Music Therapy for Children on the Spectrum/ ASD
Benefits of Piano Lessons as Music Therapy for Children Ages 3-16 on the Spectrum /Neurodiverse/ Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)/ Einstein Syndrome/ and Dyslexia/Hyperlexia.
Miss Marcy has successfully been providing music therapy to neurodiverse/ASD and children on the Spectrum, ages 3-16 since 2009. She supports students in improving their social skills, focus, communication and speech, eye-hand coordination, and self - confidence through learning to play the piano, music theory (including patterns and high level intellectual processes) reading music, and ear training. The piano as music therapy can provide a beneficial approach for autistic or neurodiverse children, offering a myriad of advantages in such venues as sensory processing, motor skills, enhanced creativity and social skills, increased focus and memory, sequencing, and communication. Playing the piano requires precise movements, enhancing hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills. Piano and music in general provides a soothing effects with respect to the rhythm and melody of music serving to reduce anxiety and sensory overload for autistic/neurodiverse children on the Spectrum. Miss Marcy has successfully worked with children showing symptoms or a diagnosis of neurodiverse, Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), ADD, ADHD, Asperger's Syndrome, Dyslexia, and Einstein Syndrome, Hyperlexia.
For children on the Spectrum/ASD text Miss Marcy with convenient times to discuss your child's symptoms and lesson availability: 941-266-5847. Tuition is dependent upon the child's symptoms and special needs. Upon approval, The Florida Step Up Program can often assist with up to $8000 per year, or $670 per month to cover tuition for music/piano therapy. For best results, repetition is highly recommended (3 thirty minute in-person sessions). Miss Marcy's goal is to integrate your child into the public school system with educational success leading to admittance and graduation from college to ultimate independence, self - confidence, appropriate social and communication skills, and long term career success.
Terms and Symptoms: ADD/ADHD/ASD 1. Inattentive, difficulty sustaining attention, easily distracted. 2. Difficulty organizing tasks, forgetting and losing things, making careless mistakes. 3. Appearing to not listen when spoken to directly. 4. Avoiding tasks that require sustained mental effort, failing to follow through on instructions. 5. Hyperactivity: Restlessness, fidgeting, excessive talking, difficulty sitting still. 6. Impulsivity: Acting without thinking, interrupting, difficulty waiting for turn, impulsively making purchases.
Asperger's Syndrome: Now classified as part of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and entail a range of challenges in social interaction, social cues, unusual speech patterns, sensory sensitivities, repetitive behaviors, and challenges with motor skills. Typical symptoms include:1. Social Challenges:Difficulty understanding and interpreting social cues, including body language, facial expressions, and tone of voice. 2. Emotional Difficulties:Struggling to regulate emotions, understand the emotions of others, and show empathy. 3. Repetitive Behaviors:Engaging in repetitive actions or routines, often with a strong need for structure and order. 4. Strong Interests:Demonstrating intense and focused interests in specific topics or subjects.5.Sensory Sensitivities:Experiencing heightened sensitivity to sounds, lights, textures, or tastes, leading to overstimulation. 6. Communication Difficulties:Having trouble with verbal and nonverbal communication, including making eye contact and interpreting social cues. 7. Lack of Coordination:Showing poor motor skills, clumsiness, and difficulty with fine motor tasks. 8. Inappropriate Behaviors:Displaying behaviors that are not typical for social situations, such as inappropriate eye contact or talking about one's interests excessively. 9. Understanding Social NormsStruggling to understand and follow social rules and expectations. 10. Flat or Robotic Speech:Speaking in a flat, monotone voice, or with unusual speech patterns11. Difficulty with Change:Experiencing anxiety or distress when a routine is interrupted or when faced with changes.12. Focus on Specific Topics:Talking extensively and repetitively about specific topics of interest, often to the exclusion of other subjects.
Einstein syndrome: is a condition where a young child experiences late onset of language yet demonstrates gifted abilities in other areas of analytical thinking.
Symptoms of dyslexia:1. delayed speech2. problems with pronunciation3. problems with rhyming words and learning rhymes4. difficulty with learning shapes, colors and how to write their own name. 5. difficulty with retelling a story in the right order of events.6. Symptoms of dyslexia in primary school children:7. problems with reading a single word. 8. regularly confuses certain letters when writing, such as ‘d’ and ‘b’ or ‘m’ and ‘w’. 9. regularly writes words backwards, such as writing ‘pit’ when the word ‘tip’ was intended. 10. problems with grammar, such as learning prefixes or suffixes. 11. tries to avoid reading aloud in class12. doesn’t like reading books.13. reads below their expected level. Benefits of piano lessons for children with Hyperlexia: Often hyperlexic children are extremely fascinated with letters, numbers, and patterns. The patterns and structure associated with learning the piano fosters their natural talents in these areas. Additionally, reading comprehension is weak in hyperlexic children. Piano lessons can improve learning comprehension via the requirements of note recognition and identification, musical symbols, hand positions, and fingering associated with learning to play the piano. Further enhancements include improved attention, concentration, focus, and memory.
