We are often asked by teachers for assistance in helping piano parents understand the importance of home practice.
But the thing is… most of them already know that practice is important! Ask any piano parent if they think their child should practice the piano at home and I’m betting they will say “Yes.”
So, it’s not so much about helping parents understand the importance of practice as it is helping parents understand piano practice itself.
Piano practice can be a mystery to parents who have never themselves played an instrument.
Soccer practice? Pretty straight-forward… drop your children off at the field, cheer from the sidelines and when a great pass is made or a goal is scored, it’s obvious that they’re doing well. Dance practice? Again… drop your children off at the studio, peek through the viewing window and if they’re in synch with the rest of the class, it’s obvious that they’re probably doing well.
But piano practice? Well that’s a different beast all together! Piano practice drop-off just doesn’t exist.
What Parents Need To Know About Piano Practice
Today we’re hoping to take the mystery out of piano practice for parents. Feel free to share this post; use snippets of the content in your newsletter, send it home as a hand-out (just please cite TeachPianoToday) and spread the knowledge that parents are a major part of making home practice effective.
From here on out I’m going to switch gears and write the post as if I were writing to a piano parent.
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 the piano, 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 piano 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 – Piano 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 the piano three times a week!
Short, focused and regular visits to the piano 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 on the bench… eventually reaching that 30 minute mark.
Setting a regular time of day when piano practice happens “no matter what” will ensure a daily practice routine is easy for your children to maintain.
3. Your children need lots of encouragement – Learning to read music and play the piano 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 a home instrument that is enjoyable to play – Much of the pleasure from playing the piano 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 piano (don’t worry, there are many great and affordable options) that will give your children the tool they need to truly experience piano 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 piano lessons. Be sure to communicate often with your children’s piano 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 a Piano Parent…
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 a “piano parent” far outweighs the required extra efforts; and this is, by far, the most important thing that piano teachers want parents to know about piano practice.
The Method Book That Makes It Easy For Piano Parents To Be Involved
A major hurdle for piano parents to get over when asking them to be invovled in home practice is their perception that they “don’t know how to help”. WunderKeys method books were created to make it easy for piano parent to help (no matter what their musical experience). With clear instructions, helpful illustrations and a playful approach, WunderKeys takes the guess work out of helping their child at home. Find out more at www.wunderkeys.com.
Benita says
Ah!! I could have used this yesterday haha! I spent my day yesterday writing a little letter to send home to music parents about the importance of being involved and home practice and coming to lessons. Was a huge job to get off my list. This is PERFECT what you wrote. I’ll remember this for next time!
Andrea says
We were on the same wavelength… just one day apart Benita! 🙂
Frances says
Great read and advice! I’m in my first year of teaching and your idea of writing some letter or something to the effect has just become apparent to me as well. Great 🙂 It’s a constant learning curve!
Maryann says
This is a wonderful way to follow up after sending the email about the new semester of lessons about to begin!
Thank you for all of your inspiring words! I will definitely site your Teach Piano Today website with the post.
Andrea says
Thanks Maryann – hopefully it’s helpful to you 🙂
May Laing says
Fantastic, I was asked this very thing today and was able to share the information! Thank you for putting it together so clearly!
Andrea says
I just love it when there is serendipitous timing May! 🙂
Emily says
This is so perfect. I’m going to keep this in my file to give out to all new students. And I’m going to share with all my current piano families. (All properly cited of course!) thanks for this post
Jan says
One thing I constantly stress to parents and students- even 10 minutes of daily (or at minimum 5-6 days a week) practice is better than an hour or more the day of a lesson. We are not only learning new concepts but we are building “muscle memory” and that is developed through consistent and not sporadic practice. I find that most of the struggle is getting a student on the bench. If they commit to 10 minutes of practice, once there, most will stay longer. Additionally, the most productive practice is immediately following a lesson. Just 10 minutes at home on the bench immediately following a lesson can make a huge difference in retention and setting the stage for a successful practice week.
N says
As a new teacher, this is just what I needed!
Thank-you Andrea and Trevor for your posts and sharing all of your wisdom.
Grace Dobson says
Excellent article, I am planning to use this right away! If you care to correct it, there is a typo in #3, it says “listen to your them play.” Thanks again!
Debbie says
Love the post as well as all the comments. Wonderful suggestions! This list is worded so perfectly, I can hardly wait to use it!!
Trevor says
Hi Debbie – fantastic! So glad you’ll be able to use it 🙂
Liz says
My mother could have used this article when I was a child taking lessons. She didn’t make it a pleasure to practice because she criticized me continuously and complained to my teacher about how I didn’t want to practice. Now, as an adult, I’m taking lessons for me, not anyone else. I play for my own enjoyment and if I mess up, I just start over. It’s much more fun now.
christina puhacz says
This is such an excellent article! I shared it on facebook with my piano parents who are on facebook.
Hope says
Thank you Andrea! This is wonderful! I have sent this to my parents.
Ellen DuBois says
I love this! I’d love to share your article on my blog with credit to you. If that’s okay, please let me know at your convenience. Great and helpful content!
Andrea says
Hi Ellen – absolutely! Thanks for asking 🙂