At Harmony Music Therapy, part of our mission is to see our clients grow into happy and fulfilled individuals. Understanding and identifying emotions is an important skill in developing emotional well-being, so we wanted to share some songs you can use in everyday life to help your children recognize and embrace emotions. 

This post will identify ways to explore the emotion “Happy”. 

1. Happy by Pharell Williams

• Dancing is not just a form of physical activity, it can boost confidence and act as an expressive outlet. It is proven that dancing releases endorphins in the brain, also called the “feel good” hormones. These chemicals act as natural painkillers and mood elevators, promoting a sense of happiness and reducing stress. Try having a 4-minute dance party by turning on this song and just dancing with your kids. Be silly and laugh at yourself to show your children that we can find happy moments during everyday life.

1. Make a Happy Face by Carol Nicodemi

• Practice making different facial expressions to help children identify emotions and start to practice empathy. Imitating a happy face during play can help your children associate what happiness looks like with what they feel in their body. This can help them identify happiness in themselves and in those around them. Listen to this song and practice making happy faces in the mirror. Show them what happiness looks like on your face, and point out the similarities you see on both of your faces.

1. Song In My Tummy by Laurie Berkner

• Body awareness plays an important role in identifying the emotions we are feeling. By noticing different parts of our body while being silly, we can start to learn and understand the physical sensations our body feels while experiencing happiness. Try listening to this song and following along with the actions, singing and dancing while you practice identifying different body parts with your children. 

Practicing happiness is a lifelong skill, and your guidance plays an important role in shaping your child’s understanding of joy. By incorporating these and other songs into your daily routines, you can help your child find and experience joy in their everyday life.

Wishing you and your family moments of joy and laughter this week.

P.S. If you or your child need help with managing emotions and feeling emotionally healthy, contact us to schedule a music therapy session. We’d love to work with you!