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Richard Mola Posts: 3
5/6/2021
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Option 1: Provide/Describe one or more examples of adapted or alternative assessments you have successfully used in the classroom for students with disabilities. Be sure to identify the student's disability. Share your response in the threaded discussion.
Recently, students were involved in a commercial project in which two short samples of music would be used to present the project. I adapted that requirement to just one piece of music for my students with disabilities. I also used alternative assessment for those students that needed it in order to feel successful. Students were allowed to read their script instead of memorizing. This, even though some of my students with disabilities, were able to memorize their script.
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Stephanie DeVilling Posts: 3
5/7/2021
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I had a mentor suggest to me to associate colors with keys on elementary instruments (keyboard, xylophone, etc) for those struggling to read beginning music. I used this technique with one of my students who was recently diagnosed with dyslexia. Her ability to focus on the "music" was made so much easier when she wasn't worried about getting the note wrong because she struggled to determine what "letter" she was looking at. It was simple for her to recognize the color, and we eventually were able to bridge the color system into the notes and where they fell on the staff.
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Jessica Moore Posts: 3
5/16/2021
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BEESS Portal Course Question: Think of a student with a disability you have now or in the past. Describe ways in which their disability affected their learning in your class.
Years ago, I taught music to a self-contained ESE class consisting of students in the 3rd-5th grades who had autism spectrum disorder. One student was highly sensitivity to light and sound. When his class would come to the music room each week, I would always turn off one of the switches controlling the ceiling light panels, and made sure we had a pair of noise-cancelling headphones on hand. The student also had a speech impairment and would self-stimulate by yelling or screaming. We used a "whisper-phone" (two elbow-joint PVC pipes connected together) to help him "hear" his own voice and this often helped him self-calm and refocus. The student had difficulty responding verbally during singing, so I gave him a visual of the solfege scale to point to assist him in demonstrating which pitch we were singing as we ascended and descended the scale.
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Jessica Moore
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Sherry Donataccio Posts: 1
5/17/2021
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In my previous school I taught a self-contained ESE class. I remember one InD student in particular who was able to respond to music by clapping a steady beat and pointing to herself when her name was called during my "hello" song. However, she had difficulty choosing an instrument and picking it up to hold in her hand. Whenever I had students choose a hand held instrument to play for the day, I would need to assist her in the process. This was a cognitive issue, not a physical one. Over the course of a year and a half I was able to see this student progress to where she could understand and follow instructions such as "choose an instrument" and pick up the instrument of her choice to play. If I recall correctly a general goal in her IEP actually was the ability to pick up materials as instructed. This was truly awesome to see! I am at a different school now but I still think about her and her class.
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Sharon Godwin Posts: 3
5/19/2021
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Several years ago I taught at a special needs school with severe to moderate physically, emotionally, autistic and intellectually challenged students. I wrote grants and received donations to supply the students with instruments. The classes were 45 minutes long which made it difficult for attention spans with most of the grade levels. I developed music centers and would have 20 to 25 minute lessons as a whole class then students were allowed to choose which music center they would like. I had communication boards with velcro pictures for some students, communication devices where I would place choices on as well as using verbals choices for the higher functioning students.
One student in particular had only eye gaze movement with a slight head movement. She could use a head pointer to make choices. I set up one of the first touch screens in our county with music choices for her as well as the music centers for her.
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Tim Gurganus Posts: 1
6/6/2021
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This past year I had an 8 year old student in first grade due to her limited physical abilities and very small size. I found with my encouragement to become a risk-taker and move to some Just Dance, Learning Station, Kidz Bop Dance Videos the rest of the class would support her with tremendous praise. Which they did! By the time May came she was tracking the choreography at about 50% and had no fear to participate in front of the class! She now has so much confidence and even became more talkative with me and the students!
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Derald Hill-Shirley Posts: 1
6/9/2021
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I taught a very high-functioning autistic student that was not quite comfortable socializing or engaging in various classroom group activities with peers. Using puppets, role modeling, read-a-louds as resources, I was able to show the importance of interacting with others. As the year progressed, the student became more comfortable using peer/buddy and collaborative group interventions.
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Valerie Nies Posts: 1
6/11/2021
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Some years back, I had a student that was diagnosed with Asperger. At this point in my life, I am in my third year teaching and my experience as a teacher was good. My students showed growth but no behaviors that I was hearing about. Suddenly, this student showed up on the first day and I just knew this year was going to be challenging. This student would erupt and explode with such disconnect that it scared me a little because I did not want another student to get hurt. His behaviors throughout the year went from ripping my entire bulletin board paper down off my wall (and you know how hard we work on those alone), throwing things (pencils, books, chairs), and cursing such fowl words. So I read through his IEP and found that one of his accommodations is to provide him with a safe space that is only his in my room. Guess what? Yup, I bought duct tape squared him a room of his very own. I bought one of those hanging plastic clear shoe racks that hangs from the door and made Alphabet cards and Number cards and mixed them all up. It was an activity he can do as he is calming down. He sorts the numbers from the alphabets then places the number in order in each of the clear shoe pockets. It did not solve everything however, I only had 2 following incidents and he learned that he could be himself and he also loved when i added a wooden rocking chair. (GAME CHANGER)
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Valerie Golden Nies
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Ronelle Williams Posts: 3
6/22/2021
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I had a student that was diagnosed with Asberger. When he came to music class he could be very disruptive. He was not comfortable with group activities and did not like to join in activities. Giving him "jobs" to help me seemed to settle him down. At the beginning of the year, I gave him a puppet to have participate in the class. It worked well and then he gradually moved into peer/buddy interactions and his actual participation in the class without the continual use of the puppet.
