Some may be interested in this, some may find it relevant for their child, some may not. Links to the Tomatis method of auditory processing and literacy, behaivour and 'quirks'.
http://www.developlearning.co.nz/
I do not work for this organisation but have just been to a training weekend and am excited personally and professionally about what it has to offer some of our children.
I have notived a huge improvement in my 8year olds concentration. School have commented on a decrease of anxiety and improved focusing.
I will use it with my younger daughters as well. DD6 wants to do it to be like big sis. However DD4 will benefit from it greatly before she goes to school.
Compliance is the biggest thing I have to bribe my 8 year old with a magazine for every week she does it.
Sound Therapy is extremely useful for children with dyslexia and other processing difficulties. There are a number of programme available eg. Tomatis, The Listening Programme, Samonas etc. Each of these programmes involves extended periods of listening which as you are aware can be a great problem.
I work with a Sound Therapy programme called Johansen Individualised Auditory Stimulation. It was developed by Dr Kjeld Johansen in Denmark. He is the Director of the Baltic Dyslexia Laboratory. This programme is more gentle and is individualised for each person.
The programme involves an listening to a CD of specially composed music for a period of 10 minutes a day for a specified period, either 6, 8 or 12 weeks at a time. The total programme last about 9 months. For mor inforamtion see www.smartlearning.co.nz or contact Glynis on 021 144 1412. The total cost of the programme, excluding headphones, is NZ$ 700
Is this something useful for children with ASD? My son was diagnosed at 2 and has been doing ABA therapy and is now at school doing really well and is very bright. However, in his last assessment, admittedly 2 years ago, auditory processing was his weakness. He was 4 and could only process about 5-6 words before losing the thread. I would think he has improved more now but I have always been aware we may need to follow up on this.
I'd like to know from families who have tried any of the Sound Therapies, what the issues you were trying to address and whether it worked for you. How long did you spend on the programme and how much it cost.
Hi, I am a trained Tomatis Sound Therapist. New to New Zealand. Yes this is very good for any of the ASD difficulties, but it is definitely not reserved for just this. Do visit my website www.family-focus.co.nz and come to my talk on Sound therapy this weekend. Saturday the 8th of August from 2pm to 4pm at 99 Remuera Road, Remuera. It is in a white house on the corner of St.Marks and Remuera road. The entrance is by donation/koha.
I will also do a demonstration of brain profiling, which is a very useful and valuable tool, in enhancing the understanding of how an individual operates under stress.
If you Google 'Tomatis' or 'The Mozart effect' you can read a huge amount of information about the sound therapy. I have had the pleasure of working with a few family in New Zealand and all of the parents are willing to be contacted.
I am happy to answer any questions anyone might have.
Just wondering if these are recordings, are school able to purchase them to make them more widely availble to students who require assistance with this?
Can this be useful to address auditory over sensitivity, such as the intense dislike of the sound of rain, wind etc. And at what age can it be used from? Preschool or younger? Do they have to be assessed formally before implementing the programme?
My son at 4 announced..."When you get older sounds don't hurt your ears so much ay Mum". It wasn't until then that I got a full grasp on just how sensitive his ears were. It never occured they might hurt. He is far less sensitive to noise and other things now. I am about to have a second child and am hoping that if he has any of the same sensitivities that I might be a bit more knowledgable so as to be able to address his needs better.
I thinnk that as much as anything this sensitivity was a brain overload for now DS5. Classical music never soothed him to sleep as a baby (mind you nothing did). But at 2y 11m we gave it another go, only to go in and find him standing up in his cot. He pointed and asked what was making the different noises. He was analysing the music to identify the instruments. No wonder it didn't help him sleep.
I have looked at some of the music therapies before but in relation to improving brain patterns for sleep. I am curious to know more about this.
I just wrote a big long post and it has now disappeared...
The listening program can be purchased as recordings, we got ours through our GP from thelisteningprogram.com And on that site there is a way of finding TLP providers in NZ
We used ours with our eldest daughter through the latter part of last year and earlier this year. She was 7.5 when we started it. She resisted it a bit and we had to use bribery to get through it. However she now occasionally uses it at night to get her off to sleep as she says it relaxes her brain. (however I think it actually occupies her brain and she is not consciously thinking of stuff preventing her from falling asleep)
Our 6 year old is listening a bit now, not so much because she needs to but because we have it and it was something her older sister did so she wants to.
Once our 4 year old becomes a little more compliant we will start her with it, she is very like our oldest not so much with auditory processing issues but she is so sensative to sound/smell/taste/texture.....
If you contact Rosemary and crew at the Developmental Learning Centre in Tauranga they have a list of the New Zealand Integrated Listening Practitioners they have certified who can provide the program and resources.
http://www.developlearning.co.nz/
In response to Anons' question, "Just wondering if these are recordings, are school able to purchase them to make them more widely availble to students who require assistance with this?".
The Listening Program is available as a set of 10 CDs or loaded onto an iPod. Schools can implement the program by acquiring a site licence. My son's school has recently implemented the program. Training in the program in NZ and Australia is organised by 'Links to Learning' in Adelaide ( www.links2learning.com.au ).
Hi
My son who is 5 1/2 is now on his last cd foloowing the Johansens IAS programme. It has been a 9 month treatment alongside weekly speech therapy sessions.
I contacted a private ST who after rigorous tests, diagnosed DS with auditory processing disorder.
I live in the UK and the sound therapy cost £600.00 for 6 CD's and 6 assessments.
I have noticed a remarkable difference in his listening and attention skills. Most of all since starting the programme he has made astounding progress with his reading.
He is a different child compared to the one who started school last year well behind his peers socially, emotionally and academically. He is now one of the brightest in his class.
Although very expensive I believe whole heartedly that it is worth every penny!!
I was wondering if the programme has made any difference that you've noticed in general processing speed, i.e. the speed with which your child can process information, say how quickly they reply to a maths question or something like that?
