Autism in the music classroom
Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) often experience challenges in cognition, communication, and socialization. This presentation will focus on these three areas and provide both research-based and practical experiences to learn more about the school lives of students with ASD and how we can provide the best opportunities possible in music classrooms and ensembles.
Learning Objectives:
1. Participants will recognize challenges experienced by students with ASD in the areas of cognition, communication, and socialization.
2. Participants will learn songs, games, and activities that support students with ASD and can be transferred to any area of K-12 music education.
3. Participants will leave with a set of strategies and understandings to help them be more effective teachers for students with ASD.
Dr. Alice Hammel, Virginia Music Educator Association Outstanding Educator (2018) and current President of the Virginia Music Educators Association, is a widely known music educator, author, and clinician whose experience in music is extraordinarily diverse. She is a member of the faculty of James Madison University, and has many years of experience teaching instrumental and choral music in public and private schools. Dr. Hammel has put these varied experiences to great use while compiling a large body of scholarly work. She is a co-author for four texts: Teaching Music to Students with Special Needs: A Label-free Approach, Teaching Music to Students with Autism, Winding It Back: Teaching to Individual Differences in Music Classroom and Ensemble Settings, and Teaching Music to Students with Special Needs: A Practical Resource. Dr. Hammel is Past-President of the Council for Exceptional Children – Division for Visual and Performing Arts Education.