adaptive Music Education either in person or online.
Tuition $270.
One optional graduate credit from Worcester State University is available for an extra fee.
Pizza Night— a Medley original by Jon and Jess. This song uses movement scarves and expressive images by Isaiah Eddington to engage students in six verses/steps of making and eating an imaginary pizza. Students can use the included choice board to choose their pizza toppings. A professional recording of the accompaniment is included both as an mp3 download and a streamable video synced with the artwork and lyrics. Recommended adaptations and extensions are included. View an excerpt of the modeled activity and a demo of an extension idea. Download the complete activity bundle for $5.
Gato Gato Gato— a Medley original by Jon and Jess. This ‘all fall down’ game uses a catchy tune, bilingual lyrics, visual imagery, social connection, student imagination and playfulness to engage learners with a wide range of needs. Hear Jess discuss the activity. Watch us play the game. Download it for free.
El Coquí— an all-time favorite, versatile song from Puerto Rico. In this video, Jess demonstrates how we used hand-under-hand assistance to support students with complex medical and intellectual disabilities to play harmonic accompaniment on desk bells.
Blowing in the Wind by Stephanie Leavell— this is a favorite expressive movement scarf activity for many of our students. This video humorously contrasts Jess and Jon’s accompaniment skills.
Flexible choice boards can help reach more students and serve more functions than traditional static choice boards. This video includes a DIY tutorial on creating your own in three different styles.
What is neurodivergence affirmation? What are some of the barriers to implementation in music classes? Read the blog post or watch a two-minute video.
Strewing as a strategy for engaging students with a PDA profile and improving classroom efficiency.
Using toys and props in the classroom for student engagement is back by brain science.
Thoughts on culturally responsive music pedagogy, and why and how we use Spanish language songs with our students. Read the blog post or watch a 1.5-minute video that includes a sneak peek of a brand-new Medley original bilingual song.
‘Engagement can look many different ways’ is an essential understanding of adaptive music education that differs from conventional music education.
Jess’ theory of anti-interests. Special interests are a known autistic/ADHD trait. Could anti-interests be a specific frame of attentional differences as well?
Don’t forget to follow us on your favorite social media platforms (links below) and please help us reach more teachers by interacting with our content. We are so grateful to be in this important work with you!
Enthusiastically yours,
Jess, Jen, Jon & Isaiah