Testimonials
"My kids really enjoyed the class, and it has carried over to the rest of our lives. They both sing and dance more at home, and we really enjoy all the songs. " ~ Jackie W.
"Since attending your music therapy program, my son, who has mild autism, has been consistently sitting the family down and asking them to listen to his concert as he plays his instruments. Sometimes he gives each of us an instrument so we can "practice" our music together; then he will tell us when "the music lesson is over."
It's hilarious and has brought great joy to our family." ~ Gina G.
" As a parent of a child with special needs, I can say that I could see immediately the the difference in my child's general behavior outside the therapy sessions , not only improvements in his music abilities. He is more patient and pays more attention to everything. Music wise, he cannot wait to show us all the time how well he can sing using his guitar."
"The therapy approach used at Joyful Music and Dance offered 100% accountability on a time-goals scale which is something hard to find. " Andra L.
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"As a single mom of a 2 ½ year old daughter with Down
Syndrome, I have spent every moment since receiving her diagnosis seeking
professional help with her development. I initially engaged the help of an oral motor/speech therapist when she
was just an infant. Although this
therapy has been critical to her ongoing development, her therapist reached a
plateau with Faith when she was approximately 2 years old. The therapist tried everything to get
Faith to use auditory speech as her primary form of communication, but could
not get the synapses to fire. Fortunately, thanks to the love of a close friend we were introduced to
Tamela Ponder, a licensed music therapist , at Joyful Music and Dance. Music therapy was the key that unlocked
the door to Faith’s speech. The technique of connecting my child’s passion for
music with her desire to speak has broken down the walls of silence for our
family. It started with one word,
then two words, and now we are up to three words at a time. Words cannot possibly express the depth
of my gratitude to my friend for paving the road with an introduction and to
Miss Tamela and her amazing team for helping my child find her voice! Music therapy has been the best
investment in my child’s success I have made to date. With a heart of deep gratitude, Julie K.