Last week my daughters brought home their Term 1 report cards. It was a shock to realize their assessments meant that the school year was already more than half over!
It was also a reminder to me that piano teachers should be doing mid-year assessments as well. If we want parents to keep sending their children back to our studios year after year, it is important that we keep them in the loop.
As piano teachers, it is our goal to keep kids in lessons. For this to happen, parents need to see how committed we are to their children. An important way to demonstrate this commitment is to use a report card to show parents that we genuinely care about the musical development of their kids.
If this sounds like a lot of work, don’t worry, it’s not. Piano report cards should be comment-based and anecdotal; no need to sweat over letter grades and tests 🙂
In today’s post, we’re going to provide you with ready-made report card comments that will allow you to churn out these mid-term assessments in no time at all.
Write Piano Report Cards In 6 Steps
When people hear the words, “Report Cards”, their minds immediately leap to letter grades. But piano report cards need not include letter grades. Letter grades can be vague and often carry negative connotations.
As a business owner, you do not want to assign your clients Cs and Ds. This would be really bad for business!
Comment-based report cards, on the other hand, are really good for business! They give you an opportunity to connect with parents, praise their children, and lay the groundwork for improving areas for improvement.
Below we are including comment templates for six categories of assessment that will help you quickly craft report cards for your students. Each category contains three comments to choose from: a comment for kids who need improvement, a comment for kids working “at level”, and a comment for kids who are exceeding expectations.
To complete a piano student report card in under 5 minutes, choose one comment from each category below, insert the student’s name, type it into an email (or put it on paper if you wish to be more formal) and press send.
Reading Music:
1. (Student’s Name) has worked very hard this term to improve her note reading. As she continues to practice this skill, her ability to name notes will improve and have a positive effect on her fluency. (Student’s Name) is gaining confidence when sight-reading and is learning to use cues in her music to decode notes that she doesn’t immediately recognize. We will continue to work on this ability in her lessons and with the materials I send home for practice.
2. (Student’s Name) has greatly improved her note reading this term. She quickly names notes without difficulty, uses cues in her music to decode notes that she doesn’t immediately recognize, and is improving her intervallic reading to aid in developing fluency. (Student’s Name) has gained a lot of confidence in her note-reading skills and really enjoys the note-reading activities we do in lessons.
3. (Student’s Name) has developed superb note-reading abilities this term. She is now able to approach her pieces with confidence and accuracy, and her sight-reading skills have really blossomed. As (Student’s Name) note reading skills have matured, she has found the confidence to explore new pieces with less assistance than previously required.
Practice Habits:
1. (Student’s Name) is finding ways to fit regular home practice time into his schedule. It is lovely to see how confident he is in lessons after a week when he has spent time at the piano at home. Thank you for your support in assisting him to create a practice routine; it makes such a difference to our lesson time when he is feeling prepared!
2. (Student’s Name) has settled into a regular practice routine at home and his progress has greatly improved because of this. He is regularly prepared for his lessons and is eager to show me what he has accomplished at home. (Student’s Name) has found effective ways of working through difficulties he encounters when practicing, and consistently uses effective strategies to manage his own learning.
3. (Student’s Name) consistently maintains a regular practice schedule and is enjoying steady progress as a result. He is always prepared for his lessons, uses effective strategies at home to work through difficulties, and often goes above and beyond expectations for his assigned tasks.
Musicality:
1. (Student’s Name) is developing a nice sense of musicality in her playing and often adds the “extras” that make her pieces pleasing to play and to listen to. She works hard to remember to include articulation, phrasing, and dynamics. We will continue to practice including these important aspects each time she plays through her pieces.
2. (Student’s Name) has developed a lovely sense of musicality in her playing. She includes articulation, phrasing, and dynamics each time she plays her pieces and has learned to “tell a story” with the creative choices she makes in each piece. She is interested in a wide variety of musical styles and approaches each one with careful attention to detail.
3. (Student’s Name) has developed a mature sense of musicality in her playing. She reliably includes articulation, phrasing, and dynamics every time she plays her pieces and effectively “tells a story” with the creative choices she makes. She has worked hard to explore a variety of musical styles and is able to adapt her approach to each; resulting in a captivating performance.
Rhythm:
1. (Student’s Name) has a good understanding of rhythmic note values and rest values and is working to incorporate this knowledge into each piece he encounters. He works hard to maintain a steady tempo each time he plays his pieces, and his rhythmic accuracy improves with every lesson. We will continue to use a variety of techniques in lesson time to continue the great gains he is making in this area.
2. (Student’s Name) has a good understanding of rhythmic note values and rest values and reliably incorporates this knowledge into each piece he encounters. He is able to maintain a steady tempo each time he plays his pieces and is rhythmically accurate. We are beginning to explore more complex rhythms and apply this knowledge to his repertoire.
3. (Student’s Name) has a superb understanding of rhythmic note values and rest values and reliably incorporates this knowledge into each piece he encounters with minimal assistance. He maintains a steady tempo each time he plays his pieces and is rhythmically accurate. He has recently begun learning repertoire with more complex rhythmic patterns and has grown quite confident in his abilities.
Piano Technique
1. (Student’s Name) is working hard to find a natural hand shape on the piano and has made great strides in developing finger strength. She is remembering to use the correct posture when playing the piano both in lessons and at home. We will continue to develop her technique in lessons and with the materials I send home.
2. (Student’s Name) has developed a natural hand shape on the piano and her finger strength and flexibility have greatly improved. She always remembers to use the correct posture when playing the piano both in lessons and at home. She pays attention to detail in her pieces and is quick to make adjustments when asked.
3. (Student’s Name) has developed a beautiful, natural hand shape on the piano and her finger strength and flexibility are top-notch. She has a lovely posture on the piano and she plays with a great deal of maturity. She is able to self-assess when it comes to her playing and can identify areas that need more practice.
Music Theory:
1. (Student’s Name) has learned a wide variety of theory concepts this term and is usually able to apply this theory knowledge when it comes time to work on his repertoire. He is enthusiastic about learning new things and loves to use game-based learning to practice these concepts. Continued practice at home will provide him with the repetition he needs to solidify his understanding.
2. (Student’s Name) has learned a wide variety of theory concepts this term and applies this knowledge when it comes time to work on his repertoire. He is enthusiastic about learning new things and loves to use game-based learning to practice these concepts. (Student’s Name) learns new concepts quickly and his commitment to practicing these concepts at home has resulted in an excellent understanding of the theory at his level.
3. (Student’s Name) has learned a wide variety of theory concepts this term and easily applies this knowledge when it comes time to work on his repertoire. He is enthusiastic about learning new things and loves to use game-based learning to practice these concepts. (Student’s Name) easily grasps upper-level theory concepts and is able to learn new pieces more quickly as a result.
What To Do If Practice Habits Is A Pain Point On Your Report Cards
When writing your report cards, did you notice that many of your students need to improve their practice habits? if this is the case, it might be time to switch to some more motivating repertoire. For the last decade, Trevor and I have been publishing method books and repertoire that are changing the way kids learn piano.
To check out these resources have a look at our WunderKeys 2020 Piano Book Guide here.
