As many of you already know, Andrea and I are the (very) proud parents of two wonderful girls, Lexi and Halle. While Halle still sports her pudgy toddler cheeks, I worry that Lexi has moved beyond being my “little girl”.
Even though she just started Grade 2, I feel like Lexi’s impending teenage years are hurtling at us like a speeding train. And it scares me… and it worries me… and it keeps me up too many nights.
I have no idea how to deal with a teenager. I have no idea what to be prepared for. All I do know, is that Andrea and I can simply try our best to raise well-bonded and well-adjusted kids (we also have a backup plan that involves a sailboat and several years at sea… just have to learn to sail first).
So, what is our plan for raising well-adjusted and well-bonded kids? Keep reading…
‘Plan A’ Has 2 Parts And Looks Like This…
The first part involves weekly date nights with each of our girls… separately. Because Andrea and I work from home, we are fortunate to spend A LOT of time together as a family, but rarely do we get to spend one-on-one “Dad and Lexi” time or “Mom and Halle” time.
The second part, and the part most relevant to you as a piano teacher, is family music making. Because research shows that family music making strengthens parent-child bonds and because our girls (okay… and me too) get giddy when the mic comes out, family music making in our house is non-negotiable. We can forget to do dishes, and forget to tidy the garage but we will never forget to make music together.
We decided that if we’re going to be advocating Family Music Nights… then we’d better be willing to share our own…(gulp!) So, we filmed our last “jam session” which made the girls (okay… and me too) quite giddy. The result (minus a couple of really chaotic group numbers) is below…
After the video keep reading for some awesome tips to help your piano families make music a priority in their homes.
Family Music Making in Your Studio
Your piano families need to know that family music making is non-negotiable and that being a “not-so-musical” parent does not mean that family music making is a “no-go”
Below is an awesome list of articles we’ve written to help piano teachers help their piano families make music a priority…
1. 15 Ways To Fill Your Child’s Practice Tank
2. Your Not-So-Musical Piano Parents Need This Piano Practice Cheat Sheet
3. How To Become The Perfect Piano Parent
4. Making Music A Priority – 10 Things To Share With Your Piano Studio Parents
5. Shout This From The Kitchen And Help Your Child Practice Better
6. A Shareable – How Can I Help My Child Be Successful In Piano Lessons
Alexandra Weiss Toronto Piano Teacher says
Hi Andrea:
in which level of Piano Adventures is your 7-year-old daughter? How long is her weekly piano lesson? How much does she practice daily?
Andrea says
Hi Alexandra – she’s in Level 1 of Piano Adventures. I teach her myself so her weekly lessons/practice is ongoing and daily as we do a combined lesson/practice together.
Leia says
This video was just a delight to watch! Thanks for letting us have a sneak peek into your Family Music Night… how lovely 🙂
Barbara says
Beautiful! Just beautiful. Can’t help but think how wonderful our world would be if every family did this once a week! Thanks for sharing it with us. Judging by their parents’ lovely voices, Lexi and Halle are destined to be great singers!
Stacy Renard says
I loved it! What beautiful voices all of you have. It was a great to see that:)
Cherilyn says
Love it!
Kathy O'Neill says
What a wonderful way to spend family time.
And what a talented family. Mom’s voice is exceptionally lovely and well-trained. I thought you were a piano teacher! Maybe you should add voice teaching to your music program.
Susan says
If you want some wise advice on raising children check out jw.org and scroll down to the bottom. There are resources for:
Couples and Parents
Teenagers
Children
You’ve given me some really good piano advice through your emails. Thanks
Milla says
What a talented family! And how time flies! I remember a video of the little one crawling and banging on a keyboard on the floor. What songs were you singing? Not being raised in the US, I couldn’t recognize them. Thank you for everything you do, I picked so much from your blog and other resources.
Andrea says
Hi Milla! My daughter Lexi was singing “Castle on a Cloud” from Les Miserables. Trevor was singing “Bring Him Home” from the same musical. Halle was singing “Do you Want to Build a Snowman” from her favourite movie Frozen and I was singing “Not About Angels” by Birdie. Yes… time does fly! We watched that keyboard video of Halle just the other day!
Jane says
What beautiful voices! Thank you for sharing with us. When I was young, we sang as a family and I love those memories. My sisters and I spent part of our afternoons practicing our instruments, and I’m so thankful for parents who recognized the importance of music in our lives! It lead me to my current career and I love it. 🙂
antonia says
great idea! I never thought of singing together this way! – what microphone do you use? is it connected to your computer?
thanks for sharing your family video! love it!
Andrea says
Hi Antonia! You should try it 🙂 It’s really fun. And the only people who may not think it’s fun is your neighbours… but we give our neighbours cookies frequently so it’s all good 🙂 We just have a regular old mic but it is hooked up to a really great amp.
Jennifer Foxx says
Absolutely love this! Thank you for giving us a sneak peak of your talented family! Loved it all!
Leanne Rendall says
That was brilliant! Frankly I wished you shared the chaotic group numbers as well. Since birth my kids, (now 16 and 14) have discovered from me that there is a song or at least a couple of lines of a song related to every situation. It is one of my great joys now to hear my not so musical husband and 14 year old daughter break into a duet while making breakfast or working on some homework together. Just precious!
Bradley Sowash says
Reminds me of Friday nights in our house when I was a kid growing up only the emphasis was instrumental. Mom would thump out a boom chick on the piano while Dad and us three boys employed old brass instruments that sitting around and some cheap bongo drums. “Oh When the Saints Go Marching In” was our favorite back then. Children who grow up in musical household are certainly blessed.
Sonja Endreson says
Fabulous idea!! Very talented family & thank you for sharing. We also enjoyed our time together with our 4 boys & gathering around the piano & uke, banjo, guitars, etc. Never a dull moment but they were treasured moments! Looking forward to musical times with our 2 young grandsons now. I was wondering if you could share with me what kind of Mic & sound system you use? I run a music studio out of my home & looking for a mic/pa system that would work in a smaller studio for vocal students to use. Any suggestions? I don’t want junk but can’t spend a fortune either. Thanks so much!!