Playing the piano serves to strengthens fine motor skills, dexterity, and eye-hand coordination which can assist in developing the child's writing and typing skills, particularly considering the fact that most pre-schools and elementary schools begin students at very young ages with computer formats for instruction.
Hyperlexia children, like Asperger's syndrome, prefer structure and routine. Miss Marcy's lessons consist of both of these techniques often reducing students anxiety levels.
Miss Marcy's unique approach incorporates her own "musical hieroglyphics", utilizing enhanced visual effects, particularly with numbers, symbols, and colors.
Miss Marcy focuses on critical thinking skills, communication, repetition, humor, creativity, and social skills throughout her customized lessons.
For children on the Spectrum/ASD text Miss Marcy with convenient times to discuss your child's symptoms and lesson availability: 941-266-5847. Tuition is dependent upon the child's symptoms and special needs. Upon approval, The Florida Step Up Program can often assist with up to $8000 per year, or $670 per month to cover tuition for music/piano therapy. For best results, repetition is highly recommended (3 thirty minute in-person sessions). Miss Marcy's goal is to integrate your child into the public school system with educational success leading to admittance and graduation from college to ultimate independence, self - confidence, appropriate social and communication skills, and long term career success.
Terms and Symptoms: ADD/ADHD/ASD 1. Inattentive, difficulty sustaining attention, easily distracted. 2. Difficulty organizing tasks, forgetting and losing things, making careless mistakes. 3. Appearing to not listen when spoken to directly. 4. Avoiding tasks that require sustained mental effort, failing to follow through on instructions. 5. Hyperactivity: Restlessness, fidgeting, excessive talking, difficulty sitting still. 6. Impulsivity: Acting without thinking, interrupting, difficulty waiting for turn, impulsively making purchases.
Asperger's Syndrome: Now classified as part of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and entail a range of challenges in social interaction, social cues, unusual speech patterns, sensory sensitivities, repetitive behaviors, and challenges with motor skills. Typical symptoms include:1. Social Challenges:Difficulty understanding and interpreting social cues, including body language, facial expressions, and tone of voice. 2. Emotional Difficulties:Struggling to regulate emotions, understand the emotions of others, and show empathy. 3. Repetitive Behaviors:Engaging in repetitive actions or routines, often with a strong need for structure and order. 4. Strong Interests:Demonstrating intense and focused interests in specific topics or subjects.5.Sensory Sensitivities:Experiencing heightened sensitivity to sounds, lights, textures, or tastes, leading to overstimulation. 6. Communication Difficulties:Having trouble with verbal and nonverbal communication, including making eye contact and interpreting social cues. 7. Lack of Coordination:Showing poor motor skills, clumsiness, and difficulty with fine motor tasks. 8. Inappropriate Behaviors:Displaying behaviors that are not typical for social situations, such as inappropriate eye contact or talking about one's interests excessively. 9. Understanding Social NormsStruggling to understand and follow social rules and expectations. 10. Flat or Robotic Speech:Speaking in a flat, monotone voice, or with unusual speech patterns11. Difficulty with Change:Experiencing anxiety or distress when a routine is interrupted or when faced with changes.12. Focus on Specific Topics:Talking extensively and repetitively about specific topics of interest, often to the exclusion of other subjects.
Einstein syndrome: is a condition where a young child experiences late onset of language yet demonstrates gifted abilities in other areas of analytical thinking.
Symptoms of dyslexia:1. delayed speech2. problems with pronunciation3. problems with rhyming words and learning rhymes4. difficulty with learning shapes, colors and how to write their own name. 5. difficulty with retelling a story in the right order of events.6. Symptoms of dyslexia in primary school children:7. problems with reading a single word. 8. regularly confuses certain letters when writing, such as ‘d’ and ‘b’ or ‘m’ and ‘w’. 9. regularly writes words backwards, such as writing ‘pit’ when the word ‘tip’ was intended. 10. problems with grammar, such as learning prefixes or suffixes. 11. tries to avoid reading aloud in class12. doesn’t like reading books.13. reads below their expected level. Benefits of piano lessons for children with Hyperlexia: Often hyperlexic children are extremely fascinated with letters, numbers, and patterns. The patterns and structure associated with learning the piano fosters their natural talents in these areas. Additionally, reading comprehension is weak in hyperlexic children. Piano lessons can improve learning comprehension via the requirements of note recognition and identification, musical symbols, hand positions, and fingering associated with learning to play the piano. Further enhancements include improved attention, concentration, focus, and memory.
Playing the piano serves to strengthens fine motor skills, dexterity, and eye-hand coordination which can assist in developing the child's writing and typing skills, particularly considering the fact that most pre-schools and elementary schools begin students at very young ages with computer formats for instruction.
Hyperlexia children, like Asperger's syndrome, prefer structure and routine. Miss Marcy's lessons consist of both of these techniques often reducing students anxiety levels.
Miss Marcy's unique approach incorporates her own "musical hieroglyphics", utilizing enhanced visual effects, particularly with numbers, symbols, and colors.
Miss Marcy focuses on critical thinking skills, communication, repetition, humor, creativity, and social skills throughout her customized lessons.