Ideas for Creating or Improving Your Family’s Suzuki Practice Routine… It’s finally beginning to feel like Spring here in Utah, and it’s making me long for fresh starts in so many ways. I’ve been going through kid clothes and throwing out everything too small and too worn. I’ve been going through the cupboards and putting […] The post Suzuki Practice Routines appeared first on Plucky Violin Teacher ..read more

One of the most important principles of the Suzuki Method is listening, which is why Suzuki teachers ask students to purchase the cd or digital album with their Suzuki books. Whenever I introduce a new piece, my first assignment (and many other teachers’ too) is to do marathon listening–listening to that piece two hundred times […] The post Why You and Your Student Should Listen to the Suzuki Recordings… appeared first on Plucky Violin Teacher ..read more

Celebrating small successes on the tough days… I’ve written about minimum baselines before, but since I’m in the midst of a particularly trying time (Depression and anxiety, y’all.) I wanted to revisit the topic. Since building up and celebrating small wins is an important strategy for managing my mental health, I need to make sure […] The post Minimum Baselines appeared first on Plucky Violin Teacher ..read more

One of my many character flaws, is that I, when faced with a difficulty, will often put off creating a solution in the hope that the problem I’m facing will just…disappear. One of these difficulties is one you’re probably facing right now as well–online teaching due to Coronavirus. There was (and still is, to be […] The post My New Guidelines for Students: Suzuki in the Time of Coronavirus appeared first on Plucky Violin Teacher ..read more

This week in my oldest child’s violin lessons, he and his teacher reviewed goals from the past academic year and made new ones for the coming year. Last fall, we made some goals for practice and for the progress we hoped to see. At the time we made the goals, my son (seven now, six […] The post 5 Suzuki Parenting Mistakes I’ve Made (So You Can Avoid Them) appeared first on Plucky Violin Teacher ..read more

I’m going to make a guess that if you’re reading this blog post, that you are, or have been, in a situation where you need to discuss something sensitive with a parent or student in your music studio. Maybe you’ve been meaning to have the conversation for a long time, and you’ve finally decided it’s […] The post How to Address Difficult Situations with Students… appeared first on Plucky Violin Teacher ..read more

As the beginning of school approaches, I like to take some time to reflect on what’s working and what isn’t in my Suzuki violin studio. I love the magic of a new start, and the beginning of fall is my favorite time of year. It’s important to me to set myself up well at the […] The post Setting Boundaries in Your Suzuki Studio appeared first on Plucky Violin Teacher ..read more

Hello my friends, I’ve taken a break from the podcast and blog for a couple months due to the demands of our new family schedule and routine, but I wanted to hop back on to tell about a new resource for young violinists. I love teaching my students note reading and music theory, but it […] The post Violin Star Theory Review appeared first on Plucky Violin Teacher ..read more

Brecklyn talks to Preston about how much he loves to be with his mom during practice, perseverance, and Gavotte by Gossec. Practice Tip: Make a specific practicing goal each day. Listening Tip: Peter and the Wolf, narrated by Jim Dale. You can support the Suzuki Planet Podcast by becoming a donor on Patreon. Our Patreon […] The post Suzuki Planet Podcast Episode 18: Preston, Violinist from Florida appeared first on Plucky Violin Teacher ..read more

Brecklyn chats with James and Henry about having their mom as their teacher and favorite practice strategies. Listening Tip: Julia Fischer, Russian Violin Concertos Practice Tip: Take a break right away if you start arguing with your practice partner. You can support the Suzuki Planet Podcast by becoming a donor on Patreon. Our Patreon donors […] The post Suzuki Planet Podcast Episode 17: Henry & James, Violinists from Illinois appeared first on Plucky Violin Teacher ..read more