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To Save My Sanity, I Started Structuring My Piano Lessons Like This…

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“How should I structure my piano lessons?”

This is one of the most common questions we are asked. And the truth is… there is no single right approach to lesson structure.

But there is a single wrong approach and I call it the “Tidy Little Boxes” approach; where the different components of a lesson are assigned strict “minutes” that MUST be adhered to at all costs. Something that looks like this (and never changes)…

  • Warm-ups (3 minutes)
  • Technical Work (3 minutes)
  • Ear training (4 minutes)
  • Repertoire work (10 minutes)
  • Composing/Improv (5 minutes)
  • Piano games (5 minutes)

Now you might be thinking, “Hey, that schedule doesn’t look so bad.” And you’re right. It isn’t a bad schedule… if the assigned components and minutes are simply a guide. But for many teachers, the schedule above is not just a guide; it’s a checklist of ordered things that they feel must be accomplished each and every lesson. And that’s where things can become problematic.

Forcing yourself to stick to a tidy schedule at all costs will stress you and your piano students out. So, if you happen to fall into this “stressed out” category (which is where I used to hang my hat!), try structuring your piano lessons like this instead…

Here are 4 ways to correctly structure a piano lesson

1. Let Lesson Structure Change With the Seasons

I have many things I want to accomplish in any one piano lesson. But certain things during certain times of the year take precedence over all others. For example, at the beginning of the school year, the “technical block of time” gets extra attention. Why? Because students need a solid technical grounding in order to be able to practice independently at home; at the start of the year I need home practice to be as free from frustration as possible.

Similarly, during Christmas and spring recital seasons, the time I devote to repertoire work dwarfs other activities… while piano games take the lead when students return to lessons in January and need a boost of fun.

2. Let Lesson Structure Change With Student Personality

There isn’t a lesson structure in the world that is the perfect fit for every student. Some piano students will simply need to play piano games for 10 minutes… and that’s okay. Others will be completely obsessed with their repertoire and may want to spend 23 minutes playing their piece… and that’s okay too. Don’t try to fit piano students into those “tidy little boxes” or you’ll miss the chance to capitalize on their interests and motivations.

3. Let Lesson Structure Change With Student Excitement Levels

I now never abandon a lesson activity just to fit in another lesson activity. If I have a student that is having a blast with an ear training game, is completely engaged, is giggling and is obviously learning… I let that thing ride. Now, of course, I won’t play an ear training game for the entire lesson, but if things are going really well… I’m not slamming that door in favor of something I feel we “must” do. The other lesson activities can wait… until later in the lesson… or until next week if they have to.

4. Let Lesson Structure Change When Things Crash and Burn

As you’ve probably guessed from reading our blog, I like to experiment with a whole whack of lesson activities. Some things go really well… and some things absolutely bomb. And when things bomb, I cut bait… fast. If something is not working, or if my student is feeling frustrated, I’m quick to switch my approach and/or focus to avoid dragging it out for the sake of a “tidy little five minute block”.

This Activity Gets Extra Lesson Time In February…

Now that students are back into the swing of lessons, and with recitals still a ways away, I love using February and early March to steal time away from other activities to focus on composing and improvisation. This mid-year injection of creativity and freedom does wonders for practice motivation and “warm fuzzies” towards piano at a “low” time of year.

Looking for music that helps you to be flexible? PianoBookClub.com allows you to rapidly build up an amazing library of just the right piece for every student. Find out more here.

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30 Responses to To Save My Sanity, I Started Structuring My Piano Lessons Like This…

  1. With the exception of scheduling lessons, time management within a lesson is my biggest challenge. I have so many great materials and activities and truly believe that a well rounded background is a must. Having said that, I only see the students once a week – and sometimes not even that if there is a holiday, illness, inclement weather, etc. If they come to lessons unpracticed, I find that the entire lesson is used practicing pieces. This is so frustrating, but necessary. These children are enrolled in festivals and will be playing in the recital. I have many students who do the bulk of their practicing during the lesson. I have a very open communication with parents and send home constant reminders and the cheat sheets to help them help their children. I have policies and rules. I have games and incentives and a million other little things I do to encourage home practice, many of them I have obtained from you (THANK YOU!!!!). Yet, still, home practice remains my biggest challenge, which then translates to an entire lesson of practice. I incorporate as much as I can of the other activities within practicing of repertoire, but still, this is not an ideal situation. Unfortunately, it is I home practice or the lack thereof that dictates my lessons, more than planning on my part.

