Music For Kiddos Symposium: Friday, November 7th, 2025

The premier online early childhood music conference is back for its 6th year, featuring keynote speaker Laurie Berkner!

The Music For Kiddos Symposium is an online conference and continuing education opportunity for anyone who loves supporting kids through music, play, and creative engagement.

Every session is designed with the nuances of childhood development in mind. Our speakers are innovators, advocates, and creatives who share fresh ideas, resources, and encouragement to help you in your work with kids.

We also want to hear from you! That’s why we build in extra time for questions and comments during every session and host a Speaker’s Forum at the end of the day where you can bring your questions to the entire group of speakers.

If you’ve been needing a music therapy or music education pick-me-up, this is the conference for you. You’ll leave feeling rejuvenated and refreshed, armed with new ideas and inspiration to bring back to your work.

Watch live (webinar-style), catch the recordings afterward, or mix and match to fit your schedule.

FEATURED SPEAKERS:

Laurie Berkner - Keynote

Jasmine Edwards, MA, LCAT, MT-BC - Cultural Humility in Early Childhood Music Practice

Lorrie Kubicek, MT-BC and Kimberly Khare, MA, MT-BC - Facilitation Paths of Music Bringers

Jon Torrance - Beyond the Classroom: Creating Curious Learners Through Music

Nathalia Palis, MA, MT-BC, LMFT - Finding Your Voice: Building Confidence with Songs in Other Languages

Summer Lall, MT-BC - Drum Journaling - Going Deeper with Music Metaphors

Music therapists, this course is pre-approved for 10 CMTE credits, and it fulfills the requirements for ethics credits.

Music educators and other related professionals, upon completion of the course you will be given a certificate for 10 professional development credits that you can self-submit (we cannot guarantee that they will be accepted, but they often are).

KIND WORDS FROM PRIOR YEARS:

"What an experience! This was my first time and I already feel like a more informed music therapist.” - Sarah Hall, MT-BC

“It is like going to a conference where EVERY session is applicable to your work. 11/10 recommend!” - Caroline West, MM, LCAT, MT-BC

“I love that this is such a safe space for any kind of music maker from music therapist to music educator. It’s rare to find events that truly value and uphold community with applicable information for anyone who attends. If you’re looking for a positive event to recharge yourself, this is it!” - Anika Smith, MT-BC

“This was a joy-filled learning opportunity that left me feeling deeply grounded and connected to my values and purpose.” - Elizabeth, MT-BC

SCHEDULE:

SCHEDULE

Friday, November 7th, 2025

9am - 10:10am ET - Jon Torrance - Beyond the Classroom

10:20am - 11:30am ET - Summer Lall, MT-BC  - Drum Journaling

11:40am - 12:50 ET - Nathalia Palis, MA, MT-BC, LMFT - Bilingual Music

BREAK

2pm - 3:10pm ET - Jasmine Edwards, MA, LCAT, MT-BC - Cultural Humility 

3:20 pm - 4:30pm ET - Kimberly Khare, MA, MT-BC and Lorrie Kubicek, MT-BC - Facilitation

4:45pm - 6pm ET - Laurie Berkner - Keynote

BREAK

6:45pm - 8pm ET - Speaker’s Forum

Total Course Time: 500 minutes (10 credits, fulfills ethics credits for music therapists)

PRICE: $107

Laurie Berkner - Laurie Berkner is a best-selling children’s musician and songwriter, often called the “queen of kids’ music.” With The Laurie Berkner Band, she has released dozens of beloved albums, authored children’s books, and performed at venues from Carnegie Hall to the White House.

Jasmine Edwards, MA, LCAT, MT-BC (she/her) is a doctoral candidate and fellow within Steinhardt Music Education with a focus in music therapy at New York University. Her clinical experiences include private practice, outpatient, school-based, community, and medical-pediatric settings, and she is trained in NICU-MT, First Sounds: Rhythm, Breath, Lullaby, and Austin Vocal Psychotherapy. She has served as an adjunct faculty member in the music therapy departments at Howard University, New York University, Montclair State University, Nazareth College, Duquesne University, and Molloy University.

Lorrie Kubicek, MT-BC is a board certified music therapist and program manager for Expressive Therapies at Massachusetts General-Brigham Hospital. With 20+ years professional Medical music therapy experience and 7 additional years doing music and creative arts at

Paul Newman’s Hole in the Wall Gang Camp for children with medical needs, Lorrie finds a very effective balance between traditional music therapy techniques, childhood development knowledge and clinical fun.

