Autism and the Beginning Violinist
Disclaimer: I am a musician with a degree in violin performance. I do not have an education degree nor do I have a special education degree. I am neurodivergent (ADHD) and regularly work to create a welcoming space for neurodivergent students. I love sharing some of my teaching journey here in the hopes this might help someone else. Names have been changed in this story to protect everyone’s privacy.
Sarah walked into my studio for the first time just a few weeks ago. I was excited! And nervous. In the intro phone call with her dad a couple days prior, I’d learned a few important things about Sarah: she was 10 years old, she already played the piano, and she has autism.
Note: there is a wide range of diagnoses under the label autism, more specifically referred to as Autism Spectrum Disorder or ASD. Consider these terms interchangeable in this post. Autism Spectrum Disorder can affect individuals in very different ways with varying levels of symptoms and intensity. Each student is different and unique regardless of neurodiversity, diagnoses, etc. I ask that you read these thoughts through the following perspective: things that work for Sarah may or may not work for other neurodivergent or neurotypical students.
I didn’t really know what to expect. While I’m certain a number of students I’ve worked with either knowingly or unknowingly would register on the spectrum for ASD, this was the first time a parent had given me the heads up.
I felt excited to give lessons a try- and also acutely aware of my own unknowingness and lack of experience in this area.
I approached Sarah’s first lesson with a sort of openness. I want to learn how you want to learn. I tried more things in her second and third lesson. Some of them worked, some of them flopped. In every single lesson, I was impressed with the incredible depth of knowledge Sarah expressed. She could easily label all the notes on the violin without any help, impressively including F-natural vs. F-sharp on the E-string, even though she couldn’t play those notes yet. She connected so much to what she already knew on piano. Her brain was - is - incredible! And now, six lessons in, I want to share some tips. These work for Sarah, right now. They might not be relevant at all for you or, if you’re a teacher, for your student. Please note the necessary individuation in approach when working with any student. But, if even one of these helps you or a student feel less frustrated and more educated, hooray!
The First Six Things I’ve Learned Teaching a Violin Beginner with ASD
My easiest tip is all about creating a checklist to help everyone feel on the same page.
Create a checklist for the student before each lesson.
This concept came from one of my googles after the first lesson, I can’t take credit for it, but it is gold. Vary what’s on the list. Don’t overload it. Ask the student (if they’re willing and able) to read it aloud at the beginning of the lesson. Then the student can choose what they’d like to do first, next, etc. This helps the student feel in control while still accomplishing the breadth of education you think is important.
Set up key phrases.
Maybe the student wants to keep on playing even when you want them to stop. This challenged me a lot in the first couple lessons. I wanted Sarah to feel engaged and able to express herself... but I also wanted to be able to loosely guide the lesson. I found it helpful to say to Sarah, “When I say pause, you need to pause playing and listen.” Then we tried it- she played a lot of notes, I asked her to pause, she did. Repeat. This one is still a work in progress- sometimes her dad still has to be the one to tell her to stop playing. But the next point helped even more with creating calming silence during class.
Play Simon Says.
Use this tip for anything you need the student to concentrate on. “Simon Says look at your bow hold in the mirror!” and “Simon Says play four smooth bows in a row” and “Simon Says space out your fingers on your bow hold!” You get the idea. I couldn’t believe how quiet the room was once we started playing this game. I plan to teach Sarah a fiddle tune this way. We will see how it goes!
Seek to understand how best a student receives information versus how they share it.
Sarah best understands information that she reads or sees or feels. I don’t think spoken words are as useful for her, at least at this moment in time. So when she takes a few minutes at the beginning of class to read something on the wall or study a new resource, I welcome that. I respect the power of her brain and that there’s a very good possibility she will learn this at a depth I may not even fathom.
Sarah best shares information right now through writing things down or drawing. I encourage her to write notes down and then play. Or I ask her a question and have her write the answer. I couldn’t believe my eyes this past week when I asked her to write down a scale and then, after studying NASB for about a minute, she said, “I am going to write a pentatonic scale!” And she did. D Pentatonic. I didn’t even know it. She played it, too.
Posture work can be creative.
As a general practice, I prefer to demonstrate things for students to model and am a hands-off teacher. (Some teachers will touch your hand to fix a bowhold or reach out and touch your arm to demonstrate a bow stroke. I don’t feel comfortable doing this right now and have found other great ways of communicating the same information.)
Sarah kept putting her violin in the center of her chest instead of at the top of her shoulder. After multiple attempts to explain it, I finally had a different idea. I asked Sarah to feel the top of her left/violin shoulder with her right hand. Then I asked her to move her hand down to the middle of her chest at her collarbone level. I asked her to tap the middle there (tap) and then the shoulder top (tap) and then just let her hand sit there for a bit so she could feel the difference. It helped! This is something we will try to do at the beginning of playing for the next couple of lessons until it sticks.
See the parent(s) as a fellow teammate and resource.
I felt so worried that the parent was having to help too much in the initial lessons. Turns out, I shouldn’t have felt worried... I should have felt excited that they were/are so invested in Sarah’s success! Don’t worry if they’re helping, and don’t be intimidated. When the parent adds to what you’re saying, helps the student focus, or physically helps the student as they get used to how to hold a string instrument, accept their help! Try to understand what it is they are doing and if there’s a chance you could incorporate some of that into how you teach this particular student. Ask for pointers on interacting with the student better. Help them know the easiest best thing to focus on that week.
Unanswered questions for me.
What would it look like to include Sarah in more of the group activities in the studio?
Does Sarah want to come to a group class with the other young students? If so, what are modifications I could make to a group class so everyone would feel comfortable?
Should I pair Sarah with a similar level beginner?
What are blind spots for me as I teach neurodivergent students?
What are clearer ways to teach physical things like bow hold and straight bow direction?
I welcome your thoughts, feedback, suggestions, experiences, etc. Thank you for reading!