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Defining space and using instruments

Children who have special needs may have difficulties with:

• gross motor skills, including balance
• body awareness – they may not know where they are in space
• spatial awareness – they might not be sure how far or near things are to them and others
• being still and inattentive – they might have difficulty remaining seated, or even staying in the area designated for music.

Because of these characteristics, it is therefore a good idea to sit close to, and facing, an individual child so that you can gain and maintain their attention. A 'bridge' can possibly be created by having a shared instrument between you, such as the bongo drums.

If you have a group of children, it is usually important to put chairs or mats in a circle. This allows for eye contact between you and each child, as well as eye contact between children. Use chairs if possible, because they provide a clear visual physical 'special place' and it is easy to remind the child where they should be. Mats and/or carpet squares may also be used to help define each child's space.

Try to keep the group sitting at the same level so the children can communicate with each other via eye contact and facial expression. For example, if you have children who require special seating, perhaps in a wheelchair, try to seat others up on chairs. The circle provides a physical boundary within which the children can move freely and dance safely.

If you are using musical instruments, have them at the ready just outside the circle and easily accessible by you, but be careful about how many you make available at any one time.

Many children who have special needs are easily overwhelmed by decision-making and have difficulty making purposeful choices from more than two objects. They may take an instrument but discard it quickly without exploring it. On the other hand, they may explore it thoroughly for shape, texture, taste, and smell, but be unable to, or disinterested in, making sounds with it.

Children may also 'play' the instrument in unexpected ways, such as shouting into a drum rather than hitting it – allow for this creativity, and avoid imposing limits on what is 'correct' or 'incorrect' playing.

Children who have a diagnosis of Autistic Spectrum Disorder, in particular, may show initial interest in the shape of instruments and enjoy, for example, running their hands along parallel strings on a guitar, lining up chime bars, or laying the drum sticks in particular patterns. In this situation, allow for a few minutes of instrument exploration time before each activity in which a child is using a new or unfamiliar instrument.

All of this exploration is important and necessary for child development, but at some point it is important to actively try to move them on from a particular stage. Decide with other members of the child's educational team whether, for example, a certain amount of mouthing of instruments is appropriate for their level of development or whether it is to be discouraged.

If mouthing of instruments is allowed, always take care with hygiene and cleanliness, by washing and disinfecting instruments after use.

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