Things You Can’t Learn in Books: Music and PE
Charlie has Adaptive P.E. (A.P.E.) everyday at school at 11.30am—-I hope his class can keep having this schedule as that is the perfect time for him to do some physical activity in the midst of his school day, after he has worked at his desk and with his classmates, and right before lunch. Some of the things he has done this year include gymnastics, ball play (not usually Charlie’s best, as he has a lot of trouble tracking moving objects—combine that with handling a bat or a stick and running and it’s even harder!), and yoga (which I’m told he enjoyed). I’m always bemused at Charlie’s inclination for PE as he is completely opposite what I was like at his age (I still can’t catch a ball but thanks to Charlie I can swim).
15-year-old Nick Krishnan participates in his Michican high school’s marching band and on the swim and track teams. As noted in today’s Detroit Free Press:
“I noticed a correlation between Nick’s motor activity and his desire to speak,” said [Derrick] Fries, now an assistant professor at Eastern Michigan University [Fries was previously the Director of Special Education in Nick’s school district] . From middle school on, Nick, now a freshman at Avondale High, has had some form of adult assistance while he takes part in after-school activities such as sports and music. Such help is typically provided only for academics, but Fries reasoned that if Nick had help participating in those activities, he might try harder to speak.
The results were groundbreaking. Nick was embraced by his peers, and his desire to communicate increased, Fries said. And, after a while, Nick began to use a word or two at a time to indicate what he was interested in.
Nick also is very fond of music and plays the drums, and has perfect pitch.
In classical Athens, gymnastics and music were two major components of a young citizen’s education; Nick’s story suggests how crucial these two “non-academic” subjects are for our children’s learning. Physical activity and music help my own son Charlie to address some of his sensory needs—for movement, for sound and its soothing properties. These are not extras; they are essentials.
5 opinions for Things You Can’t Learn in Books: Music and PE
Daisy
May 6, 2007 at 6:22 pm
Amigo loves his Adaptive PE. His teacher has really connected with him. As for music — he’s taking some time off from his cello, but may join choir next year. yes, absolutely, these areas are just as important to a child as the core academics.
Caroline
May 6, 2007 at 8:22 pm
Public education schools are often not geared towards the activity levels of boys - but private schools are in many cases. Boys often need to run around before they can ’settle down’ to learn in a traditional environment, and many boys’ schools cater to this.
Some schools recognize that boys have different learning styles and have developed creative strategies for this: lab work, standing at counters to learn, moving between different teaching ’stations’.
Often private schools do not accept children into kindergarten until they are six years old; in public schools, children as young as four are in kindergarten. They may be academically ready, but not neccessarily as developed in ’social skills’. The curriculum is also accelerate more quickly than when many of us parents were children.
Quiet soothing music often helps children to focus as well as structure, e.g.,”loving limits”.
This would help all children with sensory disfunction, attention issues, and a need to work off some normal kid energy in order to be open to learning effectively.
Kristina Chew, PhD
May 6, 2007 at 9:18 pm
I have been thinking that Charlie might take to a string instrument—-how long did Amigo play cello?
The thought of being able to stand up while learning would be, I suspect, revolutionary for Charlie. He seems to have an internal clock that notes when 50 minutes past and he is ready for something different; running around and other physical activity makes a huge difference for him.
Autism Vox » Work Out as You Work
May 16, 2007 at 12:35 am
[…] and often ever he has been sitting and working at his desk for a period of time: As I noted in an earlier post, it seems good to intersperse physical activity with academic learing for Charlie, perhaps to […]
Shari
Aug 22, 2007 at 9:57 am
I really appreciate learning from all of you on this thread. Kristina’s words, “These are not extras; they are essentials,” ring loud and clear to me. Thank you for discussing this. Sometimes I wonder if I’m the only one who thinks this way. It is so nice to see that I’m not. I appreciate your thoughts.
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