Care Plus NJ, Inc. (“CarePlus”) will be offering a new session of Music Therapy Group for children with social, behavioral, and mental health challenges. The 10-week program will be held on Tuesdays from 5:00 to 6:00pm and runs from September 24th through November 26th. With the help of music therapist Paul Kates, it will focus on the many aspects of music and its therapeutic benefits.
The CarePlus Music Therapy Group is designed to target children with behavioral, social, or developmental challenges. The sessions are arranged to use the elements of music-making to engage the children in a non-threatening and fun way. Some of the goals of the program are to focus on areas such as:
- Awareness of self and others
- Cooperation
- Self-regulation
- Socialization
- Communication
- Motor skills
- Creativity
The American Music Therapy Association says that, “Music stimulates all of the senses and involves the child at many levels. This ‘multimodal approach’ facilitates many developmental skills.”
“Music therapy is successful in reaching youth who may have difficulty expressing themselves verbally,” says Paul Kates, MT-BC, and board certified music therapist. Kates, who will be leading the group, utilizes his therapeutic background and the music-making process to motivate each member towards their own needs. The 10 sessions will focus on the recreation of existing songs, the creation of new and original songs, receptive listening, and exposure to a variety of music, creative movement and/or improvisation.
CarePlus offered the program to adults last year, and the successful outcomes achieved inspired Kates to tailor a program for a youth audience.
The cost of attending the Music Therapy Group is $375 for all 10 session and runs from September 24th through November 26th. The group meets at the CarePlus Paramus headquarters.
For more information or to register, call Paul Kates at 201-797-2660 x154 or email PaulKates@CarePlusNJ.org.
CarePlus offers these support groups as a way to help children get to a place of balance — healthy minds and healthy bodies. Through these programs, one can help to manage stress, behavior, and to develop an overall sense of good health.
CarePlus NJ, INC. is dedicated to excellence in mental healthcare and has a commitment to life-long support needed by individuals and their families to ensure that they achieve their full potential and improve the quality of their lives.
