I've been reading some research on music therapy. My two year old has SPD, is very much a non seeker, and is high functioning on the Autism Spectrum. We also have all the fun stuff like the gfcfsfcf diet happening here. He gets OT, PT, SLP through early Intervention. Ok. That's the short intro. Here's the question:

I just read about using a kazoo being used as a way to promote speech and create awareness of mouth muscles ( OT gave us a vibrating chew stick a while back, and Logan loved it so much he wore it out!!), as well as being part of music therapy. Verrrrrry interesting to my. Anyone have any input, or other research I can look at to support/disprove this idea?
Caryn

You know, that is interesting to me, too. And I found a few glimmers that music therapists are starting to look more closely at music therapy as something besides a tool to foster social interaction in children who are autistic or have sensory issues. They're longer reads, but I'll bet they'll be interesting.

Berger - On Developing Music Therapy Goals & Objectives

Listening to Autism - This one also quoted extensively from Berger, but as a student paper, it was an easy and enjoyable read.

I also noticed that one of the major sites on SPD listed a kazoo as a great tool to help with oral defensiveness.

Add to that the wonderful works of D.S. Berger (from the reviews, she sounds uniquely awesome), and you have a lot of interesting reading material. Her books are Music Therapy, Sensory Integration and the Autistic Child (published in 2002) and The Music Effect (published in 2006). I didn't really have time to look and see if there was something more recent that referenced her works or were as highly recommended, but I thought these might be a good start. Besides, as a person with music degrees and sensory integration issues, I find the little bit I was able to glean of her concepts eye-opening and encouraging (as well as explanatory of a major part of my life! lol).

Was this something your OT recommended? Just curious.

Actually, I was doing some research for the blog I wrote this morning, and I came across it. It struck a chord because Logan loved the vibrating chew stick so much. I found the following:

http://special-needs.families.com/blog/h...your-child

and also stumbled across the American Music Therapy Association, which was phenomenal.
http://www.musictherapy.org/

To view the original article from the blog, and a little more info,
http://livingwithlogan.blogspot.com/2010...music.html

Our family has always believe strongly in the power of music.. I just didn't know how much it was being applied to our special kids! Very cool! And, no. The OT did not recommend it.. I just went with my instinct on this one... and logan really seems to enjoy it.

I'm busy this afternoon, so I don't have time to offer any cool links or research, but I do have some personal experience for you.

I played trombone for 7 years (6th grade - High school senior), and I absolutely loved it. It does just what you are hoping for - providing great oral sensory input. It improved my breathing, the sensation in my mouth (because I also had basically no sensation there when I was little), and it became a critical element in my sensory diet. It was the only class I enjoyed in high school, for the most part, and I only wish I still had a good opportunity to play. One of these days, I'll have to join one of those local community orchestras or something.

The buzzing, the vibrating, the noise, all of it, it all helps. I would absolutely recommend having kids with SPD pick up instruments even sooner than I did, like you are trying for your son. Good for you!

I can second D1G1T on that one. I played piano for years, and I still crave it. I sang also, but voice, while wonderful as input, was never quite as much as the piano. And I'm loving your blog! Thank you so much for sharing these links for me, they're awesome! And I'm looking forward to seeing if my son will like the kazoo (just because, he doesn't seem to have any sensory issues, but it can't hurt!).