If you have taught piano for any length of time, it is very likely that you’ve had experience teaching piano students with ADHD.
Or maybe you have a few students you suspect have ADHD and you’re looking for ways to help them.
In this article, we have compiled 17 tips for teaching piano students with ADHD.
These tips have come from research as well as talking to various teachers who have taught piano students with ADHD.
I appreciate all who gave their insight and helped make this blog post as helpful as possible.
If you have ADHD or have children or piano students with ADHD, please join the conversation and add your comments so we can learn from each other and best help our piano students!
Understanding piano students with ADHD
One of the biggest challenges to me as a piano teacher is getting a student with undiagnosed or undisclosed ADHD.
Not knowing about ADHD in piano students cripples me as a teacher and it has sometimes taken me months before realizing that I have to take a different approach to this student to meet their specific needs.
If you have a few students you suspect have ADHD or maybe you don’t know why they’re struggling, it is my sincere hope that this article will help you!
The first step is understanding piano students with ADHD.
It can be easy to lose patience with students if we don’t understand where they are coming from.
Several teachers with ADHD gave us three specific aspects that give incredible insight into the ADHD piano student’s mind.
- They don’t like slow tempos; slow makes them impatient and sometimes even anxious.
- They often have inner hyperactivity.
- They can forget what they have learned easily as soon as they do something else.
Added to this, piano students with ADHD often have very unique abilities and approaches to music.
They are not just a problem to solve–they are a musician with incredible potential that we have to learn how to communicate with.
Knowing where these students are coming from will go a long way in helping you find solutions for them.
But in case you need some specific ideas, we’ve got you covered!
17 Tips for Teaching Piano Students with ADHD
1) Rewrite your expectations
It is easy to have high expectations as a teacher because we know the entire potential of our students with rhythm, notes, dynamics, articulation, and musicality.
However, for piano students with ADHD, it is important to not force them to adhere to our high standards.
Remember that what is most important is their enjoyment of the instrument and music.
If the student is happy with stumbling through a piece from beginning to end, maybe we as teachers need to shift our expectations because we’re meeting the student where they are at–which is to enjoy the music.
Shifting our expectations can also look like never expecting the student to do everything at once: reading, articulations, rhythm, etc.
You can focus on just some of the concepts at a time (e.g. teach a piece by rote and focus on articulation, work on one piece and only worry about emphasizing dynamics).
2) Be flexible
This is similar to #1, but more specifically, remember to go with the flow of the student.
If the student plays while you are trying to talk, they might be hearing every word!
Actually, asking them to stop playing while you talk may take more concentration and they can’t hear a word you’re saying because they’re so busy focusing on not playing!
Being flexible will look different for each piano student with ADHD. Experiment with where you allow flexibility in lessons.
3) Play with a track
There are several ways you can assign music with a track.
Many composers sell backing tracks to their composition.
Playing with a backing track may encourage the student to play more musically.
If you don’t have backing tracks, you can always use a recording of your students’ piece for them to play along with.
Either way, playing with a track can be used to encourage the student to play at a slower tempo by slowing down the track.
Playing with a track can also help the student learn how to continue playing instead of repeating a section when they’ve made a mistake.
4) Play duets with piano students with ADHD
If playing with a track isn’t a good option for you, you can always play duets with your students.
Even if you’re making up chords or rhythms, playing duets will help keep them on track.
You can use this method to help your students keep a steady tempo and practice at a slower pace if needed.
5) Focus on fewer technical aspects
There are so many technical aspects of music.
Sometimes, our piano students with ADHD need us to relieve the pressure from trying to focus on it all.
For example, focus on correct rhythms and notes but ignore articulation (dynamics and expression).
Or focus on even less: aim for accurate rhythm and ignore the notes.
As you’re working through repertoire, remember to ask: is it a note issue? A fingering issue? Or is it just a rhythm issue?
Remember to change your expectations for a “completed” piece.
If you’re focusing on just notes and rhythms, then once the student has mastered both of these, you can pass the student’s piece off.
6) Try the metronome … or not!
Some ADHD piano students thrive with the metronome and it helps for every single piece they’re learning.
You can use the metronome like a game where they play a piece at various tempos.
Then, you can discuss which variation they thought was best.
On the contrary, you may have students who get extremely frustrated with the metronome and it discourages them rather than helps them.
For these students, a better option may be to teach tempo by rote.
As with many of the other tips, experiment to figure out what works best for the individual student.
7) Explore more music
Encourage students to play lots of music.
Offer them lots of repertoire, provide multiple pieces on their level and even pieces that are slightly easier than what they’re capable of.
Exploring music may help your student be more joyful because they’ll be making music rather than getting stumped in lesson books.
Have fun with compositions that sound “big” but are easy to read.
8) Consider pattern-rich music
Focus on easy, pattern-based music so they can play music that sounds complex but doesn’t require a lot of focus.
When students’ brains and fingers don’t have to think so hard about what they need to do, they’ll be able to experience greater joy in playing.
Once students have learned the patterns and are comfortable with the piece, you might be able to incorporate more articulation (dynamics, legato, etc.).
If this works well for your student, then you can specifically look for pattern-based repertoire that focus on one specific articulation concept each time.
9) Teach piano students with ADHD by rote
Sometimes teaching by rote takes a lot of the mental process out and they can focus more on musicality.
Take away the sheet music, show students the patterns, and teach them how to play legato and staccato and move all over the piano.
Dennis Alexander’s book Repertoire by Rote (affiliate link) is a great resource for this.
Wendy Stevens is another great resource for slightly harder rote repertoire (view her Rote & ReadingⓇ Teaching Pieces here).
