Trevor and I get a ton of emails from piano teachers about teen retention; how can I keep my teens engaged, how can I keep my teens motivated, how can I keep my teens practicing… and how can I stop my teens from quitting?!
I’ve always found it to be such a travesty when experienced teens quit piano; they’ve invested so much time and effort and heart into the piano for so many years… and then one moody “nah”, when asked if they want to continue lessons… and poof! they’re gone.
This hurts my heart. Because while all students NEED music, teens, perhaps, need it a little bit more.
Over the years of teaching many, many teenage piano students – some who continued on in music, some who quit, some who floundered, some who stuck with it begrudgingly, some who now teach piano themselves… I’ve found that there are seven habits, that can make a huge difference to the piano lesson experience through the teenage years.
We’re sharing these seven habits today so you can keep the teens on your bench happily engaged with music!
Seven Habits of Successful Teenage Piano Students
1. Honesty – This is a two way street and it includes everything from teens being honest about how much practice did or didn’t happen to whether or not they absolutely hate the piece that’s been selected for them.
My teens know they can come in and say “I didn’t even open a book this week” without feeling as though they have to make excuses or feel guilty. And I know I can say “Yes, that piece is great, but you’re not quite ready for it.” without feeling as though I’m going to hurt their feelings or discourage them.
Why is honesty so important? Because it keeps everyone on the same page. I know exactly what my teens are thinking and they can usually read my mind too. Our goals then become aligned, realistic and free from anything that could cause frustration.
2. A Say In What They Play – Finding a true balance between what you’d like your teens to play versus what they would like to play is key to a teenagers long-term enjoyment of piano lessons.
Many teachers, worried about teen retention, assume that piano lessons should be all about pop music all of the time. But this is certainly not the case!
For teens to feel as though they are progressing and becoming more proficient at the piano, they need to be challenged. And spreading their wings when it comes to musical tastes and experiences is the challenge they need. However, this challenge doesn’t always have to come from you! Encourage your teens to seek out material that they find interesting and motivating… and that is beyond the typical “Top 40”.
3. Collaboration– Teens are motivated by relationships with their peers. Teen students who stick with piano lessons long-term have typically found a way to also turn their piano proficiency into a social outlet.
Being a part of a school’s jazz band, accompanying the high school musical, playing in a small band of friends, accompanying singers at the school talent show, and doing duets with same-level friends are all activities that make the piano an indispensable part of teenage life (and that make practice something that is not a chore). These are also activities that make teens’ piano skills immediately applicable and relevant… meaning they will be more invested in practice and more committed to lessons in order to keep collaborating with their friends.
October’s Piano Book of The Month from PianoBookClub is the ultimate teen collaboration book. Vamp Battles: where’d duets and duels collide. The 7 dramatic duets in Vamp Battles provide the music you need to engage your teens like never before. Use them as teacher/student duets for in-lesson collaboration and enjoyment, or pair up two of your teenage students and take them to the stage for a unique performance that’s sure to bring the house down!
4. An Eye on The Prize – I make a point of finding something that my teens can be working towards that makes their piano lessons immediately applicable.
Are they interested in making money in the summer playing for weddings? Do they want to audition at their university? Do they have dreams of teaching piano themselves? Do they want to play in their church? Do they have a youtube channel where they share their original compositions or covers of favorite songs?
Having a very real reason for taking piano lessons is important. Sometimes piano students come up with these goals on their own, but often they need a little nudge… and it’s often up to me to provide that inspiration.
5. Music In Their Ears – Successful teenage piano students are piano students who are always listening to music… a fairly easy task these days with ever-present iPods and iPhones.
However, it is important to encourage teens to listen to a wide variety of music, instead of simply their typical listening tastes. And… as their piano teacher make sure you are also always listening to music too! Be “in the know” about the latest youtube piano-playing sensations, what songs are on the charts, what genre of music is trending… and the two of you can really get into some motivating projects.
Why is listening to music so important? It helps your teen make repertoire selections that mean something to them, it provides exposure to a wide variety of styles, and it puts musical ideas and unique sounds in their ears that help with creativity and expression. Plus.. the more they listen to music, the more they want to make music!
6. Creativity – Teenage piano students who have found “freedom on the keys” are the students that you never have to ask to practice. In fact, they just can’t stop!
