Students With Special Needs or Exceptionalities Background Profile/Reflections

For my reflection I chose to observe a freshman french horn player in Symphonic Band

which is the lower performing band at the high school. This student has a 504 Plan and struggles

with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) that limits the student’s learning because

they can appear to daydream or ‘zone out’ and miss instruction as well as teacher instructions.

The band teacher has had issues with this student in Symphonic Band because they sometimes

do not play when the rest of the band is playing. One thing that the band director has done is

move the student closer to the front of the class and engage with the student more to promote

focus during class as well as have one on one discussions when reviewing instructions. The band

director has also used band funds to purchase a new mouthpiece for the student because the

student has struggled to be able to get one on his own.

After going over the students 504 Plan and observing them in class, I plan to modify my

teaching in a way that engages the student much more in band class even if it’s something as

simple as asking them what a note is. I have observed that any kind of interaction with the

student immediately helps them focus on the lesson and be much more active on their

instrument. I also plan on modifying my teaching in a way that allows the student to be

successful such as taking things slower than normal or explaining different concepts more in

depth so that the student can have an easier time connecting with the music and the lesson.

Something that is noted in the students 504 Plan under accommodations is for the student to have

extended time up to time and a half on assignments. I believe that this relates directly to music

and the student should be given extra time to learn their part. Whether this means that they get

practice time during the study block or they are given extra time to perform a playing test, I will
modify my teaching in a way that helps provide this for them and help before/after school if ever

needed.