School of Rock music school on the spectrum

My high schooler has been attending School of Rock music school since age 13. He is now 17. It started off as I noticed his ability to carry a tune singing along with a song in the car. He was in choir in 5th grade and middle school (6th-8th grade), but lots of kids were in choir. It was when I heard him sing in the car that I realized he had talent and I wanted to place him in vocal lessons.

I started searching on google for voice teachers and didn’t have much luck. The nearby music store didn’t offer voice lessons, only instrument lessons. The park district said call this number and I didn’t get a call back until a month later.

While I was looking for a voice teacher, my husband brought up that his friend’s son was taking guitar lessons at their local School of Rock and was really happy there. We researched the closest school and scheduled a visit. We were thrilled with the program and the band performance opportunity. When you enroll, you are offered both a private lesson and a longer band performance lesson with several other students. The rehearsals are organized so that the different instruments and voice students are spread out among different groups representing chosen genres for the semester. At the end of the semester, two big stage performances are scheduled with lights, microphones, etc.

I was a little hesitant at first how he would do with the longer band rehearsals being special needs. It turned out that he flourished with the program and the first stage performance he danced while he sang and was even charming on stage. While following the school on social media, we learned that other kids on the spectrum also joined the school and found that the program was very supportive. The instructors treat all the kids equally and the format just works.

Now a junior in high school, the school lasts until you graduate from high school. He only has a few semesters left, so we are sad that it will end soon. I’ve been looking at college music programs for him when he attends college and it appears the a cappella programs would be the best fit. Hopefully, he can also find some students that want to form a band and he can be on vocals.

Feel free to share your own experiences with music instruction for your child on the spectrum. Many autistic children have a natural gift for music.