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Music, Language and Autism: Exceptional Strategies for Exceptional Minds
Children with autism often have an intense natural musicality. This book explains how music and language 'work' as systems of communication, and why music holds such a fascination for many young people on the autism spectrum. There are strategies for showing how music can be used to support language development and even substitute for verbal communication. Exploring the progression from a young child's intuitive engagement with music, to using it as a scaffold for communication, socialisation and understanding, the book illustrates, through the use of detailed case studies, how music nurtures a sense of self and provides a positive outlet to express inner thoughts and feelings without resorting to challenging or even destructive behaviours. Presenting an innovative approach to the use of music with people on the autism spectrum, this book will be a fascinating resource for speech and language therapists, music therapists, occupational therapists, teachers, teaching assistants, educational psychologists, carers and parents of people with autism.
272 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2013
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45 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 11, 2016
I don't normally provide reviews, but in this case I think it could be of use to some potential readers.
Note: I am a parent of a child with autism who loves to sing, and that is why I decided to purchase and read this book. I had not heard of the author before beginning it, but have come to learn much about him.
I ended up giving the book four stars, unsure of whether to rate it on its merits alone, or what it meant to me, or what how it might serve others. The book was written by an academic, so the typical dense portions do show up, but for the most part it is an easy read. Knowledge of both music and autism is useful, although not required. If you read music, I believe parts of the book will have more meaning for you than for me.
The stories he shares are brilliant, and inspiring. They are worth the purchase price alone. The theories and practices Dr. Ockelford espouses in the book have merit, though, and should be studied by anyone working with an autistic (or blind, or both) child in the musical field. He's also worth searching on youtube to see some impressive work he's done with his students, including a recent TED talk.
Dr. Ockelford should be applauded for making available for free online his theories and practices. A lot of books dealing with any types of "treatment" for autism (for lack of a better word) deal with proprietary ideas and frameworks and seek payment for explanations and the ability to use them. Not so Dr. Ockelford, who made all his songs available for download and his charts and graphs printed on the page.
In the end, I took away less from the book than I wanted. However, I do want my daughter's singing teacher, speech therapist, and teachers to look into what Dr. Ockelford explains, as I think they would get a great deal out of it when working with my child.
Bravo, Dr. Ockelford, and thank you.
Note: I am a parent of a child with autism who loves to sing, and that is why I decided to purchase and read this book. I had not heard of the author before beginning it, but have come to learn much about him.
I ended up giving the book four stars, unsure of whether to rate it on its merits alone, or what it meant to me, or what how it might serve others. The book was written by an academic, so the typical dense portions do show up, but for the most part it is an easy read. Knowledge of both music and autism is useful, although not required. If you read music, I believe parts of the book will have more meaning for you than for me.
The stories he shares are brilliant, and inspiring. They are worth the purchase price alone. The theories and practices Dr. Ockelford espouses in the book have merit, though, and should be studied by anyone working with an autistic (or blind, or both) child in the musical field. He's also worth searching on youtube to see some impressive work he's done with his students, including a recent TED talk.
Dr. Ockelford should be applauded for making available for free online his theories and practices. A lot of books dealing with any types of "treatment" for autism (for lack of a better word) deal with proprietary ideas and frameworks and seek payment for explanations and the ability to use them. Not so Dr. Ockelford, who made all his songs available for download and his charts and graphs printed on the page.
In the end, I took away less from the book than I wanted. However, I do want my daughter's singing teacher, speech therapist, and teachers to look into what Dr. Ockelford explains, as I think they would get a great deal out of it when working with my child.
Bravo, Dr. Ockelford, and thank you.
May 29, 2014
An excellent resource mostly accessible to the lay person, though densely written. As a musician but not a music therapist, I found chapter 5 exceptionally helpful and practical. This chapter contains plenty of musical examples and case studies.
I liked the example on page 188 of the way adults are culturally programmed not to repeat themselves (whereas what children with autism are seeking is simplicity and consistency):
... Experience suggests that scenarios such as the following, in which an adult is addressing a child with autism and learning difficulties, are not untypical:
"It's time for lunch". [Pause. No response].
"Come and get something to eat". [Longer pause. Still no response]
"Aren't you hungry? - I expect there'll be something nice for us today". [Further pause, then, encouragingly...]
"Come on. Food! My tummy's rumbling, isn't yours?"
[Final check for any response, then...]
"Ready then? Off we go..."
On the other hand, setting a phrase to a melody ensures that you say/sing the same thing in the same situation each time (although that is not to say that that should be all that is communicated).
Chapter 2 is also an excellent, if academic, reminder of just how complex language is. As the author rightly points out, all our ingenuity has failed to get us to design a computer to understand and persuasively emulate human speech. This makes it very hard to teach language when children don't simply "absorb" it.
I highly recommend this book to speech and music therapists, and perhaps to parents/carers of children with autism who have a strong interest in music and/or language.
I liked the example on page 188 of the way adults are culturally programmed not to repeat themselves (whereas what children with autism are seeking is simplicity and consistency):
... Experience suggests that scenarios such as the following, in which an adult is addressing a child with autism and learning difficulties, are not untypical:
"It's time for lunch". [Pause. No response].
"Come and get something to eat". [Longer pause. Still no response]
"Aren't you hungry? - I expect there'll be something nice for us today". [Further pause, then, encouragingly...]
"Come on. Food! My tummy's rumbling, isn't yours?"
[Final check for any response, then...]
"Ready then? Off we go..."
On the other hand, setting a phrase to a melody ensures that you say/sing the same thing in the same situation each time (although that is not to say that that should be all that is communicated).
Chapter 2 is also an excellent, if academic, reminder of just how complex language is. As the author rightly points out, all our ingenuity has failed to get us to design a computer to understand and persuasively emulate human speech. This makes it very hard to teach language when children don't simply "absorb" it.
I highly recommend this book to speech and music therapists, and perhaps to parents/carers of children with autism who have a strong interest in music and/or language.
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