This month I wanted to showcase in my piano studio why we are thankful for music. So I created a photo prop and stuck it in a page protector and had my students write with a dry eraser marker why they were thankful for music. Then I took a picture of them and will be sharing one each day in November. We are using the hashtag #thankfulformusic so we can all easily see why we are thankful for music! I wanted to share the photo prop for you to use with your students as my way of expressing my gratitude for you!!! Feel free to print it out and use with your students too! And don’t forget the hash ..read more

If you teach music in a school classroom setting, chances are that you went through certain protocols to make sure that both you and your students would be protected. In the U.S., when you apply for any job in a school setting, whether paid of volunteer, you are required to go through a background check. This is a good thing as we want to make sure those who are teaching in our schools don’t have a history that would compromise a child’s safety. In the independent private studios, things work a little bit differently. Unless you decide to be screened voluntarily, there is no particular require ..read more

Strive for 5 is something I started last year with my students to boost practice slumps. You can read the original post here, but I wanted to share a little bit more in depth about Strive for 5 and share what I did last year in comparison to what I am doing this year. It’s all about experimenting to see what works best. I’m looking forward to seeing the results at the end of the year! In a nutshell, Strive for 5 is exactly what you might think it means. I want students to strive for 5 days of practice that week. If your students are anything like mine (which I am imagining they are), then 5 da ..read more

Here is the final tip in the 3 part lesson evaluation series. In Part 3, I share what I like to evaluate and assess with transfer students who have had lessons before.     Did you miss Part 1 or 2? View them below… Music Teacher Tip #20: Early Childhood Introductory Lesson Evaluations Music Teacher Tip #21: New Beginners Introductory Lesson Evaluations The post Music Teacher Tip #22 Part 3: Transfer Students Introductory Lesson Evaluations appeared first on ..read more

This is Part 2 of a 3 part series on lesson evaluations. In today’s music teacher tip, I share what I like to evaluate with new beginners who have never had lessons before. This is typically any student 7 years old and up. (I go through what I do with younger students in part 1)     Coming Next… Part 3: Transfer Students Lesson Evaluations. Did you miss Part 1? View it here: Music Teacher Tip #20: Early Childhood Introductory Lesson Evaluations The post Music Teacher Tip #21 Part 2: New Beginner Introductory Lesson Evaluations appeared first on ..read more

Music Teacher Tips #20-22 will be a 3-part series. In part 1, I share what I evaluate with early childhood students (4-6 years) at the introductory lesson. Introductory lessons is a free interview and evaluation where I take the time to evaluate and assess where a student is musically, review studio policies, talk about my studio programs, share how I run my studio and show them the music lab. This also is the perfect time for me to watch for any red flags that might come up, and get a general feeling if we will be a good fit for each other or not.   Coming Next… Part 2: New Beginner Lesson ..read more

As we begin another school year, I thought this would be the perfect time to talk about boundary setting. While boundaries may come across as a negative thing, it is actually a very positive and healthy thing to establish. Establishing clear boundaries means you are establishing clear communication. You are putting expectations on the front line and in doing so, you will find they will respect them and you for the clear communication. People will push boundaries as far as you will let them. That is great news! You are probably thinking to yourself, huh?! It’s great because the key word in th ..read more

One of the most important skills a student must have when practicing is to be able to listen. Have you ever had a student that can play through a piece and it sounds completely off? They might be playing in the wrong key, or wrong position or just missing all the accidentals. You sit back in amazement waiting for them to hear how awful it sounds as they continue to plunk away without a care in the world. Just as it is important to teach our students to practice, it is equally important to teach our students to listen when they practice. Without this key ingredient, students can easily miss rec ..read more

Disclaimer:  Affiliate links are included. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions I have expressed are my own.  I have had the chance to play around inside Jerald’s Simon’s Cool Songs Club and wanted to share a bit about it. If you are familiar with Jerald’s music, you know that his main goal is to motivate and inspire students. You also know he is very generous in what he gives. His Cool Songs Club is no exception as you will soon find out. What are Cool Songs? Jerald Simon, founder of Music Motivation®, creates COOL SONGS – complete with backing tracks – to motivate and ..read more