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Adrienne Taylor Posts: 3
6/23/2021
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A former student of mine has cerebral palsy. He was unable to do things such as sit on the floor to play certain instruments or do activities that required prolonged standing or moving. If the activity required all the students to sit on the floor, he was able to sit in a chair and play the same instruments. If the lesson required moving or prolonged standing, he was once again able to sit in a chair and perform the same activities (modified) as the other students.
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Nancy Darcey Posts: 3
6/26/2021
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I recently had a student in music class with an orthopedic impairment. He had limited use of his fingers on his right hand. He was quick to try anything, and so it was easy to forget that he had any impairment. When we started playing recorders, he participated with enthusiasm. However, with limited motor skills on the right hand, many of the notes were impossible to play. His classmates were very supportive, but after several tries, it was evident that he was not going to be successful playing the song we were practicing. It was interesting to me that he never showed any frustration or negative emotion. He just kept on trying. I finally thought of an alternative instrument - the xylophone. I quietly asked him if he would like to play this instrument instead of the recorder for our presentation. He enthusiastically replied, "Yes!" He even took the instrument home to practice and was very successful. He later came to me and thanked me for letting him play the bells (xylophone). I learned that students do not always show their emotion but are very grateful when a teacher provides an intervention that works for them.
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David Levitan Posts: 3
7/18/2021
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Throughout my sixteen years of teaching K-5 general music, I’ve had many students with various disabilities. I am no longer surprised, as I was when I first began teaching, to hear exceptional singing and/or playing abilities coming from students with autism that otherwise rarely speak or make eye contact with me or their peers while attending my classes. As a novice teacher, there were times that I thought that these students weren’t paying much attention and were likely not getting much from my classes. Over the years, time and again I’ve witnessed many cases that demonstrate this couldn’t be further from the truth.
Often times I’ve seen kids, with and without autism, that are reluctant to sing, dance or even play instruments in front of their peers. Those that are most reluctant ALWAYS claim that they’re “shy.” For this reason, I require all of my 3rd – 5th graders to participate in “Performance Day” twice per year. I frame it as a fun way to gradually “get over the fear of performing in front of others.” The students are allowed to perform alone or in groups of up to four. Their performance must be something “musical,” meaning they may sing, dance or play instruments. While some students choose to perform alone, most choose to perform as part of a group.
Beginning in my 2nd year of teaching, I had a girl with autism I’ll call, “Megan,” that began attending our school for all six of her elementary years. While she received special services throughout the school day, by the time she began 2nd grade she was fully “included” in a mainstream classroom. During her first three years in my classes, Megan rarely made eye contact with me or with her classmates. She was generally very quiet but was perfectly well-behaved and somewhat participatory in our lessons.
Megan appeared to keep to herself mostly. By the time she was in 3rd grade, she seemed to be generally ostracized by her peers. After I presented the “Performance Day” assignment to her class, I asked her quietly if she would like me to place her in a group. She declined, saying that she would "just do it by myself."
On the day of the performance, when I called on her to come up before the class, many of the boys let out a hushed groan. After I quickly put an end to that, she proceeded to introduce her song and then began to sing, “Colors of the Wind” from the movie, “Pocahontas.”
Until that day, I had never actually seen an audience “drop their jaws.” This little girl stunned all of her classmates and me as well!
At the end of the song as her classmates cheered her with a standing ovation, I approached her and quietly told her that “she was a singer” and that she “had been blessed with a wonderful musical gift." I told her that “she should never stop singing as the world can always use the type of beautiful music she was able to share.”
That night, I received an email from her mom telling me that Megan came home from school today and told her that “today was the best day of my life.”
After that, I was fortunate to have Megan in my chorus throughout her 4th and 5th grade years. As she was not very coordinated and a bit slow to catch on to choreography, with permission from her mom, I worked with her individually with mom present after school to teach her the choreography to a song called “Blitzen’s Boogie” in which she was featured as “Blitzen.” It became clear that although Megan was slow to pick up on the choreography and was a bit uncoordinated, with the extra time and repetition outside of our regular rehearsal time, she was indeed able to learn. Some moves needed to be modified for her but she always worked hard to learn and ended up doing just fine. During those two years, I watched as she began to emerge from her shell. While she still didn't seem to be close to other kids in the chorus, she gradually grew her confidence as a singer.
For years after she left elementary school, her mom continued to email me and kept me updated on Megan’s progress. By the time she was a senior in high school, she had blossomed into a beautiful and talented young lady whose mom posts videos of her singing on Youtube. I am blown away by the confidence and expressiveness she exudes while singing now!
