Portfolio: Project Plan (SHR6E035P~001)

by

Casey2,Amelia (STUDENT)

‘Music is motivational, accessible and engaging for individuals with learning disabilities’ (Rushton, Kossyvaki and Terlektsi, 2022).

The placement I am participating in is within the Early Years Assessment Centre (EYAC) at Pinders Primary School, where I will be working with young children aged 2-5. All the children at this centre have medical conditions and/or profound and multiple learning disabilities (PMLD). This centre’s purpose is to assess a child’s needs in order to determine their future educational placement. PMLD is ‘when a person has a severe learning disability and other disabilities that significantly affect their ability to communicate and be independent’ (NHS, 2022). As most children at this centre are pre-verbal and have difficulties with movement, hearing and vision, we have created a multi-sensory project to help stimulate different senses depending on each child’s needs. 

To start planning our project, we arranged a visit to the centre to have a look around and meet some of the children who may participate in our activity. Visiting the centre allowed us to research each individual’s needs and tailor the activities to make them as accessible as possible, thereby increasing the project’s success. It is crucial that we take each child’s needs into consideration as this will minimise any stress that could be caused. For example, children who are visually impaired should not have more than one sense stimulated at once. At the centre, they have a sensory room. If we were to take a child who is visually impaired into that room and do our music project while all the different lights were on, it could end up causing distress due to the stimulation of the eyes and ears.

The visit put into perspective the level of care the children need; we gained insight into how they operate and what they do on a day-to-day basis. Our mentor at EYAC advised us immediately not to expect the children to engage with what we are doing and to be prepared to be flexible and work around their needs. This was really useful for us as a group, and it allowed us to format our project to achieve a more emotional outcome (working towards engagement) rather than a tangible result (working towards a performance). This means our project will focus on how they engage with the sessions each week, identifying what they like, so we can build upon that, ensuring our sessions are tailored to them.

According to Rushton et al, music activity for people with PMLD can be broadly divided into 3 categories: ‘1. musical education, in which the purpose of music is to teach musical skill. 2. music therapy in which a trained professional music-therapist uses music as a vehicle for therapeutic benefits and 3. social music, in which music is used to support the social interaction and behaviours between people with profound and multiple learning disabilities, their peers, and supporting adults, in both educational and recreational contexts.’ (Rushton, Kossyvaki and Terlektsi, 2022). Due to the needs of the children, our project falls under the ‘social music’ category. Music helps children with PMLD by enabling them to learn and develop social and emotional skills, improve their mood and relaxation, and enhance musical awareness while also boosting gross and fine motor skills. ‘The inherent rhythmic elements, melodies, and beats in music serve as a powerful stimulus for movement and coordination, facilitating the enhancement of various aspects of physical development.’  (Yinan and Serrano, 2024).

As shown in Appendix A, this overview outlines the content of each week. Our sessions have no set outcomes due to the complexity of the child’s needs. When researching the types of activities that would be best suited for children with PMLD, we found that the following options are most suitable: musical routines, listening, improvisation/soundscapes, sensory activities, and movement to sound. 

Research by Doukas et al (2017) suggested that routine and predicability are important in order to help individuals with PMLD feel more secure and support their ability to anticipate events within their daily life. We have supported this by starting each session with the same ‘Hello’ and ‘Name’ song, as well as the same ‘Goodbye’ song. Our sessions each week also follow the same structure to create a sense of familiarity.

Listening to music has no measurable outcome; however, it’s been suggested that ‘music can be used for calming and reducing arousal levels, and may also filter out unpredictable and unwanted noise’ (Douglas, 2016).

Improvisation fosters relational connections. Kittay (2008) argued that ‘shared creative experiences (such as music) can bypass traditional barriers to interaction and build connections between people with intellectual disabilities and others’. Improvisation supports this as it’s built upon the idea of creating shared experiences through music without relying on spoken language. We are using soundscapes to integrate improvisation into our sessions through the use of iPads with apps such as ‘Bloom’, ‘Thumbjam’, and ‘GarageBand’. Apps such as Bloom create an immersive experience for users; they are also incredibly sensitive, which will make it easy for those who have muscular issues.

