Songwriting with Kids

When students write their own songs, they’re more apt to live by their words. Music is a great way to build community and cultivate kindness!

I’ve gone back to school. These days I’m spending 50 to 75 days a year as an “Artist in Residence,” teaching children of all ages how to write songs and in the process writing one with the students I work with.

The goal of this program is to instill a love of creative expression in the kids, as well as helping them create their own songs that speak to issues that affect the entire school community, such as bullying, respect, peer pressure, diversity and self-esteem. When students write their own song, they’re more apt to live by the words and quietly convince other students to do the same. Steve has written more than one hundred songs with kids. You can listen to some of the songs and see videos here.

Why I Write Songs With Kids

There are two reasons I write songs with kids.  The first is to continue spreading the anti-bullying message of my song "Don’t Laugh At Me". 

I believe that if I write a song with children about being kind and respectful to each other they are more apt to live by those words than if I just sing them a song I wrote. By involving them in the creative process, it starts a dialogue and gets them talking about their feelings, opening up to each other in ways they hardly ever get to do in the course of a normal school day. Long after I leave the school, many of the songs I create with students are used by the school as a reminder of how kids should treat each other as well as a source of pride for the students who created it.

The second reason I do this work is to instill a love of the creative process in young people. When I write a song with students I hope that over and above the piece we create, it inspires them to express themselves through poetry, songwriting, art projects, theater pieces and creative writing. Combine that with the message we’re spreading and who knows - we might end up with an army of kids promoting peace and kindness everywhere they go and encouraging others to do the same. Together, maybe we can make the world a better place, one song at a time.

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