Autism therapy and ABA therapy don’t just happen in a professional, clinical setting. In fact, one facet of our work is to train parents for at-home autism therapy. There are several reasons for this, the most important of which is that parents, siblings, and caregivers know what’s best for your child with autism.
One way to foster better autism therapy at home is through music therapy. Our guide shows you how to do this and how to track progress.
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What Is Music Therapy?
Music therapy engages children with autism through musical activities to support communication, emotional regulation, and social skills. Therapists, parents, and caregivers can use instruments, singing, and rhythm-based exercises to connect with children while creating an alternative means of expression and connection. Music therapy is effective with younger children, so it’s important to start this type of autism therapy early.
At-home autism therapy sessions with music often involve improvisation, structured music-making, or listening exercises tailored to your child’s needs. Music therapy goes beyond just listening to music. It’s an all-encompassing experience that may include playing instruments, singing, and moving rhythmically, fostering engagement and sensory experiences.
How Does Music Therapy Help Children With Autism?
Studies show that music therapy helps children with autism in several ways by promoting communication, enhancing social interaction, and improving emotional regulation. Part of the goal of music therapy is to create safe, structured spaces where children explore their abilities and form meaningful connections through rhythm, melody, and harmony.
Emotional Expression
Music therapy supports emotional expression and regulation. Singing or playing instruments provides non-verbal outlets for complex emotions.
Research from the American Music Therapy Association (AMTA) indicates that 80% of participants in music therapy programs report reduced aggression and enhanced self-awareness. Emotional progress in therapy sessions often carries over into home and school environments, creating a more harmonious daily life.
Social Skills
Interactive music-making fosters social skills and collaboration. Activities such as call-and-response singing or shared instrument play encourage children to recognize and respond to others’ cues, promoting teamwork and empathy.
These improvements translate into better peer interactions and friendships outside therapy. Research published in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders shows that engaging with music increases joint attention and social reciprocity in children with autism by 30%.
Sensory Regulation
Rhythmic exercises with music therapy address sensory processing challenges. Music, with its predictable patterns and beats, helps soothe overstimulated senses or gently stimulate underresponsive ones.
For example, drumming activities often improve attention spans and reduce anxiety, allowing children to engage more fully in therapy sessions or at school.
Cognitive Abilities
Music therapy enhances cognitive abilities in children with autism by engaging memory, attention, and problem-solving skills through structured musical activities. Rhythm and melody create patterns that improve focus, which may achieve faster responses to auditory cues and better task completion.
These activities stimulate brain regions involved in learning and executive function, helping children build foundational skills for success in school and at home.
Communication Skills
Music therapy strengthens communication skills in children with autism by fostering vocalization, active listening, and non-verbal expression. Singing exercises encourage children to form words and phrases, while call-and-response activities promote conversational turn-taking.
Musical cues help teach comprehension and encourage gestures or facial expressions that convey meaning. Music therapy gives children with autism new tools to connect and communicate effectively.
Life Skills
Families incorporating music therapy at home empower children to explore sound and rhythm while developing important life skills. Singing during daily routines, using music to manage transitions, or sharing interactive play with instruments strengthens relationships and provides an enjoyable experience for everyone.
Simple activities such as singing during transitions or using playlists to match moods provide ongoing support while nurturing skills and creating moments of joy and connection that resonate with your child.
Starting Music Therapy at Home
Beginning music therapy at home is as simple as observing your child’s preferences and then enriching those interests.
Assess Your Child’s Interests
Observe your child’s reactions to different sounds, instruments, and rhythms. Are they drawn to the high-pitched notes of a flute or the low rumble of a drum? Do they prefer calm, melodic tunes or energetic, upbeat rhythms?
Offer a variety of choices, such as soft classical pieces, upbeat pop songs, or rhythmic drumbeats. Take note of facial expressions, movements, or vocalizations indicating enjoyment or excitement.
Once you identify what music they prefer, you can tailor at-home autism therapy with music to your child’s interests.
Create a Music-Friendly Environment
Consider designating a specific space for music activities where your child can feel safe and comfortable. Decorate the space with colorful instruments, posters of musicians, or other visually stimulating objects. Ensure that the room has good acoustics and minimal distractions.
Think about including simple instruments like tambourines, maracas, or xylophones. Organize playlists on a video-sharing or music app that suit your child’s preferences, balancing energizing and calming selections. Dim the lighting or add soft visuals, such as colored lights, to enhance the experience. A dedicated, adaptable space fosters comfort and focus, allowing your child to immerse themselves in music.
