Developmentally Disabled - Suggestions Anyone?

Mrs.Post wrote: Miss Cayla played HCB through with her entire RH this week:

Numbers:

Thursday HCB 13/68 11/56 11/75

Guess Key 3/104 5/115 3/82


Friday HCB 13/38 14/36 13/36
Guess Key 5/104 2/91

She hates guess key. But that is the easiet starting place for the other "games".

Maybe, every fruit - a 'music dollar'?... and counting them afterwards?

OK, so it is recital time, but Miss Cayla is ready to move on to getting these two hands of hers working at the same time. She is playing with her left hand but it is very slow. I have her doing scales with all the fingers of her left and right hand separately.

She does not have a comprehension problem. Right now we have the problem of very, very weak fingers on the left hand especially her pinky. I tends to stray on us. The hypotonia problems are very evident when she plays, she can't get that pinky to get that key down hard enough to register with the software. What happens is that when she stretches her fingers out to play both "do" and "sol" that pinky curls up; she doesn't have the strength in that hand to both stretch and press at the same time. This means she must play the "do" first and then the "sol" so that the C is down and can stay there.

I need specific exercises for her little hands on and off the piano. She is playing scales with her entire left hand everyday and then with each finger separately. She gets very frustrated and tells me, "THIS IS HARD." and she is complaining that her fingers are broke. I think she knows they don't work like the others kid's fingers do. But she did tell me she is not quitting.

I'll take any help I can get. And AUNTQL I am reposting this to the Russian forum as well. I love you guys!

Sonya,
what if you will chose another piece for her? I mean where the left hand just one key? From simple nursery song... like Alphabet Song. Let her enjoy by playing. May be Hellene can advise you better. You know it is very important to keep her spirit!

this is perfect.....

she will keep spirits up and she can actually play the song
and we can work on fingers as we go

Alphabet song was perfect! She got to play with both hands yesterday. As soon as I told her we were going to try a new song she said, "This is hard!" I laughed.

Then when she finished she said, "I DID IT"

It is perfect as the right hand we are practicing everyday and she can use the left hand with one finger and feel like she is using both - which she is but it is not as physically demanding.

Thanks a heap and a heap!

Mrs.Post wrote: Alphabet song was perfect! She got to play with both hands yesterday. As soon as I told her we were going to try a new song she said, "This is hard!" I laughed.

Then when she finished she said, "I DID IT"

It is perfect as the right hand we are practicing everyday and she can use the left hand with one finger and feel like she is using both - which she is but it is not as physically demanding.

Thanks a heap and a heap!

THIS is what I call a wonderful life! Cayla is a star! She's ambitious and you don't waste time, don't you?