    Reply

    • I am in the same boat as you, Maria!
      BIGGEST frustration and challenge for me as well right now. Never know if it’s me not equipping them enough at lessons with how and what to practice at home OR if it’s on their part–lack of practice and committing to it daily. It’s mostly my older students who are challenged with their load at school. Week after week they come not having practiced.
      The joys of being a teacher! You’re always thinking.

      Reply

    • I know it sounds crazy, but this why I teach small groups. We have a whole hour every week and the kids learn so much from each other. The parents save a little money, I earn more, and the students are 100% engaged-everybody wins! Works great with teens too.

      Reply

      • Hi Danielle, I would love to know more about how you structure the group lessons with teens. I teach group percussion lessons with teens a few times a year and like to focus on theory, listening, improvisation, etc. The challenge for me with this age group is finding appropriate activities for their age/interest. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance for any ideas you have!

        Reply

      • Hi Danielle,
        I have tried group lessons but especially in the beginning stages there is at least one student who takes longer to grasp concepts or who constantly misbehaves. I found that I wasn’t making much progress because I was either talking to the trouble maker or re-explaining things to those who needed it. Those who were able to move on couldn’t because of the problems I mentioned before and so I was loosing students that would have made great progress in private lessons. They were quitting because of boredom or leaving for other teachers because their parents ( rightfully so) didn’t want to pay for all my time to go to certain students and very little time to their kids. How do you sucessfully teach group lessons?

        Reply

    • Maria, this sounds a lot like my situation, too. I do all the little things to liven up the lessons, but the lessons aren’t the problem. I have had most of my students for many years and they are pretty “used to me.” They are older and many are stressed out about schoolwork and the time it takes up. Also time with other activities in their lives or their siblings lives that they must attend. When I talk to my students, who are sometimes “brutally” honest with me…haha…they say they WANT to practice, but there is so little time. They used to practice much more when they were younger. They still progress, but not like they could.
      As for Andrea’s advice, I agree whole-heartedly about being flexible as to what is important at that particular lesson. But dang, that half-hour goes by fast! Even my 45 min. lessons fly by!

      Reply

  2. This is so true and insightful! Being a good teacher is a lot about adapting, reading a situation, and responding to students in real time. Thank you for explaining this all so succinctly. Also, your monthly games are “game changers” for me! They make it easy to break away when a frustrated student needs a change of pace.

    Reply

    • Hi Bri – you’re absolutely right! Being able to “read a situation” as you say and predict how things are going to progress is key. So happy to hear the PianoGameClub games are useful in your studio 🙂

      Reply

  3. When you sent out a Wunderkeys post that made a list of activities that could be printed and used during lesson, I used that idea for my other piano students. Having a list prevents me from saying to myself that I had meant to do something and forgot. Now I have regular things I do, but am still flexible and feeling much better about the lessons. Thanks!

    Reply

    • Hi Jonella – there is also a “non WunderKeys specific” printable visual calendar that’s a freebie for new subscribers. Email me if you’d like it 🙂

      Reply

      • I would definitely appreciate receiving the WunderKeys & non-W.K.’s calendars.

        Thanks again for all you do in sharing your wonderful ideas and music. Am soo excited about the trading cards. Just printed mine off, double-sided on photo paper and have them cut & ready to use at my next Piano Play Party….Yikes! that is this Friday!

        Reply

  4. I believe that anyone’s biggest frustration is when the students come to the lessons and have not practiced. One thing I deal with is students who can’t seem to keep still. My routine has always been to have my student do an warm up by playing the scales, then playing the piece that they were assigned to play, followed by technical work and music theory. I use a computer program to let them practice ear training. Then seek their inputs on the lesson and any problems they are having with understanding the assignments.

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  5. This week, I had a student skip class because he would rather come for a music lesson ! Sports were being pushed so hard that he had no time for music.

    Reply

  6. For my younger students, I have a sticker program. Each time they come to a lesson with all of their books and are prepared they get a sticker on a sticker chart in their folder. Once they collect 6 stickers they get a prize–a good prize. My students really respond to this program.

    With my older students, I grade on preparation, technique, etc. They get a mid-term progress report and a certificate of achievement and report card at the end of the semester. They respond well to this.

    Neither method is fool-proof. Some younger students can go several lessons without stickers. That’s when we have a “conversation” with student and parent. Older students still resist preparation, and, if they don’t make the grade, they know they will not be recommended for the recital, although they may choose to perform anyway. Both programs, for the most part, help them and me achieve our goals.

    Thanks, Andrea, for the schedule. I will use it to freshen my predictable schedule.

    Reply

  7. One of the biggest changes I made this year (& has helped my sanity a lot) was to pre-teach main motifs before looking at the music. While I still have students who don’t practice, by breaking down the song into really small parts it has made it difficult for them to say they weren’t able to practice.
    Andrea, thank you for articulating the 4 ways we can save our sanity in lesson!

