Renthead Mommy Posted July 2, 2009 Share Posted July 2, 2009 Someone on the local group posted about a piano teacher. I commented I was going to ask about that and now people keep emailing me piano teachers in the area. What do you ask when you've got choices? What do I need to know from a piano teacher? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KJB Posted July 2, 2009 Share Posted July 2, 2009 (edited) Edited to Add: Forgot one of the most important ones (although it's omission wouldn't surprise my dh!): How Much??? And along with that, how long are lessons for my child aged ___? 1. Are you a member of the MTNA http://www.mtna.org/ 2. Do you have a degree in music and/or education? 3. How many years have you been teaching? 4. What are your goals/expectations of your students? 5. How long should my student practice? 6. Do you offer performance opportunities? 7. Do you teach scales (and other aspects of technique, theory, performance) in addition to good music? 8. What techniques do you use for motivating a student? 9. Can *I* attend the lessons? Oh and a good one for weeding out good teachers, imo, is to ask how students are expected to dress for recitals. The kind of teacher *I* want prefers the kids to dress up and look polished. Also, if the teacher doesn't expect the student to memorize their pieces for recital, I wouldn't be interested in them as a teacher. Just a few off the top of my head.... I'll be back if I think of more! Edited July 2, 2009 by KJB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KJB Posted July 2, 2009 Share Posted July 2, 2009 A few more: 1. Do you have a contract and may I see it? 2. What is your policy for missed lessons and your make-up policy? 3. Do you take the summer off? 4. Do you ever offer group lessons so your students get to know each other? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnTheBrink Posted July 2, 2009 Share Posted July 2, 2009 Thinking back to an old episode of Everybody Loves Raymond, I suggest asking if the teacher can actually play the piano. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
myfunnybunch Posted July 2, 2009 Share Posted July 2, 2009 Definitely ask about the teacher's expectations regarding your role in your child's lessons. Some teachers, like ours, prefer parents to be a secondary at-home coach and to attend lessons. Others prefer less parental involvement. Ask if you can observe a lesson or attend a recital. That will give you some idea of the teacher's style and/or student abilities. And I agree with KJB about the recital clothing. I know it's picky on my part, but my dd's former piano teacher had students showing up in flip flops and shorts, one even in a soccer uniform, and it bothered me. Our current teacher asks kids to dress neatly for the performance. Cat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marylou Posted July 2, 2009 Share Posted July 2, 2009 "Can you play with more than two fingers?????" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lawana Posted July 2, 2009 Share Posted July 2, 2009 Here is some information from a piano teacher. She has an awful lot of information about learning piano. http://www.marthabeth.com/find_teacher.html http://www.marthabeth.com/piano.html Lawana Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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