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MUSIC WORKS THE STORY OF A YOUNG BOY WITH AUTISM This is how I got "hooked" on the iconic level... As a Music Therapist I worked with preschoolers with autism. One day during a one-on-one session with a non-verbal 3-year-old by, we hit an impasse. Frustrated at being unable to speak, he began to cry, suddenly displaying a full-blown tantrum in our little therapy room. He was screaming, laying on his back, and he started to kick at me! A little overwhelmed by his sudden meltdown, I had to think quickly about what might remedy the situation in the most positive way possible. I remembered a small iconic songbook we had used earlier in the session, something I had made in my early days of experimentation. It was the song, "Row Your Boat." I grabbed it and handed it to him. Immediately he stopped crying, his face lit up, and as I sang he pointed to the pictures I had drawn on each page to go with the lyrics. Over and over he pointed exactly with my singing to the correct icons on the correct pages. "Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily," went the four happy faces down the page. He seemed to be greatly relieved at what he was connecting. I was struck that day at how powerful the need was for him to confirm that what he saw and heard externally went with what he experienced inside. And the fact that the little iconic songbook could make that difference for him has inspired me to continue my work developing more Iconics for children. Who knows where the next connection will be? For more information on Music Iconics, contact us at dbouillon@sbcglobal.net. HERE'S WHAT PEOPLE HAVE TO SAY. . . "The presentation was really fun to do. All of the kids loved it and wanted me to do it again right away. They were all asking if they could do it. They all wanted to touch the felt fish and seaweed." Megan C., College Student "It was fun to feel the music!" Justin W., 3rd Grader "My students were mesmerised!" Valerie T., Music Educator src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">  |
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