Color Coding Musical Instruments for LD & Special Needs Student Success
Does your student confuse the notes on the instrument? Learn how color coding musical instruments leads to LD and special needs success. Estimated reading time 4 minutes.
Color Coding
Color Coding Music & More
The Blog Category Is Expanding:
I’ve expanded the blog category to include general special needs topics in addition to the adapted score posts.
The Adapted Score:
Why color code music? Color has appeared in music scores for as long as there has been music notation. Moreover, color is a proven, powerful teaching tool. George L. Rogers has shown that color coding provides an access point for LD and special needs students for score reading.
With color, the special needs and LD students in his study exceled at sight reading tasks. However, without the color, they were entirely unable to read the score at all.
Therefore, students have the opportunity to experience success and thus avoid the failure that often comes with more traditional approaches. For many of these students, success is critically important. Success helps with both self-concept and self-esteem.
Color Coding Posts
The cornerstone category article:
The posts may be read in any order, but I suggest that you read these two posts first:
- How to Color Code Music Notes for LD & Special Needs Distance Learning
- How to Color Code Rhythm to Empower LD & Special Needs Students
Playing and clapping exercises:
- Color Coded Quarter Note Clapping
- Playing the Piano with Color Coded Notes
- Playing Piano with Color Coded Left Hand Notes
- Color Coded Eighth Note Clapping
- Color Coded Quarter Rest Clapping
- Playing the Piano with Color Coded Rhythm, Fingering, and Notes
- Playing Piano with Color Coded Left Hand Notes and Rhythm
Graduating from the color coding
- How to Graduate from Color Coded Music Notes: Part I
- How to Graduate from the Color Coded Sheet Music: Part II
- How to Graduate from the Color Coded Music Score: Part III
- How to Graduate from the Color Coded Music Notation: Part IV
- How to Graduate from Color Coded Music Symbols: Part V
The remaining posts can be read in any order you like:
- How to Color Code the Musical Form to Unlock LD & Special Needs Student’s Learning Potential
- How to Color Code Music to Get LD Students to Perform Accurate Alternate Picking
- How to Color the Music Score to Successfully Focus Special Needs and LD Students on Features of the Sheet Music
- Color Coding Musical Accents Using the Shape Note Advantage for Accurate Special Needs and LD Performance
- How to Color Code Guitar Tab for LD Achievement
- Color Coding the Fingers for Music Learning Empowers Special Needs and LD Student’s Fingering Accuracy
- Color Coding Instruments for LD and Special Needs Student Success
- Color Coded Hand Icons for Music Learning with Special Needs & LD Students
- Color Coded Clefs for LD and Special Needs Students
- Color Code Key Signatures for LD Students
- How to Use Color Coded Note Head Extenders for LD and Special Needs Rhythm Learning
- How to Color Code Musical Diagrams
- Is There a Color Code for Music Notes?
- Accurately Reading Musical Notes and the Colors of a Rainbow
- How to Play Piano (Kid’s Color Coded Piano Hand Placement)
- How to Color Code the Elusive Alto Clef
- How to Color Code Music to Optimize the Steady Beat
- 50 Essential Music Symbols Explained in Less Than 5 Minutes
Special Needs Posts
These posts focus on non-color-coding special needs issues:
- Special Needs Music Success
- Lego Rhythm Manipulatives
- How to Deal with Students Who Act Out in Music Lessons
- Do Visual Spatial Thinkers and Other Neurodivergent Musicians Need to Have Sheet Music Tailored to How They Learn?
- What Is a Good Instrument for a Dyslexic Child to Learn?
- Do People with ADHD Have Difficulty Playing from Sheet Music?
- Can I Become a Music Teacher if I Have Special Needs?
- Is Playing the Piano a Suitable Activity for Autistic People?
- Once Sheet Music is All Digital, Why Not Always Colour-Code Notes?
- What Do You Think of the Chord Buddy for Special Needs Guitarists?
- Do You Want Advice on Teaching a Music Student with ADHD?
- Tips for Teaching an Autistic Child the Guitar
- What Are Some Signs of a Twice Exceptional (2E) Child?
- Does ADD and ADHD Make People More Creative?
- Musical Talent and Giftedness
- Amnesia, Alzheimer’s, Stroke, and Color Coding Music
- Music Therapy vs Music Lessons
- What Does Prodigy Mean and Do They Have Elite Musical Talent?
- What Is the Precise Meaning of Scaffolding in Teaching?
- How Easy Is it to Teach a Down Syndrome Child an Instrument?
- How to Learn Music Theory with a Learning Disability
Learning differences posts:
- Learning Differences and Spatial Ability: (Part 1)
- Positives to Dyslexia – Everything is Connected to Everything Else (Part 2)
- What are the advantages of dyslexia? Episodic Memory (Part 3)
- The Gifted Dyslexic and Insight Learning (Part 4)
- Insight Meaning and Examples of Insight Problem Solving
The previous topic lists will be updated periodically. See the post grid below for the full list and full descriptions with featured images.
– Geoffrey Keith
© 2022 Geoffrey Keith
Back to the Successful Music Student Blogs page
Color Coding the Fingers for Music Learning Empowers Special Needs & LD Student’s Fingering Accuracy
Does your student use the wrong fingers? Color coding the fingers for music learning enables LD students to accurately finger the music for smoother playing and faster response time. Estimated reading time 3 minutes.
Color Coding Music for Success
Want to read music? Does your child or music student have a hard time reading notes? Color coding music notation can help. I had a student with amnesia who would forget everything she had learned from the previous lesson. However, she was able to learn beginner level piano music with hands together. Find out how color coding helps students like her. Estimated reading time 11 minutes.
How to Color Code Guitar Tab to Empower LD Achievement
Tablature creates a picture of the guitar neck. However, many LD students become confused by tab despite its visual appearance.
In other words, they become dazzled by the shimmer created by the contrast of the black and white lines of the notation. Color-coding the strings helps reduce the confusion that students experience, assisting them in effectively reading the score. Estimated reading time 3 minutes.
Color Coding Musical Accents Using the Shape Note Advantage for Accurate Special Needs and LD Performance
We approach accents differently than other types of articulations. It is not just about using color to make the accents pop off the page. Using shapes creates a guide for when to play louder. Consequently, for accents we take our example from shape notes. Estimated reading time 3 minutes.
How to Color the Music Score to Successfully Focus Special Needs and LD Students on Features of the Sheet Music
Color does not need to be limited to color-coding. Bring staccato, legato, pedal, dynamics, and accents to the foreground by using a highlighter and red pen. Estimated reading time 2 minutes.
How to Color Code Music to Get LD Students to Perform Accurate Alternate Picking
Even among typical learners, students find alternate picking and strumming challenging. It is one of the few color-coding strategies I use with every student. Using color-coded arrows as a guide to alternate picking effectively shows students how to accurately execute the picking patterns. Estimated reading time 2 minutes.
How to Color Code the Musical Form to Unlock LD & Special Needs Music Students’ Learning Potential
Do your students get confused by repeats and D.C. al fine? Reduce your students’ confusion. Learn how to color code the musical form. Estimated reading time 2 minutes.
How to Color Code Rhythm to Empower LD & Special Needs Students
Have a hard time reading rhythm? Coloring the counting numbers simplifies learning rhythm. Learn how to color code rhythm this way. Estimated reading time 3 minutes.
How to Color Code Music Notes for Successful LD & Special Needs Distance Learning
Based on a scientifically proven method for teaching LD students. Learn how to color code music notes for LD & special needs students. Estimated reading time 6 minutes.