Disabilities and Music

Music-Making for People with Developmental Disabilites

This workshop shows how music-making can be used to benefit people with developmental disabilities at all levels of functioning. People with disabilities so often have a strong, instinctive relationship with music. Because of this, music is not only a positive activity in and of itself; it is also often an excellent way of achieving significant enhancements in cognitive, behavioral, and social functioning. This can be done without needing technical knowledge or command of music, and meaningful results can be achieved even with low levels of general functioning. This interactive workshop, specially designed for teachers, caregivers and family members with a limited musical background or skills, aims to:

Show why and how music can impact the lives of those with developmental disabilities
Teach participants basic skills for using music with clients

Suitable for: Educators (specialist and non-specialist), caregivers and family members of people with developmental disabilities. Note: no previous training or experience necessary to benefit.

Topics include:

Using music to enhance socialization
Using music to enhance cognitive skills
Using music to enhance language and communication skills
Suitable approaches of music-making for different functioning levels
Appropriate repertoire
Optimal approaches to teaching material

Duration: 1-3 hours.