The Autism Society Event and Education Recordings Archive

One of the biggest deficits for individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) can be the opportunity to connect, communicate, and engage in the world around them. Music is a universal medium that naturally provides a non-threatening bridge to facilitate relationships, learning, self-expression and communication with others. As board certified music therapists, we have seen the power of music to engage or move individuals to connect with the world around them.

Beyond Words: Music & Dance Center is a growing private practice of board certified music therapists in Ohio devoted to developing every individual’s potential through artistic expression. We are unique to our profession in that we have dedicated our practice to specializing in autism spectrum disorders and promoting evidenced-based approaches to music therapy in our programming. Our staff of board certified music therapists draw from the fields of Psychology, Special Education, Applied Behavior Analysis, Verbal Behavior, and Floortime to make progress in developmental goal areas.

We are frequently asked by parents and professionals why music is such a motivating medium and how we so easily get desired responses and progress from our students. It is our goal through this workshop to inform parents and professionals on the efficacy of music therapy.

Participants who attend this workshop will:

• Define music therapy providing a basic understanding of the field and what music therapy involves.
• Discuss the neurobiological benefits of music therapy with individuals with ASD. 
• Apply therapeutic techniques to engage, sustain, and support progress through music. 

Music therapy is a well-established professional health discipline that uses music as the therapeutic stimulus to achieve non-musical treatment goals. Research supports connections between the following: speech and singing, rhythm and motor behavior, recall for song and academic material, and overall ability of preferred music to enhance mood, attention, and behavior to optimize the student’s ability to learn and ability to interact with others.

Participants in this workshop will be introduced to music therapy techniques through hands-on music making experiences and discussions related to how to use the music to support connections and engagement for play and development. Each music experience presented is specifically designed to support a variety of skill development including but not limited too: music skills, language, motor coordination, academic readiness, creative expression, and interpersonal skills.

Outline of Presentation:

Part 1: Introduction of Beyond Words staff and organization

Part 2: Introduction and overview of music therapy

Part 3: Presentation and discussion of research in support of music therapy

• Effects of music and the brain
• Why music therapy is effective in the treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorders

Part 4: How the fields intertwine: using video examples and live music making experiences to demonstrate how music therapy assist and support goals and objectives.

Part 5: Discussion and presentation of generalization and progress of students highlighted in examples

Part 6: Discussion of practical applications of music in your practice and at home

Part 6: Closure of the workshop and a period of question and answers from attendees