Debra's Music Lessons

Wednesday, January 20, 2016 | Uncategorized

WHAT PARENTS NEED TO KNOW ABOUT MUSIC PRACTICE

1. Your children will need help – Up until about age 11, children need hands-on help with home practice. And even though you yourself may not read music or play an instrument, your assistance is still very much needed! Parental help can take the form of reading lesson notes, organizing practice time wisely, providing encouragement through difficult sections or situations, and seeking out answers for “I’m stuck on this” problems. Asking a young child to be in charge of something as important as musical instrument practice is often asking too much. Your help at home will make a substantial difference in your children’s progress.
2. Your children need you to establish a routine – Music practice that happens every single day is by far the most effective practice structure. 30 minutes three times a week is just 90 minutes. 20 minutes seven days a week is 140 minutes. The total difference is 43 hours of missed practice per year if your children are only at their instrument three times a week!

Short, focused and regular practice sessions help your children retain and understand what they are learning while making the most of generally short attention spans. If practice is enjoyable, rather than arduous, your children will naturally (and unknowingly!) increase the time they spend at their practice… eventually reaching that 30 minute mark.

Setting a regular time of day when music practice happens “no matter what” will ensure a daily practice routine is easy for your children to maintain.

3. Your children needs lots of encouragement – Learning to read music and play an instrument can be difficult; it can be discouraging… it can feel overwhelming. Your children (no matter what their age) need loads of encouragement.

And not just verbal encouragement. You can show your children that you value their efforts by attending their recitals with enthusiasm, inviting friends and family to listen to them play, and taking the time to sit and listen to them practice with your undivided attention.

4. Your children need an instrument that is enjoyable to play – Much of the pleasure from playing a musical instrument comes from one’s ability to emote feeling, nuance and expression through music. Even young beginners will experience great satisfaction from making beautiful sounds…. so choose an instrument that gives them the best opportunity to make beautiful sounds. Guidance from your children’s teacher will help you find an affordable instrument (don’t worry, there are many great and affordable options) that will give your children the tool they need to truly experience music lessons. An investment in a good instrument protects the investment you are making in your children’s musical education.
5. Your children need a positive practice environment– Aside from providing encouragement, your children need you to create a positive practice atmosphere. Help your children avoid “cramming” the day before lessons. Stick to your daily routine to avoid weeks of forgotten practice (which lead to feelings of inadequacy on the part of your children). Music is joyful… and so practicing music should be as well. This is, fortunately, something that you are able to create easily with a commitment to regular practice.
6. Your children need you to communicate with their teacher – Working as a parent/child/teacher triangle is the optimal way to ensure progress and success in music lessons. Be sure to communicate often with your children’s music teacher. Check in on how lessons are progressing, ask for help if something is difficult for your children at home, let your teacher know when practice weeks have gone extremely well (or not so well). Working as a team means your children are supported equally on all sides at all times.
7. The Pleasure of Being THE PARENT OF A MUSIC STUDENT…

Learning to play music is a life-changing experience. And, as a parent, the process is a thrill to watch. Being a major part of this accomplishment is incredibly rewarding! The profound pleasure of being the parent of a music student far outweighs the required extra efforts; and this is, by far, the most important thing that music teachers want parents to know about musical instrument practice.

Wednesday, January 20, 2016 | Uncategorized

Here is a formula for successful music study:

Involved parents = Successful Practice + Progress

Successful Practice + Progress = Happy Kids + Successful Music Studies

The key of course being “involved parents”. Much of your music lesson success hinges on this one single factor. Which is why, when I begin teaching a new student one of the first things I do is to strive to help parents be active participants in the music lesson process… even if they have absolutely no musical background.

Most parents have no musical background. Their ability to help with music technique or instruction is limited to such phrases as “Julie, it’s time to practice piano!” or, “Julie, did you remember to practice your violin?”, or “Oh my gosh Julie, your lesson is in 10 minutes, quick, practice!”

But it doesn’t have to be this way. By simply sitting with your children for the first 5 minutes of a practice session and using the following Parent Practice Questions, you can have a huge impact on your children’s musical success.

HOW TO USE THE PARENT PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Sit with your child for the first five minutes of daily music practice and have a little chat… using the questions as a jumping off point for the discussion. And then, wait for your child’s next lesson. If you have indeed taken a few minutes of their day to get involved with music practice, I’ll bet you’ll see some serious progress… which, in the long term, means seriously successful music study!

PARENT PRACTICE QUESTIONS

♩ Where is the hardest part in this piece? can you play JUST that part for me?

♩ Can you play this piece for me in slow motion?

♩ Can I play the last note in this piece? Can you show me which key to press and then nod at me when it's my turn to play?

♩ Clap the rhythm of any measure in this piece and I will try to copy you!

♩ Let's write a note to your teacher about today's practice session. What should we tell her?

♩ What does this mean? (said while pointing at any marking above a music note)

♩ Let's write some lyrics! What do you think this piece is about?

♩ Let's surprise Grandma with a special tune.  I'll phone her... when you hear me say HELLO, start to  play!