Encourage composing, improv, and just plain old “noodling” on the keys. Having them “play easy stuff for enjoyment” on the piano is also really important. In fact, I often will write PES on my students’ weekly assignment page (“Play Easy Stuff”). It’s an invitation to just sit at the piano and enjoy playing without any mental challenge involved. After all, any time spent on the piano bench is a good thing.
7. A Challenge – I used to be concerned that I would lose my teen students if I pushed them too hard, or if I gave them music that was challenging and required a lot of work… or if I insisted on something being perfected to performance standards.
I was worried that, being teenagers, they wouldn’t want to do any of these things and would quit. I’ve learned now that this is far from the truth. In fact, if your teen students are given a challenge, and if you show them that you believe they are completely capable of meeting that challenge, then you actually increase their commitment to the piano (not decrease it as I was afraid would happen).
Giving teens accessible music so they don’t have to work too hard actually does the opposite of what many assume will be achieved. Instead, inspire teens with great music, empower them with the skills they need to make it happen and be their “Number One Cheerleader” along the way.
What Works For Your Teens?…
Wouldn’t the world be a lovely place if every teenager who had quit piano had instead continued on to play through their entire life… if every child that started piano lessons still had the piano as a part of their daily lives?
Obviously this is not realistic, but it is absolutely my goal when working with my teenage students. If my teens are still playing piano when they’re 60, 70, 80+… then I believe I’ve done something truly meaningful.
We want to hear from you? What works for you with your teenage students? If you’re rockin’ the teen retention share your tips in the comments below.
Sue says
October 14, 2015 at 6:01 amYour book called The Silver Screen has done wonders for my teen students. Many thanks!
Andrea says
October 14, 2015 at 8:16 amHi Sue! Wonderful to hear 🙂 Yes, sometimes all it takes is a book or piece they are really keen on and you’ve hooked them!
Carmen says
October 14, 2015 at 9:12 amYes, Andrea, thank you! It also has been an incredible resource for my teen students. Wolf, Shelter and Outer Space will be played in this weekend’s recital :-).
Carmen says
October 14, 2015 at 9:13 amsorry, meant Open Spaces :-).
Andrea says
October 14, 2015 at 9:32 amSo happy to hear it Carmen – this was one of my favorite books to write. I’d love to see a video if you think of it! Good luck at your recital 🙂
Laura says
October 15, 2015 at 10:40 amHow can I find Wolf or Open Spaces? I don’t see them in the store?
Thank you!
Andrea says
October 15, 2015 at 11:00 amHi Laura – these were from the PianoBookClub book “The Silver Screen Playbook” which was made available as a part of PianoBookClub.com. If you become a member we send you a new book every month of 7-9 supplementary repertoire pieces (like the Vamp Battles book) in a variety of levels, themes and educational concepts for $8 with unlimited printing for your studio. As a member you would also have the option of purchasing re-released books each month. The Silver Screen Playbook will be a future re-release to PBC members. Hope this helps 🙂
SonicPiano says
October 15, 2015 at 2:55 amSame here. Wolf has been a monster hit among my older students and will also be played at our recital this year.
Deb says
October 14, 2015 at 6:11 amAgree 100% about a lifetime of music being the goal!
Andrea says
October 14, 2015 at 8:16 amHere here Deb! 🙂
Mary Gray says
October 14, 2015 at 6:11 amAll true! I’ve been frustrated with teens who are at the early to late beginner level, and have found Tim Topham has some wonderful resources for improv. IF teens have had a late start, or have simply moved slowly through the method books.. the levels PA 2A, 2B, 3A…. they are really a special challenge.
Jamie says
October 14, 2015 at 6:14 amI have also found that being flexible in your schedule helps retain teenagers. Once they hit high school there is a whole new world of extra-curricular events. So, I offer before school lessons and I am willing to move lessons (around a certain amount) to get their lesson in for the week.
Andrea says
October 14, 2015 at 8:17 amHi Jamie – certainly a great point and wonderful if you are able to do that for them!
Sue says
October 14, 2015 at 8:06 amMy Mom is the perfect example of “lifetime playing” — she will be 85 soon, still plays beautifully, and enjoys 4 – 5 hours a day of playing! My Dad passed on 14 years ago, and she is not super social … her joy in playing piano has been a godsend. Until a year ago she was a regular church musician, and she still joins me in doing that!
Andrea says
October 14, 2015 at 9:03 amLove to hear this Sue – isn’t this what we all hope for our students? 🙂
Marie says
October 14, 2015 at 8:54 amI second your comment #3 about collaboration. My teens still meet monthly for an hour group class of ensemble and theory game (thanks TPT game club!) playing with their friends. They’ve grown up together, consider this their “piano team” and don’t want to lose these associations!
