September 2026 Newsletter


Dear Medley friends and colleagues,

Happy September! Teaching may be a calling, but teachers are also the labor on which our economy and society are built. We are celebrating YOU this Labor Day with a 15% off sale sitewide— use it for purchasing We Are All Musicians: 25 Imaginative Song-Based Activities for Inclusive Music Classrooms, tuition for Online Intro to Adaptive Music Education, and more!

Last month Jon and Jess were grateful to find a new home base for their songwriting work at the Hope Center for the Arts in Springfield, Massachusetts. Thank you to Bob, Cyndi, Chris and our other new friends for their warm welcome.

Classroom activity videos and supporting materials below! Let’s start the information roundup.


A banner with a colorful brain illustration and the text 'Learn with us' on a purple background.

In-person Learning Opportunities

November 3rd, 9 am-3 pm

December 5th, 9:30 am

  • New York State School Music Association (NYSSMA) conference

  • Singing on the Inside: Meaningful Inclusion of Non-Speakers (session)

  • Registration and info

Online Learning Opportunities

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.

  • Registration and info

FOUR DATES: September 14th at 7 pm, October 22nd at 7 pm, November 15th at 5 pm, December 7th at 7 pm

October 1st, 8th & 15th, 7-9 pm Eastern

  • Online Intro to Adaptive Music Education

  • Registration and info. Register by September 7th for a 15% discount!

  • Asynchronous participation available.


A flyer with a purple background displaying a brain illustration with rainbow colors and the text 'New Classroom Activities & Materials'.

Hi, Hello, What’s Up, written by Jon and Jess and published in We Are All Musicians, is a catchy one-chord hello song that explores different ways to greet people, invites each student to say their own hello, can be sung in a round, and is easily accompanied by students using instruments like boomwhackers, handbells or beginning ukulele.

Pingüino, written by Jon and Jess and published in We Are All Musicians, is a bilingual expressive movement song with an optional echoed refrain and adorable illustrations by Isaiah that can be used for exploring musical form.

One Bad Day by Jon and Jess is a blues that gives students an opportunity to act out their response to a bad day and know “it’ll be okay, it happens to me too.” This activity includes an engaging original choice board by Isaiah in the book We Are All Musicians.

Los Pescaditos is a Spanish language folk song that we perform with movement scarves. Isaiah Eddington created original artwork to support student comprehension of fishies that swim and fly. View our demo video and download the activity and artwork for free.

Saute, Crapaud is a Cajun French folk song published in Roots and Branches: A Legacy of Multicultural Music that we like to use for instrument exploration and steady beat activities.

Goodbye, My Friends by Jon and Jess is a simple goodbye song for ending music classes with dignity and finality. It is published in We Are All Musicians and also available as a free download on our website.


A purple banner with a logo of a brain in rainbow colors inside a musical note. Text on the banner reads 'Tips, Philosophy & More' in bold navy blue letters.

How we made our own affordable one-handed adaptive clave holder: information on blog and video.

Our concise review of the adaptive elements of the Nuvo Recorder+ with silicone hole covers.

The paper trimmer is a tool that really speeds up our production of choice cards and other classroom materials.

We 3d printed and reviewed the GripAssist adaptive guitar pick by OK Housecat. Commenters requested additional features, which we are working to design— stay tuned!

Back To School Big Five Ideas: essential foundational neuro-affirming philosophy for starting the year right, shared in video and graphics.

Are vocal exploration activities valuable for students who don’t vocalize? Find out in our video.

Our students with low motor control love to use ball launchers for vocal exploration activities!

Jen gave a friendly reminder to teach children, not diagnoses. Also in graphics.

Why don’t we write and sell a comprehensive adaptive music curriculum?

Thank you to We Are All Musicians’ editor Julia Irizarry for this comical demonstration of the expectations vs. reality of music lesson planning!

Thank you for your ongoing support! Please make sure to follow us on your favorite social media platforms and help us reach more teachers by interacting with our content. We are so grateful to be in this important work with you!

With gratitude,

Jess, Jen, Jon & Isaiah