Introduce Simple Music Activities
Start with basic rhythm exercises, such as clapping, snapping, or tapping a drum. Gradually introduce more complex rhythms and patterns. Use songs and nursery rhymes to teach language skills and promote social interaction. You can also incorporate singing, playing instruments, and listening to music into your daily routine.
Advance to More Complex Activities
As your child becomes more comfortable with music, you can introduce more advanced activities. This might involve learning to play a specific instrument, composing original music, or participating in music therapy sessions with a professional. Remember to be patient and flexible, and adjust your approach as needed.
Incorporating Music Into Everyday Activities
The key to at-home autism therapy with music is to use the sounds to achieve desired outcomes. In psychology, this is called conditioning. So, for music therapy, the positive feelings associated with listening to music and having activities can lead to better cognitive functioning, problem-solving, and learning various life skills.
Blending music into everyday activities creates moments of connection and structure into predictable activities, such as starting the day, going to school, eating meals, and doing homework. Sing simple, cheerful songs during transitions, such as getting dressed or preparing meals. Upbeat melodies create a positive atmosphere.
Encourage clapping, tapping, or humming along to rhythms during playtime. Simple instruments can help with active participation, which strengthens neurological connections in the brain. Music-driven play promotes motor skill development, coordination, and a sense of accomplishment.
Use repetitive lyrics or melodies to support learning and communication. Consistency and repetition strengthen your child’s ability to associate music with positive interactions and tasks. For example, sing a song about dogs or cats when taking care of the family pets.
Music can also help your youngster relax at night before going to bed. Play soft, gentle melodies during bath time, brushing teeth, or while reading bedtime stories. Engage your child with a calming lullaby, encouraging them to hum quietly or sway to the rhythm. Music creates a comforting environment, supporting relaxation and preparing them for restful sleep.
Interactive Music Games
You remember playing games as a child. Games are fun, and they foster learning. The same is true for at-home autism therapy that incorporates music.
Interactive music games provide engaging ways to incorporate therapy into your child’s daily life. These activities encourage creativity, motor skill development, and emotional expression. You can create a joyful environment where children feel motivated to participate and explore.
Musical Freeze Dance
This is a variation of musical chairs but without the chairs or the competition. Freeze dance is a lively game that sharpens listening skills and improves motor coordination. Play a song your child enjoys and encourage dancing while the music plays. Pause the song randomly, prompting your child to freeze in place.
Celebrate their ability to stop and hold their position, reinforcing focus and quick response. Adjust the difficulty by varying the length of pauses or introducing different poses.
Instrument Exploration and Imitation
Offer a selection of simple instruments, such as tambourines, shakers, or drums, for your child to explore. Demonstrate a rhythm or sound pattern and invite them to imitate it. Gradually increase the complexity of the rhythms to encourage attention and memory. This game nurtures listening, rhythm awareness, and self-expression. Allow your child to create their own patterns and take turns leading the activity.
Guess the Song Game
Hum or play short sections of familiar songs and ask your child to identify them. Technology can come into play here with music apps or YouTube videos. Provide hints through gestures or simple prompts if needed. This activity strengthens auditory processing and memory while creating a cooperative environment. Let your child take on the role of leader by choosing songs for you to guess, fostering confidence and creativity.
Creating Personalized Sound Stories
You can easily incorporate sounds and music into bedtime stories and reading books. Encourage your child to assign different sounds to characters or events, such as using a drumroll for a hero’s arrival or a trumpet sound when an elephant arrives on the scene. This game supports storytelling skills, emotional expression, and musical exploration. And you’ll have a bonding moment with your child.
Creative Expression
Music is born of creative expression that’s as old as humanity itself. Mothers hum lullabies to help babies fall asleep. Human voices using songs can impart stories and family histories through music. Sometimes, music is a pure form of creative expression that needs no words.
Creative expression through music is a deeply personal way to convey emotions that can be difficult to articulate in words alone. That, in and of itself, shows why music therapy is an important way for children with autism to express themselves when words are not easily spoken.
There are a few ways to foster creative expression through music.
Compose Original Songs
Guide your child in creating original songs by starting with simple, repetitive melodies or phrases. Encourage them to choose words or themes that reflect their thoughts or emotions when listening to the music. Collaborating on lyrics and rhythms fosters self-expression and language development. Celebrate each creation to instill a sense of pride and achievement in their musical contributions and nurture positive reinforcement.
Explore Emotions Through Improvisation
Encourage your child to explore their feelings by improvising on an instrument or singing freely. Provide a safe space for them to experiment with different tones, tempos, and dynamics. Suggest using loud beats for excitement or soft melodies for calmness.
