149. Special Needs Music, with Stephen Flinn

Discover what’s possible when students lead the beat.  Stephen Flinn has been teaching music for over three decades. As a master trainer of the Rhythmic Arts Project curriculum, Stephen facilitates percussion-ensemble classes to students of all diagnoses. He has been featured in many international publications, including the Modern Drummer and DownBeat magazines, and published his first book, Contemporary Urban Percussion, in 2016. Stephen has also appeared on over 40 commercial releases of creative music and has toured extensively throughout Europe, Japan, and the United States.  In this conversation, we discuss: The benefits of learning a musical instrument, such as increased focus, listening, communication, confidence, motor strength, stress management, and cognitive development Generalizing skills outside music class Stephen’s alternative notation system on piano How to use drums to communicate with non-speakers What Stephen has learned from working with autistic students  Why he decided to spend 6 months as a monk in Thailand and how that experience influenced his teaching The biggest mistake many musicians make To learn more about Stephen Flinn, please visit specialneedsmusic.com.  ----more---- We appreciate your time. If you enjoy this podcast and you’d like to support our mission, please take just a few seconds to share it with one person who you think will find value in it too. Follow us on Instagram: @autismpodcast Join our community on Mighty Networks: Global Autism Community Subscribe to our YouTube channel: Global Autism Project We would love to hear your feedback about the show. Please fill out this short survey to let us know your thoughts: Listener Survey