To this day, I keep a photo of her in my office as a reminder that the arts, for some people, may be the ONLY way in which they are able to “connect” with their world.
edited by David Levitan on 7/21/2021
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Kathleen Kerstetter Posts: 3
7/29/2021
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I teach at a school with a center for students with Autism. When planning the physical layout of my room, I take extra thought to the seating plan for students with Autism. For example, "Scott" will be one of several students with autism included in the music room. Scott is high functioning with a sensitivity to loud sounds. I pair him with a peer-buddy, and place him on an aisle seat that is not directly in front of the sound speakers or piano due to his sound sensitivity. This seating arrangement allows teachers or assistants easy access to assist without triggering a negative reaction to any loud music. His peer-buddy can assist him with any tasks, and can help check his work. Peer-buddies also develop friendships with the included students which helps with positive social emotional learning.
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Ashley Uhland Posts: 1
8/6/2021
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Last year, one of my students had muscular dystrophy and he either used a wheelchair, walker, or crutches. The main three areas of my instruction that were affected were dancing, stand/sit activities, and guitar playing. For every day dancing, I often gave him the choice to do hand movements or play instruments. For our May Day concert with folk dancing, I had him in the circle the the other students doing the hand motions with his partner and then the partner pushed him around the circle in his wheelchair while the other students were skipping. The second dance had a lot more footwork so he tapped the steady beat for his classmates on the tambourine. For guitar playing, the obstacle has being able to sit upright while holding the guitar and concentrating on the finger movements. We originally had him move to an armless chair when he arrived to class and I set something in front of him to brace his feet against. Soon after, he received a new smaller wheelchair with smaller arms and a seat belt and it worked better for him to stay in that chair to play. I would bring his guitar to him and help him adjust the strap so that he felt secure holding the guitar. His classroom teacher also had the students rotate the responsibility of either pushing his chair to class or carrying his supplies. They all appreciated having the responsibility and it helped them to include him as a regular part of the class and conversations as well as have a better understanding of his capabilities and think of that separately from his personality.
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Harley Hendricks Posts: 3
8/9/2021
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I had a D/HH student this past year in elementary music class. She could hear somewhat with hearing aids, but I could tell she was missing out on many things her classmates were hearing. I usually started out the class with group singing along with me playing the guitar for accompaniment. I asked the student if she would like to help me with the guitar and she readily agreed. I started out by having her put her hands on the body of the guitar to feel the vibrations of the different notes/chords. She became more engaged during singing time and soon could tell when chords changed. I then allowed her to strum the strings while I changed chords and she was visibly full of glee! She felt, I believe for the first time, like she was truly participating in sing along time. She started to sing along when she was feeling for vibrations and actually improved her rhythmic accuracy when she would strum along. I believe I will have her this year as well, so I'm excited to try some new ideas.
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Tamilla Fleck Posts: 2
8/26/2021
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I once taught a student who was visually imparied. In order to accommodate her I gave her preferential seating so she could see the board during lessons. I used special projectable lyrics when necessary and I also consulted with her vision teacher about adaptive tools she could use during class when necessary. She enjoyed music and even wrote a song while I taught her.
I have also taught students who have been identified as being on the autism spectrum. In order to accommodate those students I picked songs where they were able to have opportunities for legitimate moving and or dancing.
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Laura Allgood Posts: 6
9/5/2021
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Last year I had a visual impaired student. I had to find creative ways for her to be successful. She had to sit close to the board. Using a mangifying glass helped her with reading things in paper or text books.
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Kate Nadolny Posts: 6
9/17/2021
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I currently have several students who are hearing impaired. When it comes to listening activities, they are always brought closer to the speakers so they can hear better. Plus, listening activities for all students are combined with written assignments befitting of their grade level (i.e., Kindergarten has a coloring page showcasing their opinion, 3rd grade listening to Copland's Fanfare for the Common Man has to draw a picture of whom they think the fanfare is for and write a sentence about them.)
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Matt Tenore Posts: 3
9/20/2021
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In our band, we have several students with orthopedic impairments. To accommodate the students, we modify difficult-to-execute maneuvers in marching band (step sizes, horn flashes and angles, etc.) in order to make them as successful as possible. In concert band, we will have to do similar things while sitting down if it helps the students be successful.
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Micah Bradford Posts: 1
9/26/2021
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In 2009, a young lady with mild autism in a music world course expressed interest in band. Her guardian was extremely surprised, but gave consent; verbalizing "if it was okay with you." My recent training made reference to the way student's with disabilities view themselves - THEY DON'T!! The disability is usually pointed out by others. Using the multi-tiered system interchangeably, the student progressed normally. She participated in marching and concert band for 4 years and her guardian still reminds me of the way the young lady begin to blossom in so many ways including socially. Her progress verbal communication, expression, and self-confidence were evident to all and she became a pillar of the program during my tenure at the school. With all students in performing arts ensemble, the use of the multi-tiered system interchangeably is often used subconsciously used. We incorporate full band instruction (Tier 1), group sessions (Tier 2), and individual sessions (Tier 3).
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