Music can heal. Therefore, the correctional therapy for children with autism spectrum disorders includes listening to certain musical compositions and playing musical instruments. Music therapy helps children not only to reveal their creative potential and understand their own emotions but also improves speech skills and mental activity.
Recently, we started music therapy classes in a specially equipped room in LEVCHYK SPECTRUM HUB, created with the support of the FFU donors and with the assistance of patron, Vadym Stolar. With the musical therapist, children learn to understand music and find their own sounds that help concentrate and activate the new neural connections. The classes are held in the format of free play on the piano, drums, glucophone, guitar, xylophone, and other instruments.
“4 y.o. Alisa has shown her ability to play the glucophone and piano, she also sings well. These skills make a kind of bridge to a girl’s speech development. For 6 y.o. Kostia, music is a calming factor and helps balance his emotional state. Based on this, we can say that music has an important impact on the nervous system and emotional health,” says Iryna Tkachuk, a music therapist at LEVCHYK.
The specialist advises parents to engage their child in music therapy at home for a more effective impact on the child's development. These could be musical and motor games and exercises, drawing and motor dramatization to music, fairy tale therapy, or listening to calm musical compositions to relax the nervous system.
For your little ones, the LEVCHYK team has prepared a classical music playlist, that helps balance the psycho-emotional state, tune in to sleep, or calm play.
It is important to remember! Relaxation is carried out for 15-30 minutes maximum, depending on the child’s mood and health, in a calm atmosphere with dim light. Do not be upset if your little one does not like this idea and he/she refuses participation in music therapy classes — offer to listen to the next melody or wait for the right opportunity. When music still finds a response in a small heart, it can heal 💙
