Estimated reading time 3 minutes
Table of Contents
Introduction
Do visual spatial thinkers (and other neurodivergent) musicians need to have sheet music tailored to how they learn? Neurodivergent musicians learn in fundamentally different ways from typical leaners. This means that students with learning differences (LD) can greatly benefit from adapted scores. Read more to find out how it works.
This post uses some technical and musical terms. See the Glossary below for definitions.
Answering the Question, “Do Visual Spatial Thinkers and Other Neurodivergent Musicians Need to Have Sheet Music Tailored to How They Learn?”
Mobile users: tilt your phones 90o to the right to better read the music.
Visual spatial thinkers and other neurodivergent musicians do need to have sheet music tailored to how they learn. This is because the notation itself can be an issue. Siu-Lan Tan studied how non-musicians perceived the score and discovered that they found it to be counter intuitive.
In other words, almost everyone found standard notation to be confusing. If you factor in learning issues, things get even more confusing.
What’s the solution? Answer: we adapt the score. For instrumentalists, I suggest you color code the music. For vocalists, I recommend your use shape notes.
Adapted scores have been proven to be effective for helping students with LD read music. George L. Rogers found that musicians overwhelmingly preferred reading a color coded score. This was especially true for LD and special needs students. With color they read as well as typical learners. Without it, they couldn’t read at all.
Likewise, George H. Kyme found vocalists sight sang more effectively with shape notes than with standard notation.
These two studies show that visual spatial thinkers and other neurodivergent musicians need to have sheet music tailored to how they learn. For more information on the studies read:
How exactly does the adapted score work? I’ll give you the resource links for that in the next section.
How Do Visual Spatial Thinkers and Other Neurodivergent Musicians Need to Have Sheet Music Tailored to How They Learn?
Teaching how to adapt the score is beyond the scope of this post. So, for examples of color coding for instrumentalists, click on the following links:
- Playing the Piano with Color Coded Notes
- How to Color Code Guitar Tab for LD Achievement
- Color Coded Quarter Note Clapping
- How to Color Code Music Notes for LD & Special Needs Distance Learning
For examples of shape notes and Kodaly rhythm syllables for vocalists read:
Video: How Effective is the Color Coding
Concluding Thoughts to “Do Visual Spatial Thinkers and Other Neurodivergent Musicians Need to Have Sheet Music Tailored to How They Learn?”
Why do visual spatial thinkers and other neurodivergent musicians need to have sheet music tailored to how they learn? Visual spatial learners need information to be presented visually and concretely. Both the color coding and shape note multisensory strategies play into this strength that LD students have.
Even for students who don’t possess strong visual spatial abilities, both color coding and shape notes have been scientifically proven to be effective. Really, the approach will help any beginning musician, but especially LD, ADD, ASD, and other special needs students.
© 2022 Geoffrey Keith
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Glossary
How to Play Piano (Kid’s Color Coded Piano Hand Placement)
Does your child want to learn how to play the piano? Do you want to know the best way to teach piano hand placement? Finger placement on the piano keyboard is an important skill that should be taught at the earliest stages of learning. Keep reading “How to Play Piano (Kid’s Color Coded Piano Hand Placement)” to learn how it works. Estimated reading time 3 minutes.
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On the Electric Keyboard Can You Play Dynamics?
On the electric keyboard can you play dynamics? Well, that depends on the type of keyboard that you buy. In music, dynamics refers to the volume and intensity of sound, ranging from very soft (pp = pianissimo) to very loud (ff = fortissimo). Not all keyboards can play loud and soft through the keys though. Click to learn what you need to think about when buying an electronic keyboard. Estimated reading time 2 minutes.
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Hail the New Year with the Popular Old Lang Syne Song
Are you looking for the popular “Old Lang Syne” song? In this post, you’ll get the essentials: 1) a video of the song, 2) the lyrics, and 3) sheet music with easy-to-read shape notes and a sing along soundtrack. In addition, if you’re asking, “What in the world does the title ‘Old Land Syne’ mean?” I’ll answer that question as well. Keep reading “Hail the New Year with the Popular Old Lang Syne Song” to learn more. Estimated reading time 2 minutes.
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How to Color Code the Elusive Alto Clef
Do you have a child or a student who struggles to read alto clef? Are you confused about how it works? Why is the alto staff so elusive for most musicians? Because instruments rarely use it. In fact, only one instrument reads from it regularly. Even the closely related tenor clef is used by more instruments (sort of). Keep reading to learn how to color code the elusive alto clef. Estimated reading time 3 minutes.
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