Hints for Parents 

The most important element in student success on any musical instrument (or nearly any other activity they attempt) is support and interest from parents.

 But, I understand that many parents really don't know what to do to help their future musicians.

Don't worry! You don't need to have any special musical knowledge in order to help your child become a successful and accomplished musician. Even if you can't tell the difference between a clarinet and a kazoo, you can still assist your child! How? Read on!

The Best Ways to Help Your Musician
 

1. Provide a quiet, at least semi-private place for your child to practice. Sitting on the bed is not ideal. Sitting upright in a chair or standing up is best.

2. Schedule practice time into each day, in the same way as you schedule your child's other homework. Assignments should be considered part of homework and should be practiced every day, if possible. Most students need extra encouragement to practice, so providing a regular schedule will help make it a regular habit.

3. If you are able to, please purchase a folding music stand for your child to use while practicing. They cost about $15. If you can't afford one, please let me know and I will be happy to lend your child one for the school year. I have plenty of extras, and practicing without one is extremely difficult for your student.

4. Ask your child to explain to you what was learned in lessons. Better yet, have him or her teach YOU how to play the instrument. The best way to learn is always to teach, and you can learn along with your child. For about $15-$25 on average, you can purchase an extra mouthpiece for wind instruments and then share the instrument with your child. It's never too late to learn for yourself!

5. Give your child opportunities to "perform," without pushing if he or she doesn't feel ready. Ask your student to play a song for the family once a week or prepare a song for family visits (my grandmother ALWAYS loved to hear me play!) Have your child get together with his or her friends and give a mini-recital for each other or the parents. Even stuffed animals or the family dog/cat/hamster/fish make for a good "captive" audience.

6. If your child is showing signs of frustration or other difficulty, contact me as soon as possible. Together, we can try to address whatever is causing problems. Often, I don't find out a student is having a problem at home until they come in and tell me they are quitting.

7. Encourage your child. Make sure he or she knows they are doing a great job. Compliment the performances, even if they aren't perfect. Beginners are VERY nervous about their sound, and a single criticism of a squeak or a missed note can stay with them for a long, long time. The first years are about learning skills, but also about gaining confidence to deal with the more competitive musical world students will face as they get older.

8. Every child gets a lesson schedule in his or her homeroom. Extras are ALWAYS available in the main office, and it is also posted on a separate page on this website. Help your child keep track of the lesson days, and set out music books and instruments the night before. It IS a confusing schedule, but needs to be that way so that students don't miss the same classes each week.
 
 
 

Be Careful About These...

1. This is something I'm sure you know, but never tell your child that he or she sounds bad. Beginner sounds are difficult on the ears sometimes, but they are part of the learning process. If you tell your child that the sound is hurting your ears, or that it sounds less than wonderful, you might never hear a performance again. If it seems too loud, ask your child to work on controlling the volume. If the instrument is squeaking a lot (kids will know it!) have your child check the reed to make sure it isn't broken, or have him or her describe to you exactly how the the mouth should be positioned. Often that will be enough to remind a student what to change or fix. If it seems to be an ongoing problem, contact me and I'll try to figure it out. Again, beginner musicians have very fragile egos. Treat them carefully.

2. If your child plays a reed instrument (clarinet, saxophone, oboe) he or she should always have some extra reeds. However, don't buy too many at a time. Students move through reed sizes pretty quickly in the beginning, so buying a whole box of reeds is usually a bad idea. They can't be returned. I usually recommend buying 4-6 reeds at a time.

3. If your child plays a brass instrument (trumpet, French horn, trombone, baritone) he or she has been shown how to properly put the mouthpiece into and out of the instrument. Sometimes mouthpieces will become stuck in the instrument, either because it is dropped or because it was put in too forcefully...sometimes they even become stuck for no reason at all! If the mouthpiece will not come out by hand, please DO NOT try to force it out. Hammers, wrenches or other tools can do MAJOR damage to the instrument, no matter how careful you may be. I have a special tool designed for this purpose, and it will remove the mouthpiece quite easily. Just get the instrument to school carefully (they usually won't fit in the case) and I will take care of the rest.

4. Please encourage your child to participate for a full year. Each instrument has moments when it gets challenging. Probably 99% of the time, the student will get past that spot in a few weeks at most and then will be successful. Unfortunately, many students never find out because they quit instead. Please give it the full school year. If your child is having a problem that I don't think he or she can overcome, I will let you know and we can discuss possibly changing to a different instrument. But, my experience is that every student can learn enough to be able to enjoy playing an instrument.

5. If your child is not practicing, unfortunately he or she most likely will not succeed. Nothing that happens in school can change that. I provide many incentives for practicing and try to give students a variety of experiences, but what goes on at home is the real key to success. Some students are self-motivated enough to set up and keep to their own schedule. But, realistically, most students need extra encouragement and incentives to get into the habit. This really has to be a joint effort between teacher, student and parents. If you would like more suggestions on ways to encourage your child to practice, please contact me.
 

I hope you will use the suggestions above to help encourage your child and to help me make it the most positive and enjoyable experience possible. I truly love teaching instrumental music to beginners, and I hope that I will be able to help every child learn to love creating music!
 

 HOME