    Reply

  8. As several of you have already mentioned, I also find that too many of my students have not practiced carefully at home and therefore we need to go over the same things every week. I have tried so many different things to encourage parents to be aware of the student’s practices, and to pay attention to the child’s progress or lack of progress, etc. I also reward students who are well-prepared, but I wish I could somehow motivate ALL students to practice and enjoy the progress they can be making. I realize that often parents are too busy to deal with their child’s practice and progress, and children themselves are involved in too many activities outside of school and thereby losing out on practice time. How can these situations be changed?? I often am tempted to tell the non-practicing students they can no longer be part of my studio. Have some of you teachers out there done this? I am interested to know how this approach works…

    Reply

  10. I relate to these comments as well. I also find it a bit stressful when I introduce a new piece to a student and sometimes there’s a hiccup midway. The student just can’t seem to get past a certain passage, rhythm, etc. in the piece and we end up basically spending most of the lesson time on just a small fragment of a piece because they are either not entirely engaged, tired, or just really struggling with a new rhythm, etc. Then I look up and notice the lesson has ended and I really haven’t been able to give much for the student to practice. I’d like to hear how some other teachers handle these types of situations.

    Reply

  11. Thanks for the post and the comments — lots of good ideas and food for thought. When I’m flexible in what is going to be covered during the lesson, and attentive to the student’s interest (or lack of) at the moment, and work from there, the lesson seems more productive. I totally agree that a structure for the lesson is a guide, and not necessarily to be followed verbatim.

    Reply

  12. “non WunderKeys specific” printable visual calendar that’s a freebie for new subscribers
    This sounds like it would be helpful. Don’t think I got this. May I have it?????

    Reply

  14. I am also frustrated when students don’t follow through with carefully structured memory and practice helps given at the lesson. This week, I asked a student to call me by Thursday, and report whether his memory assignment was complete. He did it!
    Andrea referred to a “non WunderKeys specific” printable visual calendar that’s a freebie for new subscribers. I don’t think I received it. It sounds valuable. Would you mind (re)sending it to me? Thank you.

    Reply

  15. Please send me the “non WunderKeys specific” printable visual calendar–it sounds like a real asset!

    Reply

  16. Every now and then as a music teacher, especially with private students (I teach many group classes for beginner to early intermediate and absolutely LOVE it!) I find that we need to just ‘talk’. Sometimes it is directly related to a musical concept although that may be a bit off the mark, but it often relates more to just life in general. The first couple of times that this happened, I felt like “oh my, I shouldn’t do this”…but then I realized that these occasional conversations are extremely important-and that as a music student in my preteen and teenage and university years I did this ALL the time with my teachers and that THAT is a large part of what helped me grow. Back in the fall, right after Paris, I ended up spending a good ten minutes talking with my almost-twelve year old student and watching the video of the piano-guy going around Paris playing “Imagine”. I was 11 when 9/11 happened, and those late preteen/early teenage times can be confusing, especially when the world feels scary. Sometimes I talk about sibling relationships with my 9 year old student, who is also the little sister in the family with an older sibling studying piano ahead (my experience growing up!). Being just 25, although this is my sixth year of teaching, it took a little while to realize that I was an adult support for my students. It’s both a wonderful and scary position to be in. I can only hope that I can do as good a job as some of my teachers did for me.

    Reply

  17. Would so appreciate receiving the “wunderkeys” calendars.
    I teach fewer students than most, therefore, I am able to have only hour-long lessons. This allows time for studying at least 4-5 of each of the 7 areas I cover, in most lessons. (Technique, method, ear training, sight reading, vocabulary, music history and music appreciation.).
    One of the greatest “saves” I have found for a “less than excited” student was when I talked with his mother and she told me he is enamored with “Skyrim” (a video game, I think). She said she found a version on YouTube by the London Philharmonic and he plays it over and over. (My student is 8 and has studied with me for 6 months). I wrote out the theme in the right hand, giving him a single note bass, per measure, and he will hardly stop working on it. I have a 6 year old girl whose mother is currently expecting, so I printed a copy of Braham’s Lullaby and asked her if she would like to learn that for a present for the new baby. Same result. (She has been with me 8 months). Her Mommy says she is up “practicing at 8:00 on Saturdays. I believe the key (as has so often been pointed out on this website) is music that meets their interests. I am able to incorporate so many aspects around their one “favorite” number! I print pictures to color of the composers, we “analyze” the number with the terrific tools I receive from Andrea and Trevor, we identify intervals within the pieces by listening with eyes closed, etc. etc. Works well with my teens also, jazz for boys, simple “drama” for girls (lots of movement as repeated arpeggios, etc,) Can’t begin to say how much I appreciate this website! It is wonderful! Forgive my verbosity!

