Teaching neurodivergent students is something many music teachers feel under-prepared for.

Sure, you can teach theory in your sleep. You can talk about music history until the cows come home. However, adapting your teaching methods to suit the learning styles of neurodivergent students is something you’re less used to.

You want to create a more inclusive music education for your students, but you’re unsure how to start…

Table Of Contents

1. An Introduction to Neurodiversity
2. Should I Teach Neurodivergent Students?
3. Teachers’ Perspectives On Teaching Neurodivergent Students
4. Looking More In-depth
5. Extra Guidance in Teaching Neurodivergent Students (TopMusicMag!)

An Introduction to Neurodiversity

“I’ve heard the term neurodiversity, but I’m not 100% certain what it is,” you might be thinking. It can be tricky, as a teacher, to admit there are holes in your knowledge. Researching is the first step in expanding your understanding and improving your teaching ability.

Check out this podcast:

• Embracing Special Needs Teaching with Selena Pistoresi
  Selena Pistoresi is a name you’ll see a lot on TopMusic – she’s an expert in the music education world on teaching neurodivergent students. In this episode, she shares how she came to specialize in teaching students with exceptionalities and unpacks the definition of special needs.

Should I Teach Neurodivergent Students?

It’s easy to shy away from doing something that you’ve never done before. Fear of the unknown can stand in the way of a life-changing experience.

Check out these different perspectives:

• How You Can Positively Impact Neurodivergent Piano Students
• How Students With Exceptionalities Help Us Grow As Teachers

Teachers’ Perspectives On Teaching Neurodivergent Students

Hearing people’s experiences can help you see things in a different light.

Check out these teachers’ experiences:

• Working With Special Needs Students – One Teacher’s Perspective
• Special Needs Teaching with Scott Price

Looking More In-depth

There may be topics you want to explore in more detail:

• Unpacking Autism with Clinical Psychologist Lydia Meem
• Autism and Music Teaching: Tips from a Clinical Psychologist
• Tactics for Teaching Piano Students with ASD and ADHD
• Understanding Dyslexia – How Teaching Language Relates to Teaching Music
• How To Engage Piano Students with Sensory Processing Disorder

Extra Guidance in Teaching Neurodivergent Students

The first edition of the TopMusicMag is a special on teaching neurodivergent students. It’s bursting with:

• Articles by Selena Pistoresi, sharing tips and stories from her studio.
• Interviews (this issue features Donna, TopMusicPro member, and her neurodivergent daughter, TopMusicSheets composer Raluca Bojor Hofmeyer, and TopMusicGames creator Stephanie Miller)
• General teaching tips and ideas