By Julia Kossuth Although I give mainly elementary school kids piano lessons, I'm always excited when an adult student would like to start piano lessons. Whether they are brand new to playing or rusty after years away from the piano, working with an adult is so much fun and adds nice variety to any studio. Because our adults are busy and often can't commit to a lesson...
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Summertime is just around the corner! What a wonderful time to examine where you are now and where you want to be, as well as take some needed time to relax, enjoy the weather and spend time with family and friends! As I wrap up the end of my teaching year, I am taking some time to reflect on the last year and envision the future of my studio.
Recently I read the book, The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein. This book is told from a dog’s perspective (Enzo), and is a lovely fictional tale with a message for living a rich life, sticking to ideals, and creating vision. Since I am a dog lover and my dog’s name is Enzo, a friend suggested that I read it. If you haven’t already read the book, I highly recommend it for your summer reading list!
One of the most poignant statements for me in the book was –
“That which you manifest is before you.”
by Jamey Mann I am the newest member of The Catoctin School of Music family. I am a classical guitarist with years of playing and teaching experience. Through my years of teaching I found that one of the most important things I can teach my students is how to practice efficiently and correctly. This is sometimes more important than any riff or technical exercise I can...
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You’ve finished your last lessons of the school year, thrown together a final recital and are ready to take a breather from all things studio-related. Rest and rejuvenation are important for studio owners, but don’t put your studio work on the shelf for too long — summer is a great time for advertisement and provides many opportunities to get your studio name into the community.
Here are just a few reasons the summer is a good time to advertise:
Ok- I am a BIG fan of Nancy and Randall Faber’s piano method books already, so when I saw they came up with a series for kiddies under 6, I was so excited. I’ve had students in this age group for a few years, and I have always used LITTLE MOZARTS by Alfred’s. It was OK. But just OK. That is a tough age group to teach if you don’t have the right equipment, and I’m pretty stoked that I finally do.
The Faber’s have taken their talent for composition and have created a series that includes a CD of top-quality productions of all the songs in the book. It sounds like a good Children’s music CD you would buy anywhere, but it just so happens to be a learning supplement. This is brilliant. We all know children learn music by singing and listening, so of course it makes sense to make a great CD of music to help them learn. (Why didn’t I think of this??) And the songs are good. Witty and cute, and true to the Faber’s nature, catchy. Unlike some books, the songs are actually enjoyable to play and hear. By playing along with the recordings, the young students become stronger at rhythm and sight reading. I have been using these books with 2 students now, and I am in LOVE.
The lesson book also comes with a writing book. They work in sync with each other, and I find it best to teach the lesson first, then immediately do the writing assignment. It really helps the kids get the concepts down. I can usually get through 2-3 lessons in one 45 minute class.
Because of these books, I no longer dread teaching pre-school age lessons. I totally recommend them.
If you want to see a video of someone playing along to the CD, go here.