This practice allows children to process emotions in a tangible, creative way while developing a deeper connection with music. This, in turn, encourages a verbal expression of feelings while strengthening neural connections in the brain.
Draw Inspiration From Visual Media
Combine visual art with music to inspire multisensory expression. Play a piece of music and ask your child to draw or paint what they feel or imagine. Similarly, create a melody inspired by a painting or drawing they make. This interplay between art forms enhances creativity, sensory integration, and emotional communication in a safe space.
Structured Music Therapy Sessions
Whether you engage the help of a professional musical therapist or conduct a structured music therapy session at home, you can use this approach to measure progress in your child’s behavior.
Planning
Planning is key for structured music therapy sessions. Start with the best time of the week to do this. Is it best for Saturday afternoons or Thursday evenings after dinner? Whatever time you choose, keep at it and maintain the routine because children love routine.
Engaging Activities
Begin each session with a familiar welcome song to set the tone and create a sense of routine. Sing your child’s name or encourage them to sing along. Repeating this activity at the start of every session provides comfort and reinforces the connection between your youngster and the musical environment.
Plan activities that align with specific goals, such as improving motor skills, language, or emotional expression. Use drumming to practice coordination, singing to strengthen language, or rhythmic clapping to encourage focus and timing. Again, use your child’s musical preferences as a guide.
Provide space for unstructured exploration within the session to balance the structured elements. Offer instruments, sounds, or songs for your child to experiment with on their terms. This freedom fosters creativity, confidence, and self-expression.
End each session with a consistent goodbye song to signal closure and reinforce the day’s themes. Encourage your child to reflect on their favorite moments or share how they felt during the session. This practice supports emotional processing and transitions. It also gives your child a sense of accomplishment.
Using Technology
Technology offers a way to foster music therapy sessions, whether they are structured or unstructured. Speakers, headphones, smartphones, and apps can all play a role.
Speakers can make music fill the entire room, while headphones make the experience more personal. Your smartphone and music apps allow you to tailor the experience to your child’s preferences.
Measuring Progress and Adapting
Music therapy does have its benefits. As you introduce your child to different musical activities, you can measure progress and adapt to your child’s evolving needs and abilities. This can help you move to more advanced activities when you see fit.
Monitor changes in your child’s behavior, such as a longer attention span, improved social interactions, or better emotional regulation. Note responses to specific musical activities, such as increased participation or enthusiasm when playing an instrument. These observations provide valuable insight into your child’s development and the therapy’s impact.
We suggest creating a journal or log to record milestones related to at-home autism therapy with music. For instance, track how long your youngster maintains rhythm during drumming or how often they engage in vocalization during songs. Also, note any shifts in mood or confidence levels.
Adjust activities in response to your child’s progress or challenges. If certain exercises feel too complex, simplify them or break them into smaller steps. Conversely, increase difficulty or introduce new elements when they master existing tasks. Flexibility ensures that therapy remains engaging, relevant, and supportive of your child’s development.
Make sure to acknowledge your child’s accomplishments with positive reinforcement to build confidence. This also encourages ongoing participation, enthusiasm, and a positive attitude toward these types of activities.
Music Therapists in Southwest Missouri
Sometimes, it makes sense for your child to see a professional music therapist. We have some resources to help.
American Music Therapy Association (AMTA) offers a directory of certified music therapists, resources for understanding music therapy, and research on its benefits for children with autism. Visit www.musictherapy.org for more details.
The Certification Board for Music Therapists (CBMT) provides information on board-certified music therapists and their qualifications. Find certified professionals through their searchable directory at www.cbmt.org.
Locally in Springfield, there is Drury University’s Center for Music Therapy and Wellness, which is sponsored by the university itself. Some of the music therapy sessions are conducted by students in training overseen by a certified music therapist.
Resources for Parents
Aside from the American Music Therapy Association, there are other resources you can tap into as a parent to foster better music therapy sessions.
Raising Harmony focuses on early childhood music therapy and provides ideas for musical activities that promote bonding and development. Visit www.raisingharmony.com for additional details.
The World Federation of Music Therapy (WFMT) has global perspectives, resources, and activity ideas for implementing music therapy at home. Visit www.wfmt.info for more information.
Nordoff & Robbins is a British site with many resources about music therapy on its blog pages. It’s not all tailored for children, but there are some fantastic articles here for musical engagement activities.
Help Your Child With Autism to Grow
My World ABA can help your child with autism to grow and excel. To learn more about our services or answer additional questions, contact us through our website or call (417) 818-5784 today. We have offices in Springfield, Ozark, and Joplin, Missouri.
