How would you explain the concept of pitch to a tone deaf child?

[Anonymous]

I'm a relatively new teacher. I teach elementary music.

For the first time in my career, I have a child in one of my classes who I am almost completely certain is tone deaf. (It's a genetic thing. I'm not just saying the kid is a bad singer. He's an absolute sweetheart).

Tone-deafness isn't rare, but complete tone-deafness is very uncommon.

I suspected he might be for a while, but the exercise we did today in class confirmed it for me. I'm glad he didn't get embarrassed, because he kept asking questions, and not understanding the activity. His friends (6-8 year olds) were getting a little giggly, because it seemed obvious to them, but he didn't even understand the concept of notes, not matter how many ways I broke it down. He kept asking "what note?" right after I gave them the pitches, like he was expecting something to click, and it wasn't. He heard my voice, but he didn't hear a note. He was starting to get frustrated by the fact that he didn't get it, and I was having trouble keeping his friends from laughing at the kid, so I ended the activity fairly quickly to avoid embarrassing him.

I would like to find a way to explain the concept behind "pitch" and "notes" to him, in a way that he would understand. I don't know what it's like to be tone deaf, but I figured someone on here might.

Also, for now I would like to avoid telling him he's tone deaf. I don't want to make him insecure about it, especially because if I'm right, there's not much that can be done about it. I also think he might benefit from hearing aids in general, and I'm going to be in touch with his parents about it. In the meantime, I just want to explain this one concept to him, because he was trying so hard to understand, and I don't know how to help him.

Updates

1 y

Tonedeafness can’t be fixed with hearing aids or speech therapy. It’s a genetic condition, rooted in the brain. Not to mention, the school wouldn’t allocate resources just for that, because it’s not considered a disability. The only subject that it would impact is music, and that’s not a core subject. He doesn’t have a speech problem.

I’m going to meet with his guidance counselor, but that’s because he’s been having trouble with his hearing in general.

[Guy13]

Have you tried talking with a school psychologist or speech therapists...

[Asker]

The closest we have here are the guidance counselors. They don't know anything about music, and I'm going to check with them to see if theirs anything about a hearing impairment in his file. If not, I'm going to try to get in touch with his parents, because I think he might benefit from hearing aids. Not for the pitch thing in particular, but for general use.

He does well in his main classes, and he doesn't have a speech impediment. He's very enthusiastic in music, which is part of the reason I'm worried about discouraging him. He doesn't have a learning disability or anything like that. I genuinely believe that the disconnect has to do with his hearing. He couldn't hear a difference between the sounds.

It's honestly sad. Because people who are tone deaf can still love and appreciate music like anyone else, albeit in a slightly different way. I don't want to tell the kid he can't excel at music when I know he enjoys, because I don't want to take that away from him. Not to mention, I don't know what his exact limits are, and I want to encourage him to try. But there's also the fact that I know he'll find out eventually, and the more grows to love music, the harder it will be when he does.

[Guy13]

Force a meet with school psychologist and make certain there is a referral to speech pathologist. They are probably going to want to see a medical visit. WebMD proper medical care for your issue?

[Asker]

My recent update was supposed to be a reply to you. Oops.

Anyway, a speech therapist wouldn’t be able to help with tone deafness. A music therapist might, but the likelihood of the parents spending the money on that is very slim.

It’s likely that one of the parents has it too. The only subject that it will impact the kid in is music. He’ll be fine. I just feel bad because my subject is the one he’s struggling with. I want to help.

[Guy13]

Perhaps degree and depth when you have an audiologist and speech pathologist...