If You Could Give a Gift This Christmas

As we inch closer and closer to Christmas break, everyone (including staff!) is getting antsy. It seems that all my students want to talk about are the holidays, which is fine with me. It gives me a perfect excuse to utilize all the great songs I've come across and/or written.

The kids love to tell me what they want for Christmas, and tomorrow I'll share a song with you that encourages them do exactly that. But a week later, as I was planning their music therapy session, I had an idea. Rather than tell me about what they asked for, I wanted to hear what they would give to others if money was no issue. Here's what I came up with:


Sheet Music: $1


If you could give a gift this Christmas,
No matter how much it cost to buy,
You could give it to your family or friend,
What would you choose, tell us who and why.

It doesn't have to be from a store,
A gift from the heart means so much more.
You could make it yourself or do something nice.
Not all gifts have a price.

If you could give a gift this Christmas,
No matter how much it cost to buy,
You could give it to your family or friend,
What would you choose, tell us who and why.

After each chorus, I called on a student and asked him/her to choose a recipient and share what they could give to this person, and for what reason. The answers I got were all over the board, ranging from giving a fellow classmate a new video game (which made that student very happy!) to buying a new house for his/her mom or dad. My students took this exercise seriously, and it really did show another side of them.

Sometimes it's hard for kids to remember that the holidays are about more than getting presents, but really all they need is a simple reminder.