Enhanced – read by the author
a piano teacher for more than twenty years, I’ve discovered a common theme with students—most kids are excited at the thought of playing an instrument—it’s practicing the instrument that isn’t much fun. What’s a parent to do? No one wants to nag all the time. (And I guarantee your children don’t want you to nag either!)
Good news! I’ve got some practical tips for you that don’t require your children to practice for hours on end, and they work for any instrument. Best of all? You can help your children be successful even if you’ve never had a music lesson in your life!
Here’s the sad truth that affects so many families—children don’t practice, so they don’t play well, and then they start to believe that they can’t learn to play whatever instrument they’ve chosen. They get frustrated and discouraged. They feel like a failure, so they give up. Who can blame them? But of course, the truth is that they’re completely capable—they just didn’t put in the practice time.
The bottom line is that success won’t happen unless your kids practice several days each week. Prioritize practice! Every time they play is a step in the right direction!
Some very young kids may only be able to do ten minutes, but if they’re consistent with that ten minutes every day, their learning will soar! Even children with the busiest of schedules can find just ten minutes a day to practice.
When your kids start by glancing over the piece and noting those sections—before playing—they’ll be much more likely to pay attention to those sections when they practice.
This simple concept takes less than a minute but can make a big difference.
If your kids are old enough, have them find the toughest line of a song and play only that section three or four times. Then they can gradually expand by playing the sections around that, eventually moving on to the whole song.
Initially, it’s okay if they don’t play the entire song through. The goal is to play correctly. Most teachers would rather hear a shorter section of music played properly than listen to a student carelessly rush through an entire song.
The more they play, the better they’ll get, and then they’ll want to play even more. This is a great way to accomplish that!
This doesn’t have to be a big deal. A phone call to Grandma during practice would work just fine. Perhaps you have pets. Children love to play for their animals. Quite frankly, a stuffed animal concert would work too! Just have your kids line up their plushies on the couch and let the show begin!
Plus, once kids get past the first couple years of learning to play the instrument, they’ll often find true joy in playing and stick with it for years.
Believe it or not, I had one student who would memorize just about anything for a can of chicken noodle soup! I kid you not. Another student loved cats, so occasionally I’d reward her with a coupon to play with our cats for ten minutes.
The reward possibilities are endless and you could always ask your children for ideas too.
Note: rewards aren’t just for kids. Try rewarding YOURSELF if you get your children to follow the set practice schedule! Starbucks anyone?
racy Selle is a veteran homeschool mom who worked as a piano teacher for more than twenty years. She’s the author of 101 Piano Practice Tips and 101 Music Practice Tips. She now works as copy editor for Homeschooling Today magazine. She’s been married to Kevin for nearly thirty years, and they have one son in college. Tracy loves to encourage moms with medical needs since their son has Type 1 Diabetes.