Music Learning Apps That Help With ADD & ADHD
You know those articles you start reading before realizing that they’re actually advertisements? The article may have some useful tips, but it’s really just trying to sell you something. That’s sort of what happened here, but in an unintentional way—it just so happens that some of these products are the absolute best purchases I’ve made for myself and my kids. So, keep your eyes wide-open as you read!
My name is Ms. Becki, and I am a private music teacher. I mostly teach piano, but also teach drums, guitar, and many other instruments. I learned them because I have ADD but totally did not know it while growing up. My husband and I have two kids who also suffer from ADD. Between the ages of four to twelve, I had no idea what ADD/ADHD (no, I’m not going to talk about the differences between them—I’m not a doctor. Focus!) looked like in my son. He is bright, artistic, good with his hands, and has no difficulty with authority. However, he cannot remember to put on two socks when we leave the house, and his grades are hit or miss—and mostly miss because he can never remember to put his name on his papers. Fast forward to today: after he was diagnosed and began treatment, his overall concentration showed much improvement.
As an educator, you’d think that I would have recognized the symptoms earlier. ADHD 1 and 2 look different on everyone. Since music lessons are great for ADHD kids, I want to share with you some of the recommended music apps (and one company in particular) I used with my own son. See: an ad. I’m sorry!
Keezy Drummer
I love Keezy Drummer because it teaches rhythm. It’s a creative yet concrete way to teach your musician the structure and fractions of rhythm. It will also help with math and algebra, but don’t tell the kids that! I also a way
SoundBrenner Pulse
I’ve just ordered the SoundBrenner Pulse; it’s an app that physically taps you. If you have a serious musician in the house, this will really help them “feel” time. My son is super excited to get it; I, sadly, don’t need it because I slept with a metronome under my pillow for years to learn tempos. This, however, would have been much better. Technology for the win!
Piano Maestro
Piano Maestro is an app that, quite simply, teaches piano skills and is a real game changer for teachers, but also this company’s really amazing to its parent- and student-users. You create a login and begin to play: no cables, no setup, no hassle. Put your iPad on the piano or keyboard and, when you see the highlighted key on the iPad, press the corresponding key on your instrument to play the song.
When it’s over you get your results. Three stars? Whoot, you mastered it! For the ADHD crowd, it’s great to receive that feedback. The songs are short and the library is full of current top-forty pop hits; in other words, songs that every kid wants to learn. The app also has video game and movie themes.
You’ll have a hard time stopping your child from playing this app, but why would you want to anyway if they’re having such a good time and learning so much?
Another great aspect of this company: if you need a teacher who’s trained in music technology, they will help you find one in your area. Yup. They certify thousands of teachers who are ready and able to help make the musical journey a great experience for your child. It kind of makes you want to learn to play too, doesn’t it? If so, check out Simply Piano, also by JoyTunes.
As you can tell, I get super excited about teaching—you might even say I get jump-up-and-down, can barely be contained excited when I find apps that really connect with my kids.
The combination of music and an ADHD musician is the most wonderful way to bring new music into the world. An ADHD musician’s creativity and energy is amazing to see and experience. Give your kids the tools to be all they can be!
