If you teach your dc an instrument....

[Another Lynn]

I tried giving my oldest ds piano lessons a couple years ago and was not pleased with the results. I have always wondered why we can hold our own feet to the fire for school, but not for piano - It was the first thing to go when time ran short. He did not have high interest either and it eventually fell by the wayside.

 

Now, I'm considering trying with 2nd ds. I think he has a little more inclination towards music, but I'm still trying to figure out how to be more successful. There is no other school subject where I "leave him alone" for a week. And yet traditional music lessons suggest you do a lesson once a week and give the rest of the week for practice. I think trying to do it this way might be another recipe for failure. I think because I'm involved with my dc everyday for every subject that I will need to do the same for piano, or he will assume it is not required.

 

Any thoughts on what this might look like on a daily basis? Anyone have success in teaching their own dc piano/violin/etc? How do you structure the lesson and how much do you teach vs. leave dc alone for practice inbetween "lessons?"

 

Thanks!!!

[Aurelia]

What works at our house is to have me sit with my daughter while she practices. I let her know when she needs to practice a particular section more, and applaud when she plays well. I think a beginning student really needs someone there even during practice times, until they get used to practicing and know what is expected. Music is a fairly high priority at our house - I'm more likely to let history go before music, because at least then we can cover some of the material through read-alouds at bedtime.

[snickelfritz]

If I looked correctly, your ds you're talking about is 7?

 

My unprofessional (I did take 6 years of piano, taught beginner piano students, took 2 of organ and am now taking Suzuki violin with my 6 year old) opinion is that you can't really expect a child to be independent with a musical instrument until they are older. I was a traditional piano student, but I didn't start until the 6th grade. My teacher told me what to practice and how much and I pretty much just did it. My parents occasionally asked if I was practicing enough or checked in with the teacher, but they were basically uninvolved. By the time I started organ lessons in the 11th grade, they were completely uninvolved. They just paid the bill.

 

The whole idea behind Suzuki is that the parent learns with the child and then practices with them. That's why they can start them at 3, 4, etc... I practice with my 6 year old and it is going very well. We run through the "must do's" first. I have a list of the weekly pieces from our teacher. I start with some previous pieces to do as warm ups and we work our way up to the currenct pieces. We play together, unless she's having problems. Then, I stop and help her work through a piece. After we've done our official work, we play games. She picks a piece then I pick a piece or we play follow-the-leader games where we take turns leading and doing echo's. At this point, I wouldn't even want her practicing alone. I make corrections in her posture, finger hold, rhythm, etc... while she is practicing. If you let those things go too many days, it gets harder to correct. In all, we spend 15-20 minutes doing this. The pieces are short and it doesn't take long. My dd is making good progress with this amount of work.

 

Eventually, our teacher said we will have to start rotating pieces on different days. She really wants us to keep up with reviewing old things.

Edited August 31, 2009 by snickelfritz

[pbjmeyer]

I have taught my ds since he was 6. I don't expect more than 10 to 15 minutes of practice daily, unless he's learning something new. If it isn't the first thing (after Bible reading) then it can easily get pushed aside.

I stay in the room, listen to his practice, so mistakes are not practiced into permanence.

[dragons in the flower bed]

you can't really expect a child to be independent with a musical instrument until they are older

 

I agree. Periodically I attempt to turn piano practice into an independently done subject on the school checklist. It always fails. Little kids aren't disciplined enough to help themselves master an instrument.

[tullyfamily]

I have to second the idea of Suzuki... if you can afford it. We love the parent involvement, focus on teaching the ear, the encouragement & the baby steps it takes to teach an instrument.

 

We meet w/ our piano instructor once a week & then I sit w/ each child during their lesson... though sometimes dd (age 9) practices alone but I TRY NOT TO LET THAT HAPPEN MUCH. (Sure hope our instructor doesn't read this! :001_smile:) We practice in the afternoon- while one child plays piano, the others do self-directed projects or free play.

[cdrumm4448]

and we practice five days a week, for ten minutes per child. I am always present.

[MerryAtHope]

I tried giving my oldest ds piano lessons a couple years ago and was not pleased with the results. I have always wondered why we can hold our own feet to the fire for school, but not for piano - It was the first thing to go when time ran short. He did not have high interest either and it eventually fell by the wayside.

 

Now, I'm considering trying with 2nd ds. I think he has a little more inclination towards music, but I'm still trying to figure out how to be more successful. There is no other school subject where I "leave him alone" for a week. And yet traditional music lessons suggest you do a lesson once a week and give the rest of the week for practice. I think trying to do it this way might be another recipe for failure. I think because I'm involved with my dc everyday for every subject that I will need to do the same for piano, or he will assume it is not required.