10) Teach songs they know
Another way to make piano lessons easier for piano students with ADHD is introducing tunes they already know.
Folk songs, pop songs, Christian songs, hymns, Christmas carols, etc.
Giving them a song where they know the melody line will fix a lot of rhythm and note issues because they’ll often hear when they play a wrong note or rhythm.
Just be sure you get it to them at the correct level they can easily attain.
11) Focus on short fragments
Piano students with ADHD may benefit greatly from you helping them break down a full piece of music into smaller, more achievable segments.
This is also a good way to help the student practice at a slower tempo.
Practice a small fragment together slowly, where the student follows your slower tempo.
You can also use different rhythm patterns (a good idea for etudes and exercises) for a short segment and play it slow then fast then slow.
When it comes to assigning music for the student to practice at home, you can assign just a short section.
Simplifying the music in this way makes it feel less overwhelming.
12) Get the student’s opinion
Is the student happy with his/her progress?
If so, that matters more than teacher expectations (as hard as that is!).
And if they aren’t happy about what they’re doing now, see if there was a time when they were happy about their music and figure out similar repertoire or concepts to focus on.
13) Try white noise or other noises
There are ADHD loops with white noise, green noise, and other color noises that can play in the background.
Different piano students with ADHD may prefer different color noises, so this is something you can experiment with!
If the color noise distracts you as a teacher, allow the student to use earphones with the color noise.
It may feel rude to have your student with earphones during a lesson, but if it helps them concentrate better, then it’s worth it.
14) Change up the lesson
Don’t spend the entire lesson time on the bench.
Instead, break up the lesson into smaller segments where you work on technique, play a music theory game, work on repertoire, play a duet, sight read, play another music game, do a worksheet, etc.
15) Help the piano student with ADHD know what to expect in the lesson
If you have a hard time getting your piano student with ADHD to focus at the very beginning of the lesson, consider using aural clues that the lesson has officially started.
Additionally, the student may do better if they know what is coming when and what is expected of them.
You can do this aurally by explaining what you’ll do in lessons today or even by writing down the order of the lesson on a whiteboard.
Most ADHD piano students thrive with structure, but if for some reason your student freezes up at the mention of structure, then do the opposite and switch up the lesson order each week to keep them interested and engaged.
Remember to learn your student and what works for them.
16) Focus on equipping the student & meeting them where they’re at
One of the beautiful aspects of teaching piano is that we can help our students learn more than just music.
You can help your students become more equipped to handle how their brain processes and how their brain can learn new things like playing the piano.
One of our artists at Music Game Club shared,
“I also have been diagnosed with ADHD since I was a child and I know that often we have different ways and workarounds that we find to learn things. [Ask] the students to see how they would normally go about learning something like this on their own. Just taking a little extra time to teach them in a way that works for them whether that’s going through it quickly or focusing on one part at a time, every ADHD person is different and they have their own unique ways of learning that may not work for everyone else, but if [teachers are] willing to try it with them I know they would be receptive and grateful for the extra effort.”
17) Keep a positive attitude
Your students will reflect your attitude.
Face the challenges with your student and have a positive attitude and hopeful outlook.
Remember to praise your students and encourage them rather than get frustrated with them when they don’t meet your expectations.
You’ve got this!
What tips do you have for teaching piano students with ADHD?
We welcome your thoughts and comments about teaching piano students with ADHD. We know that not everyone’s experience is the same, so we value your input for what worked for you and your students! Leave a comment!
I had a student with severe ADHD, and for him, I found the best thing was to take his distractability with a bit of humor. Don’t take it personally if he can’t sit through a lesson like others his age can. Find his interests, ask him about his day, what he learned in school, be excited with him about his wins, and don’t put so much pressure on getting through your lesson plan. And most importantly, be flexible! He had been adamant for a few weeks that he was not going to learn any new notes, so he just started playing with some shells… so I incorporated the shells into the lesson and “tricked” him into learning the new notes haha! Connect their world to piano world! If he’s talking about cats, why don’t we try to play this measure like a sneaking cat ready to pounce!
I absolutely love your insight and attitude here! You are so creative with how you used his interests to progress the lesson! Thanks for sharing.
I just started a new student with ADHD who has loudly expressed that he really wants to do drums. (Mom and Dad want all 3 kids to learn piano. We’ll see how this goes!). We’ve had one lesson. He saw my chart on the wall that has rhythm notes paired with foods and we played those rhythms on the piano. We explored the 2 & 3 black keys, then he saw the inner workings on the piano and was totally fascinated with the hammers and dampers and pedals for most of the lesson.
I’ve had other students with ADHD. You do have to go with the flow and lower your expectations. One of my ADHD students was playing “Ode to Joy,’ got to the last 3 notes, turned to me and said, “My chicken just died yesterday.” Needless to say, we didn’t hear those last 3 notes that day! That student is currently working on the song “Boston.” It’s slow going. We just started the 3rd page last week. I do a lot of color-coding, looking for repeated patterns and. form. I’ve found the transparent, removable colored tape, as well as colored pencils, to be invaluable to help with this.
Thank you so much for sharing from your experience! I love how you work with your students! And yes, the transparent colored tape is amazing!
Have you noticed a link between ADHD (and the rest of the spectrum) and hypermobility or inability to consistently have good hand position? As I think about it, I think my ADHD students have more trouble with floating thumb, collapsing first joint, random fingerings, and things like that.
Yes, we have noticed that in some of our students.
On an interesting side note, I study a lot of physical health personally, and most ADHD/hypermobility issues are rooted in health concerns (leaky gut is one that comes to mind). It is crazy how connected the whole body is!