Andrea says
October 14, 2015 at 9:01 amVery cool Marie! I love the monthly meet-up idea (and happy to hear the PianoGameClub games are making this easy for you!) Having those strong connections are really powerful – I’m sure they look forward to their time with their friends 🙂
Dr Saylor says
October 14, 2015 at 8:59 amMy teen students LOVED the Silver Screen Playbook! I think they felt like they were playing movie or pop songs their friends would recognize. I also use a few free websites with video game music or old radio tunes they know – The Beatles, for example. I am able to print or read music right from the Internet. The kids love learning it.
Andrea says
October 14, 2015 at 9:02 amHappy to hear the Silver Screen Playbook was a hit! 🙂 The power of one piece or one book is very real when it comes to teen motivation – you’re very right! Thanks for sharing Mary Anne.
Andrea says
October 14, 2015 at 9:04 amPS – Mary Ann – I see you will receive your October PianoBookClub.com book on October 16th – if they liked the Silver Screen they’re going to love this month’s book!
Paula C says
October 14, 2015 at 12:00 pmI love teaching teens and the majority of my studio is teenagers or pre-teens. I let one them choose her foundational piano book – from a variety including Faber’s Accelerated, RCM, etc, and she chose the one she liked. Then, she added all the music she finds and downloads to her iPad and brings it with copies for me (in case I had never heard it like the music for Dr. Who). She is involved in many things like musical theatre, so I give her a lot of choice to make her own musical decisions but I keep her progressing in a foundational method as well. I also pick and choose her theory instead of working from beginning to end in a theory book.
Colette says
October 15, 2015 at 6:51 amI love teaching teens as well. I also have 3 teens of my own who take lessons from another teacher (just works better). Like you said, I try to give my teens a wide variety of styles from reading off lead and chord sheets for church and other pop music to challenging pieces as well. As a mother of teens I also have empathy for how busy these kids are and the demands they have in school. So, I take those things into consideration. If they have a lot on their plate and seem a little stressed, we play easy stuff or work on chords. Most importantly, like you said, we are honest with each other which makes a world of difference! I’ve even had a teen come to lessons and say, “Can we just talk?” (as they said this through teary eyes). The answer is of course, yes. (We did get a little playing time in too) The more they trust you, the more you get out of them. 🙂 LOVE TEENS!
Lisa says
October 15, 2015 at 7:24 pmI have found my teens enjoy helping younger students (often their younger siblings who are also taking lessons) whether in duets, helping them with my online training tools or being assigned to encourage a little buddy. They also enjoy being recorded to show proper hand position, scales, etc for me to show the younger students. Basically, they like the opportunity to be in charge and I’m happy to accommodate. Though I tell them if they keep track of the number of times they play the accompaniment (like for the Halloween Improv activity) with a younger sibling I will award them extra points they rarely keep track because it ends up being so much fun.
Amy Hall says
September 12, 2016 at 7:32 pmLove these ideas of doing a music buddy! Little ones have reading buddies at school – how fun to have piano buddies in my music studio!!
Andrea says
September 12, 2016 at 9:03 pmSuch a great community builder Amy 🙂 I’ve watched this “magic” in my daughter’s dance class and it’s huge part of why she feels so connected to that studio.
Brecklyn says
November 5, 2015 at 8:25 amThis is exactly what I needed today! Thank you. I am glad that my teenage students feel comfortable enough with me to tell me that they didn’t touch their violin for a week. It’s more difficult for me to be honest and say, we can’t move on until at least the notes and rhythms are there, but if I don’t, that’s when they start to slip away. Honest communication both ways is key. My teenage students also love to play duets with me. We did a whole recital of just duets with each student and me in October, and everyone loved it.
Lisa Kempe says
October 11, 2019 at 2:44 pmThanks for these wonderful tips!
I have found teens love creating medleys from well-loved repertoire…5-7 pieces can be used with their best bits. It is lots of fun creating bridges between the pieces using improvisation. Adding glissandos,chromaticism, arpeggios and chord progressions becomes such a learning tool for key structures and general improvisation. And it is a lot of fun.
Students can’t wait to play it for recital.
Very positive use of loved repertoire they don’t want to forget!
Andrea says
October 14, 2019 at 1:09 pmGreat tip!!