Therapies

At HMS School, we believe communication is a powerful tool and that every student deserves a voice. Our goal is to empower students to become effective communication partners by building on their unique abilities and interests.

Our Speech and Language Pathology program supports both communication and feeding needs through a wide range of services, including:

With a focus on ongoing assessment, we adapt interventions to meet each student’s evolving needs, ensuring a personalized and collaborative approach.

Occupational Therapy at HMS School supports students in maximizing independence at school, home, and in the community. Through personalized adaptations to classroom materials, communication devices, and mobility tools, our OT team enhances accessibility and participation.

Services include:

OTs collaborate across disciplines, focusing on each student’s interests and roles to enrich their quality of life.

Recreational therapy at HMS provides access to meaningful, developmentally appropriate activities that promote growth, independence, and quality of life. Through carefully adapted play, leisure, and social experiences, students are encouraged to build physical skills, strengthen communication, and develop confidence in their abilities.

Working as part of an interdisciplinary team, the recreational therapist designs individualized interventions that align with each student’s goals and educational plan. All interventions are tailored to ensure accessibility and optimize participation.

Beyond skill development, recreational therapy helps students connect with peers, express themselves, and experience success in ways that extend beyond the classroom. By fostering enjoyment, engagement, and inclusion, this approach supports the whole child, enhancing not only physical functioning, but also emotional well-being and social belonging within the school community.

Dance/Movement Therapy (DMT) at HMS focuses on nonverbal dynamics and communication within a safe, supportive, nurturing, creative, and joyful environment. Students are encouraged to express themselves through facial expression, movement, and voice while engaging in activities that build self-awareness, body awareness, focus, and socialization.

Through structured exercises, students develop tools for increasing self-esteem, expressing feelings safely, modulating energy, strengthening impulse control, and practicing relaxation. DMT helps children develop a deeper awareness of their whole selves by engaging them physically, mentally, and emotionally.

Sessions are designed to stimulate, redirect, and calm students while supporting emotional expression and the integration of mind, body, and spirit. By expanding each student’s movement repertoire and means of communication, DMT fosters greater self-expression and connection.

Using sensory engagement—including kinesthetic awareness, touch, hearing, and vision—DMT promotes emotional growth, physical development, and overall well-being. It also motivates students with physical limitations or reduced motor control to move with intention and purpose.

Introduced in 2000, Dance/Movement Therapy has become an essential part of HMS’s therapeutic approach, supporting student growth, engagement, and holistic development.

Music Therapy at HMS is used in group and individual sessions to work on multiple therapeutic goals. Led by a board-certified music therapist, music therapy sessions work towards socialization, cognitive skills, self-expression, motor skills, and communication goals through various musical interventions.

Students utilize many forms of assistive technology, including adaptive instruments, switches, and AAC devices to participate in music therapy. From greeting songs and musical games to instrument play and songwriting, music therapy at HMS combines students’ musical preferences and curiosity to work towards therapeutic goals in a safe and motivating environment.

At HMS, Art Education serves as a space for our students to participate in meaningful and accessible creative experiences. By exploring materials such as clay, paint, fabric, wood, plaster, and paper, students focus on the process of making art, experimenting, discovering, and watching their ideas take shape.

Our certified Art Teacher utilizes both hands-on and switch-adapted tools and techniques to ensure every student can actively engage with art materials in a way that meets their interests and individual needs. Sensory-rich experiences are also encouraged for students who prefer a more tactile approach, exploring textures and forms.

Additionally, art classes highlight artists whose works range from historic to contemporary spanning a wide variety of artistic styles. Within the art room, students practice generalizing essential skills such as choice making, communication, problem solving, and self-advocacy, which ultimately empowers self-expression.

HMS offers an interactive theater-arts program that introduces students to role-playing, creating plots, and performing with costumes, props, and communication devices. The program promotes social interaction, communication skills, and emotional expression, giving students a fun outlet for creativity. Our in-house Theater Instructor collaborates with education staff and therapists to ensure a multi-disciplinary approach to creative expression. Alongside our in-school and residential theater program, HMS partners with Acting Without Boundaries to bring special extracurricular club activities to life.