Kimberly Khare, MA, MT-BC is a board certified music therapist and a Nordoff-Robbins music therapist. For 25+ years she has worked in community-focused settings supporting children,families, teens and young adults by designing and facilitating programming that helps thembuild their accessibility, creativity and agency. Kimberly has taught at Berklee College of Music for 20 years, ushering in the next generation of music therapists by helping them hone in on their clinical musicianship.

Jon Torrance is a musician and educator based in Michigan, USA. He has taught various facets of music to learners ranging from pre-k through adults in the idioms of contemporary, pop, and folk music. His main instruments are guitar and trumpet, and, heavily influenced by jazz, he integrates improvisation throughout his craft, including his approach to education.

Summer Jasmine Lall, MT-BC is a Board-Certified Music Therapist who graduated summa cum laude from Berklee College of Music in 2008 with a degree in Music Therapy. She is the founder of CradleSong Birthing and Rhythm & Truth Music Therapy, where she specializes in working with adolescents.

Nathalia Palis, MA, MT-BC, LMFT, is a Colombian-born children’s songwriter, performer, and educator based in Los Angeles. With experience in educational, hospital, and clinical settings, she integrates her background in music therapy and psychology to create engaging programs for children and families. Nathalia is also the creator of an early childhood music program and has produced multiple bilingual albums of original music.

(Event host) Stephanie Leavell, MT-BC is the creator of Music for Kiddos, a resource and education website dedicated to high-quality children’s music. She’s an educator, board certified music therapist, Berklee College of Music graduate, community-builder, and above all, is passionate about using music to help kids succeed.

Course Format: Online webinar format with five 70-minute presentations, a 75-minute keynote and a “Speaker’s Forum” featuring all the speakers together for 75 minutes. There is also an optional “Reflect and Connect” online gathering the day after the event where participants can connect and share insights learned.

Prerequisites: None.

Course Access: One year of video access. Music therapists pursuing continuing education credit (CMTE) credit must complete the course within 90 days of event.

Music therapists, this course is pre-approved by the Certification Board of Music Therapists (CBMT) for 10 continuing music therapy education (CMTE) credits, and fulfills ethics credit requirements! To receive CMTE credit, the course must be completed within 90 days of purchase. Upon completion of the course and course evaluation, a certificate will be delivered via email within 2 business days. We are not able to grant partial credit. (Certificates can be expedited upon request. Please find the evaluation and additional instructions in the course PDF received after purchase. This is a simple process and we’re happy to help!)

Music therapists and professionals in other related fields, upon completion of this course, you are eligible for a certificate for 10 professional development credits. We cannot guarantee that your professional development credits will be approved, but we will provide a certificate that can be self-submitted.

Music Therapy Board Certification Domains (In compliance with 2020 Board Certification Domains) 

1: Participants will identify at least one new musical tool (resource, musical cue, etc.) that can be utilized in their clinical practice. (CBMT Domain VA-1)
2: Participants will give an example of a technology tool that can support a goal-based intervention. (CBMT Domain VA. 51)
3: Participants will be able to examine their own interventions and repertoire to determine whether or not the music is ethical and culturally inclusive. (CBMT Domain IIIA-3) 

Number of CMTEs or Professional Development Credits: 10 Materials Included: Instructional PDF course, recorded webinars, and access to a private Facebook group for community support.

Refund Policy: We offer a 100% refund within 90 days of purchase if you are unsatisfied with the quality of the course or materials. Please note that no refunds will be issued after CMTE credits have been granted or after 30 days from the date of purchase. For questions, please contact us at hello@musicforkiddos.com for more information.

Please visit musicforkiddos.com/grievance-policy for our grievance policy in participation with the Certification Board of Music Therapists.

Music for Kiddos strongly encourages course participants to communicate any questions, concerns or grievances so we can help foster a supportive and pleasant continuing education experience. Please contact Stephanie Leavell, MT-BC, at hello@musicforkiddos.com with any questions or concerns. Emails will be returned within 2 business days. In the event that a suitable resolution is not provided, the participant may contact the Continuing Education Committee of CBMT to report a grievance.

Music For Kiddos Symposium is approved by the Certification Board for Music Therapists (CBMT) for 10 Continuing Music Therapy Education credits (fulfills ethics requirements). Music For Kiddos, Inc. (Provider Number P-196) maintains responsibility for program quality, and adherence to CBMT policies and criteria.