 

Any thoughts on what this might look like on a daily basis? Anyone have success in teaching their own dc piano/violin/etc? How do you structure the lesson and how much do you teach vs. leave dc alone for practice inbetween "lessons?"

 

Thanks!!!

 

I tried teaching my kids piano when they were young & it was tough here too! I let it go after a couple of years & not a ton of progress (I did have them practice independently & they did it regularly--I think I just wasn't knowledgeable enough about true readiness signs and started too young). I also tried to teach my dd violin around age 5-6 (I took lessons for 8 years & have played for orchestras, youth symphony & contests, so I have a background there--more than piano). That was a recipe for disaster, I couldn't even get her to hold it correctly & it wasn't worth the struggle. Last year when she was 9, she asked me to teach her violin again, and I agreed as long as it wouldn't be a struggle of the wills--violin is hard to teach! She agreed & has been good as gold except a few melt-downs (perfectionist plus violin is a tough combo! But also not a bad one...).

 

We do a "lesson" once a week, and she practices half an hour all the other weekdays. Our son takes guitar lessons from an outside teacher and also practices 30 min. a day. It's just part of our day like any other subject they do independently. It's MUCH easier at this age than when they were 5 and 7, I must admit! I think I didn't have the patience/skills to teach an instrument to one so young because I didn't learn that young--and the methods I learned by were geared towards 4th & up.

 

HTH some! Merry :-)

[msjones]

I teach piano here at home. I suggest doing it first thing each day, and sitting by your child as he/she practices.

 

We only practice for 15 min at a time, unless the child wants to do more.

 

We've had very few battles with this arrangement. I enjoy the practicing more when there is no outside teacher. The lack of pressure seems to help. I used to feel frantic for them to ace the song before the next lesson. Now, we just work on each new skill/song as long as necessary.

[Aletheia Academy]

Hi, Lynn!

 

My ds started piano lessons last spring. Initially, I had hoped that I could just turn him over to the teacher and be absolved from that component of his education, but in our experience, it really is necessary for me to be involved in his practice sessions. He is working from 4 different books. He needs help with understanding the directions, and he requires technical assistance. I agree with pp that he will need a few more years before he can really practice independently. We'll see how proactive I will need to be about managing his practice time as he progresses.

 

If between his efforts and my "facilitation" he doesn't practice enough to progress, it wouldn't be worth the time and expense of the lessons. Personally, I think learning how to read music and play an instrument is a valuable component of his education, so I am willing to push to a certain extent. If it would ever become a counter-productive battle, I would end the lessons.

 

The most frustrating thing for us at this point is that the beginning of the week is fraught with a high degree of frustration as he grapples with understanding new material and new skills. At those times, I wonder whether it is worth it. However, after I help him over the hump, he truly enjoys playing, and I am glad I am helping him work through the frustration of learning something new. I have faith that eventually, he will be able to talk himself through the process.

 

Hope all is well with you!

[tmulcahy]

My ds started guitar 4 months ago. He is getting pretty good and enjoys it but I still have to "remind" him to practice....like everyday. I have come to the conclusion that this is just the way it is. He is easily distracted by anything...the lure of the TV, video games, friends at the front door. Guitar always seems like a "later kind of thing to do".

 

I will listen to him practice often and give him praise. I also remind him that it will be much more fun when he really starts getting the cords down so he can play any song he wants.

 

T

[Narrow Gate Academy]

Any thoughts on what this might look like on a daily basis? Anyone have success in teaching their own dc piano/violin/etc? How do you structure the lesson and how much do you teach vs. leave dc alone for practice inbetween "lessons?"

 

We mostly do a weekly lesson and then daily practice. The girls know they can ask for a second lesson if they think they have mastered the music before the week is over. We're still in the early stages, but we're making progress.

 

Practice is done independently. It is listed on their school schedules for a specific time and is required to be completed just like every other school subject. (So if it's not completed during school time, it has to be done before they get free time.) Our piano is in the basement so I can hear them practicing. They know to play each new song 5 times, and then pick 2 older songs to play for fun.

[amsunshine]

We are just finishing up our first year of piano lessons (dds 6 and 7.5). We use Pianimals, which they love -- and do one weekly lesson and practice daily for about 15-20 mins. I don't always sit in on every practice, but I'm usually at least in an adjoining room where I can hear and can listen for mistakes. Lessons or practice are always done in the mornings. It's worked well for us this way so far.