    Reply

  18. This is a good post. Thank you for reminding us to be flexible with what we cover in lessons.

    I have found a couple of things that help with students who aren’t practicing as much as needed. These things have made a huge difference in my student’s progress.
    1. I use “one note” on my iPad to record lesson assignments and practice steps for my students. My instructions and expectations are detailed. I email this home to parents and students (if old enough and have their own email) Piano parents appreciate knowing exactly what I expect of their child.
    2. I break down Music and technique practice steps into small chunks. For instance, the instruction “LEARN m. 8-16” means, “tap the rhythm and count out loud 3 times correct, followed by hands apart and hands together practice 3 times correct.”
    What this does for the student is give them a small step they can do if they only have 5 free minutes to practice. They still accomplish something contructive that helps their piece.
    3. I engage the parents help when needed. I may add onto the parent’s email, “Johnny did some really good work on the B section of Minuet in G major. He’s playing the LH really well now. Please encourage him to keep working on it and PLAY IT FOR YOU HALFWAY THROUGH THE WEEK.”
    4. Choose interesting repertoire. Celebrate even the smallest progress. Set reasonable (small) goals for the students struggling to practice. If they can meet the small goals easily, they are likely to practice a little more the next week.
    5. Give them something to practice for. Some students won’t practice unless there’s a performance coming. You can organize small performances any time of year, in addition to your regular recital. Nursing homes, retirement homes, small group lessons, family dinners with grandparents, and school or church functions can provide performance opportunities.
    6. Stay positive and flexible. Even if you only cover one repertoire piece during the lesson, but the student had fun and enjoyed making music during the lesson and the parents are happy – you have accomplished something good. The student feels positive about music and piano and will likely practice more when circumstances in their life change.

    Reply

  19. Thank you Andrea, for this wonderful blog! I look forward to reading more of your messages! Lots of wisdom here.

    I wanted to say that when kids are quite universally overwhelmed with too many activities to keep up with practicing, I suggest that on high-intensity days the wee ones only play five minutes, and the older ones just ten. Do a little bit, but do the work, I tell them. I figure that this actually ends up turning into double or triple the amount of time, but to trick the brain into thinking it is really easy, is key and takes the stress off. Then they make progress.

    I check their practice/progress log at every lesson, they are required to show it to me every time.
    I used to give prizes for practicing seven days per week, but then found that those kids who do that are motivated and those who are not motivated, are doing it for the prize instead of the music. I discontinued the practice, but lavish the praise to let them know I am very pleased with daily, steady practicing. I also stress to the parents that this gets them into good habits that help them life-long, with anything they ever do. This motivates the parents to give them the reminder to practice, where it is necessary.

    I also find that literature is key. I play several pieces for them with the learning content that I want for them, and they choose their favorite. To inspire is key. This is also where I find that a big motivator is interpretation, phrasing and harmonies, these inspire the students to practice.

    If parents can afford to buy a really good acoustic instrument, I have stressed that a really high quality instrument inspires. I find this to be very true. Every single student who has a good instrument, in my experience, is excited to practice and dashes first thing in the day to the instrument, and doesn’t want to stop playing. But not all parents can afford this. I hate electronic instruments, sorry, but I do find the Roland keyboard is the best sounding of them. If they can’t afford a new one I recommend sources where they can buy them used. A good quality sound is key to fostering inspiration, which motivates practice, alongside discipline. I think both are needed.

    Another thing I stress is creating a full musical environment, of which lessons are merely a part. I have found time and again that when kids go to concerts, they are practicing the next day, even if they have had a temporary lull, the inspiration comes back immediately after going to a live concert. I email the parents about Concerts for Kids, and encourage lots of listening to recommended recordings, etc. I also think that families that sing together, play more. I recommend recordings that will get the families singing together.

    I loved what several of you posted about group lessons and routine performances, thank you for that! Great wisdom on this blog and I really appreciate reading it!
    Where I find it challenging is to fit everything into a half hour lesson for the wee ones. I don’t do half hour lessons for eight years old and up because I find I just can’t do a quality lesson in that time, the short lessons are best for the little ones whose attention spans are of necessity, short considering their little age. Even forty five minutes can be a challenge to fit in all categories, and for me to stress phrasing and harmonies is key along all the other categories. Challenges! Got solutions? I am all ears and very interested. Thank you all!
    Looking forward to subscribing and reading your messages Andrea! Thank you for doing this! Best wishes, Drina

    Reply

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