success with music lessons?

I have read on APD boards that processing music and language are two different things, so kids with APD might do fine with music. We will start our little girl in piano lessons in the fall. I am very interested to see how she does.

Janis

I have a 10yo nonLD son with a severe hearing loss in one ear and absolutely no academic probs at all who just finished his second yr of violin in school(lessons and orchestra); it is a difficult instrument to learn becauise of the fine motor skills involved, but very satisfying for kids to play in a group. Can your child read music? He learned effortlessly, I think it is corelated with math ability, but my 6th grader with LD struggled to learn to read music and never took an instrument. I would only urge a child to take music lessons if they really wanted to, and had time to practice daily; my LD son had tutoring and homework took twice as long so he had no “extra” time. Be prepared to listen at a distance if your child starts violin, it can be painful, but does get better with lots of practice.

The violin is going to be a problem. It requires quite significant amounts of small motor coordination, and sounds crummy in the hands of a beginner. The piano or the guitar might be a better choice. Drums are easier still, as they only require a good sense of rhythm, but for the sake of everyone’s sanity I urge you not to get them for him.

after we did interactive metronome, the OT reccomended taking some type of musical intstrument lesson to continue with the motor planning and sequencing work. My oldest takes guitar,my youngest takes drums. Both seemed to be enjoying it,and both feel successful at it.My youngest who takes drums is the CAPD kid. The lessons are only 30 minutes once a week and then practice at home the rest of the week. They chose the instruments,they enjoy it,what instrument does your kid want to try learning? Sometimes it is a matter of what their desires are.

piano before IM and it wasn’t happening. After IM he could do it.

My ADHD rising third-grader has done beautifully with a semester of group piano (which started at 6 kids, went to 3 by the end of classes). She had her first recital in June—and I was so proud of her! She IS tenacious about things, thankfully, and practiced w/o being nagged and seems to enjoy the accomplishment as well as musical aspect. Songs are still quite short at this level, so they hold her attention.

I would recommend piano lessons for an ADHD child if the child likes to sit down and play around on the keyboard. A child w/o this inclination may not have a high enough natural interest level. Still, my mildly ADD 15-year-old who NEVER wanted to take any music lessons as a youngster now loves electric guitar and is picking out guitar songs on the piano now!

My daughter with tiny late-developing hands and concomitant motor problems, but great musical talent, had no luck at all with early violin lessons, tired of elementary piano lessons, but took to the clarinet and the trombone like a duck to water in high school; learned both well enough to play in nationally-known university marching band, with no formal lessons. Now age 20 starting to pick up guitar for fun, teaching herself off the internet. I would say there must be at least some internal motivation, and then pick an instrument that does not require finicky finger motions.

I’m curious about your decision on music. My 12 year old son, with CAPD, asked for 2 years to play violin. I was hesitant because of listening skills, fine motor skills, etc. He started in June and is doing very well. His fingers move much better on the violin than anywhere else. His tone is fair and he’s making great progress. He doesn’t seem to listen to the music, though. He memorizes the fingering and bow strokes. His private instructor says that’s not uncommon, that the listening to the song will come with time. My son is very determined to memorize a song’s notes, though. He works himself to frustration and will not stop until he has successfully accomplished his goal for the day’s practice. I think he’s enjoying it, but he committed to take lessons through December. Then we’d reevaluate. I’m hoping he will perform in Sunday School at Christmas and he will be encouraged even more when others hear him play. We’ll see what happens after that.

I’ve always been a big believer in music lessons for my kids. My personal feeling is that it doesn’t matter how well they play, but that they get the mental stimulation of learning an instrument and how to read music (like learning an extra language!). Also, I think of it as a special gift. If you learn it early in life, it’s something you’ll always carry with you inside and you’ll be able to entertain others or comfort yourself.

Both my kids have taken piano lessons. I felt piano was a good instrument to start with because the music majors I knew in college all had to play piano as well as their chosen instrument. (Not that my kids would ever become musicians! But I thought it was a good place to start and they could always change to another instrument later — my daughter recently switched to electric guitar. That’s a teen for you!).

Both my children differ dramatically in musical ability. I try to make it a point not to compare them, but it was surprise for us when we learned that our LD child was much more musically talented than our non-LD child. This was not something we expected. So sometimes you never know what hidden talents are just waiting to emerge!

How old is your child? If he/she is younger than 10, I wouldn’t recommend one of the horns, because there are physical limitations (finger strength, lung power). Piano is one of the best to start one, because you don’t have to worry about tone. Violin takes a very long time to get to the point of sounding good, so can be quite frustrating for certain children. Assorted learning disabilities can also make note reading difficult. A Suzuki trained teacher might be good to start with, on piano or guitar. (Guitar is actually easier to start with than violin, as you get to the music without worrying about the technical aspects of bowing.) If your child is good at fine motor activities, drums can also be a good starting instrument. They learn rhythms without worrying about note reading.

My LD son tried piano at age 6-7, the note reading difficulties made it impossible. However, when he started a band instrument in 5th grade, he had learned enough compensating strategies to get past the note reading issues. He now plays 3 instruments in 2 high school bands and has hopes of a career in music. It actually helps a lot if the child is mathematically talented…since counting and a lot of music theory is mathematically based.

My non-LD daughter started piano at age 6, violin at age 7. She still much prefers piano, mainly because it’s much easier to sound good with less practice time.

Good luck!

Kay

We started violin lessons before the vision therapy. She had trouble reading the music (duh) but we made it clear to the teacher that we were not interested in the conservatory tests ( a Canadian/British thing much like band competitions where an adjudicator listens to a set piece and a sight read). She made great progress in tonality. She is now in band and a great trumpet player. She is sitting first chair second trumpet and is playing with kids 2 years older. She is about to travel on an honor band trip. It is another part of the brain. Band is a very social thing.

For my child, its wonderful.

I would suggest you find a teacher who is willing to work on ear training, musicality and FUN. The ability to read music, know rhythms, will help in any instrument later on.