Sensory activities are essential whilst working with children with PMLD as most children are visually impaired and/or have problems hearing. Ware (2003) argued that learning for people with PMLD is found through sensory exploration. Meaning is constructed through repeated exposure to various stimuli, including sound, touch, movement, and visual cues. We are using colourful scarves for visual and tactile stimulation, as well as iPads, for when we create soundscapes, which feature colourful screens that will help with visual and inner ear stimulation. Whilst these may not be suitable for everyone, we have a range of instruments in a Shurti box which may be more fitting for some individuals.

The overall aim of the project is to improve the children’s abilities in some way over the 5 weeks we spend with them. We aim to enhance their musical awareness by introducing new instruments such as xylophones, djembe and many more. This, in time, will introduce them to new textures as well as sounds. The different instruments we use will also help them improve their gross and fine motor skills. An example of how this is helpful is by banging on a drum, which aids in hand-eye coordination as well as wrist movement, both of which people with PMLD often struggle with. By encouraging these fine motor skills, we can ultimately enhance their overall quality of life, as these types of muscle movements form the foundation of many daily tasks. We hope to develop new senses through different textures and vibrations by using speakers to amplify music (which is also helpful for children who may be partially deaf) as well as textural props such as scarves, books, toys, and instruments. 

‘Music is known to boost memory, attention and brain function by engaging both hemispheres of the brain, supporting skills like memory recall and cognitive flexibility. Studies have shown that music helps retain information, making learning more memorable by transforming complex concepts into catchy tunes.’ (Artis Foundation, 2025)

Our ultimate aim is to provide the children with an alternative means of communication, thereby offering them the opportunity to socialise and interact with new people. This is supported by a statement from Hallam and MacDonald ‘music is powerful at the level of the social group because it facilitates communication which goes beyond words, induces shared emotional reactions and supports the development of the group identity’ (Hallam and MacDonald, 2013). As all the children we are working with are pre verbal, which means the centre are unsure if they will talk, it is vital to allow them access to ways in which they can express themselves as they are unable to verbally. In the same Hallam and MacDonald, 2013 article, it says ‘it is powerful at the individual level because it induces multiple responses – physiological, mood, emotional, cognitive and behavioural.

Ware (2003) emphasises the importance of learning through sensory interaction for children with PMLD. Our mentor at the centre advised us from the start not to expect too much from the children, so we have ensured our activities are malleable, allowing them to be easily adapted to fit the children’s needs. However, after viewing our plans she was pleased with the planning and thought that has gone into each activity to ensure the children are comfortable and not pressured. As well as this, our course leader further supported our idea of the multi-sensory activity and advised us to look at the ‘Sounds of Intent’ framework as this puts into perspective the musicality of the children. (Appendix C). 

Overall, with the support of our mentor and tutor, this project will be successful, as we are prepared to be flexible while still staying on plan to fit around the child’s needs. By reflecting on the feedback given, we were able to structure sessions by considering how we utilised musical routines, as well as how we could remain flexible while staying on theme. This ensures that communication, sensory regulation, and emotional security stay at the heart of the project. I believe the project reflects how well we’ve researched our activities to show a thoughtful yet informative approach to the community project for early years participants with PMLD

Bibliography

  • Rushton, R., Kossyvaki, L. and Terlektsi, E. (2022). Music-based interventions for people with profound and multiple learning disabilities: A systematic review of the literature. Journal of Intellectual Disabilities, 27(2), introduction https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10164233/ (13-01-26 01:18)
  • Yinan, Z. and Serrano, P.L. (2024). The Impact of Early Childhood Music on the Physical and Mental Development of Young Children. International Journal of Social Science and Humanities Research, [online] 12(1), pp.96–99. https://zenodo.org/records/10589408 (13-01-26 14:30)

Video Presentation

Appendix A

Appendix B

Appendix C