Over Parenting Piano Students
Case In Point
I once had a piano student named Emily. Emily was only 4 years old when she started taking piano lessons for beginners, and I was hesitant because I was unsure that she would be mature enough. However, the parents insisted that she was because Emily was already reading, Emily was ready. I started Emily in a class of beginners and from the start, she seemed like the star. Every week at class, Emily’s music was perfect.
Not As Good As It Sounds
I could tell by week 3 of piano lessons that Emily’s parents were probably sitting through all of her practicing with her. This may sound like a good and devoted parenting technique, but it was depriving Emily of a lot of her learning. A few months into lessons, I asked Emily’s parents to let her do 100% of her practice on her own. I gave Emily an easy assignment, and wasn’t surprised when she came the next week without showing much progress.
Why Not Hold Her Hand Through Practice?
Piano practice over the course of years is what develops beginners into advanced pianists. Emily’s parents were forcing her focus and depriving her of the experience of how to figure out piano. They were cementing on training wheels that Emily would have been better off without. Emily needed to learn the life skill of self-initiated practice that would give her the independence that would eventually be a requirement for development.
Emily’s Experiences Are Too Common
A very similar story was about 6 year old Jared. When Jared started piano, his parents did everything the way that Emily’s parents did. When Jared came to class with an assignment that was far from perfect, I praised him for what sounded good and let him realize what needed additional work. I explained to Jared’s parents the need for independent practicing and how it would affect his abilities as he progressed. Jared’s mother wasn’t pleased. She told me that she had a hard time listening to Jared practice and making mistakes, over and over. I explained to her that help and correction isn’t bad, but that it should be limited, and helping the student identify problems was essential.
All’s Well That Ends Well
Emily took a break from piano until she was 6 and half. When she came back, everything was new and her parents took my advice. Before long, Emily was thriving in her lessons and able to practice independently, making solid progress each week that she was solely responsible for. I love teaching piano lessons for beginners and hope that you’ll follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest to get more of my tips and tricks to piano success.
