I'm a piano teacher, and sensory-informed coach who helps music teachers better understand and support their autistic and ADHD students.

For over four decades, I've worked with students with different learning styles, strengths, and needs. Over time, I began to recognize that some of the challenges I was seeing in lessons weren't simply about attention, motivation, or behavior. They were often connected to sensory processing and regulation.

That realization led me to deepen my understanding through specialized training in sensory processing and regulation. What I learned changed the way I teach, and eventually led me to help other music teachers make sense of what they're seeing in their own lessons.

My Connection to Sensory Processing

As a child, I struggled with processing sounds. Loud or unexpected noises could feel physically painful and overwhelming, and I didn't yet have the words to explain what I was experiencing.

Music became one of the places where I felt most at ease. At the piano, I could focus, create, and experience sound in a way that felt safe and predictable.

Years later, as a music teacher, I began recognizing some of those same sensory needs in my students. That personal connection led me to study sensory processing more deeply and changed the way I understood what students may be communicating through their behavior.

Today, that understanding shapes both my teaching and my work with other music teachers. I help teachers look beyond behavior, understand the sensory needs that may be underneath it, and create learning environments where autistic and ADHD students can feel safe, empowered, and ready to learn.

Professional Bio

Hemdah Salonimer-Horner is a nationally certified music teacher, piano teacher, and sensory-informed coach with more than 40 years of teaching experience.

She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music/Music Education from Graceland University and a Master of Music in Piano Performance with an emphasis in Piano Pedagogy from the University of Missouri–Kansas City.

Her specialized training includes Levels 1 and 2 of the Inside Out Sensory Certificate program, along with continued study of sensory processing, regulation, and neurodiversity-affirming approaches to learning.

Through Discovering Autistic Gifts, Hemdah helps music teachers apply sensory-informed regulation with greater clarity and confidence so their autistic and ADHD students can feel safe, empowered, and ready to learn.