2. Should my child practice each day, and if so, for how long?
Your child should practice on a daily basis. Some teachers recommend that students have one day off each week from practice. Check with Mrs. Jenn to determine the amount of practice time necessary for your child, based on the student’s age, maturity and level of advancement. Don’t automatically assume that the child should practice one hour a day. Several short practice periods are usually more successful for students just starting than one longer session. Beginners often start with 15 minutes of practcie a day, gradually increasing to 30 minutes by the end of the year. Intermediate students usually practice between 45 minutes to 1 hour a day. Advanced students may practice anywhere from 1 hour to 3 hours a day.  A good rule not to overwhelm a student, is to always take a day off each week.

3. How should my child structure his/her practice?
Use the assignment pages or dictation book to keep track of what should be practiced and how to practice effectively. Encourage the students to follow the written assignment, but do not discourage experimentation and improvisation at the keyboard. In general, begin with something that is fun and which the child does well. Then, proceed to more difficult things (often new materials). End once again with something the child does well, such as a favorite piece or just plain have fun. This will encourage your child to come back to the piano.

4. What if my child doesn’t want to practice?
Accept the fact that most students don’t always like to practice, but realize that a child will never play an instrument well without regular practice. If your child is particularly resistant to practice on a certain day, substitue another music activity, such as flashcards or just listen to the CDs or other music. If this continues over a long period of time, discuss the problem with the teacher. Many parents establish a reward system for effective practice. The child will then begin to get into a routine, and practice will become easier.

6. What if my child doesn’t want to count or sing aloud?
Most students dislike counting aloud, but can learn to do so. It is an important phase in gaining independence for students to learn to count for themselves. Counting with a steady, audible pulse is an important step before the student can play with a metronome, CD, GM disk, or comfortably play duets. First, students should learn to tap the rhythm, while counting aloud while playing. Eventually, couting will become a comfortable habit. Singing the words to pieces reinforces many basic issues such as rhythm and note reading. It is a critical key to helping students learn to play with expression. If the student is hesitant about singing, simply say the words in rhythm. As the student progresses to singing, join them. He/she can even count and sing along with the CD.

7. What if my child doesn’t like a particular piece?
No one specific piece is crucial to the success or failure of a student. However, if a student does not like a piece, it is often because it seems difficult in some way. Students often discover that “least-favorite” pieces later become “most-favorite” pieces after some quality practice. Ask Mrs. Jenn if there is something the child does not understand about the piece. If the student continues to dislike the piece, sometimes Mrs. Jenn can find a substitute piece that teaches the same concept.

9. How can I use the CDs with my child?
(Premier Piano Course)
Listen to the performance version on the CD to provide a performance model for the student. The practice version on the CD can be used in a variety of ways. Students can clap or tap the rhythm as the CD plays, point to the note names as the CD plays, or sing (or say) the words as the CD plays. Finally, when the student is secure playing the piece, he/she can play along with the practice version or performance version.

10. How can I use the flash cards with my child?
There are two types of flash cards in the Premier Piano Course – Music Cards and Sight-Reading Cards. Use the Music Cards to help the student review important concepts. Each card shows the corresponding Lesson Book page number in the upper right corner on the back of the card. Also, on the back of each card is a question for you to ask the child, with the answer given. The Sight-Reading cards contain a short musical example for the student to play on the keyboard. Ask the student to play each example on time daily in practice when studying the corresponding Lesson Book page (shown in the upper right corner of the card).

As for regular Music Flash Cards, go through each card, asking what the symbol or note is. Separate the cards into two different piles, as you go through them. 1) If the student gets it right the first time and 2) If the the student does not get it right the first time. Take the second pile and place them on top for next time. That way they do the hard cards first and will have fun when the finish with things they know for next time. Do these cards daily, until they can go through the entire deck very easily.

11. How can I help my child with theory if I’m not a musician?
The Theory Book is designed to enhance all elements of musicianship. With consistent theory work, note reading will improve, and ear training, sight-reading and creative activities will enhance overall musicianship. If you are not a musician, your most important role is to make sure that the student has completed all theory activities prior to the lesson so that a minimum of lesson time can be devoted to the Theory Book. If you are a musician, you can check theory pages to save lesson time for the teacher.

Ask your technician to do a minor “touch-up” regulation at each tuning. This will prevent most instances of unnecessary wear and breakage.

have a full regulation done every 2 to 5 years. You’d be surprised at how your piano should have sounded and responded to you playing all these years.

Don’t attempt any “home repairs” on your piano. Let a technician do it – they have the right tools, replacement parts and expertise to do the job right the first time.

Keep your piano away from heating registers, radiators, fireplaces and air conditioning vents. Subjecting it to extreme fluctuations of temperature and humidity levels can do major damage. Avoicd direct sunlight on your piano – it can damage and fade the finish, or even create horrible tuning problems. Use curtains or blinds.

Try and keep the temperature and humidity levels as consistent as possible in the room where you have your piano. Using a temperature/humidity gauge can keep this in check. Seasonal swings in relative humidity are the piano’s greatest enemy. This winter has been especially bad for pianos. Pianos are happiest in a relative humidity level of 40 to 45 percent. If you don’t have a central humidifier/dehumidifier, consider getting a room humidifier for the winter, and a room dehumidifier or air conditioner during the summer months. There’s even such thing as a special piano humidifier/dehumidifier that can be installed in your piano. Ask your piano technician.

Keep plants, vases, drinks, or anything to do with liquid off the piano. Condensation can ruin the finish, and spillage of liquids into the inner mechanism can result in irreversible damage. Don’t eat at the piano, either. If you get food or drink in any part of the piano/keyboard, you may cause more damage later.

To prevent scratches on the finish, never place objects on your piano without a soft cloth or felt. Don’t use furniture polish to clean your piano. It can soften the finish if overused, and the silicone & oils present in many household brands can even contaminate the wood, despite what the labels may say.
Just feather-dust the piano first (dust is abrasive, so wiping it first can cause scratches), then wipe with a soft, damp cotton cloth, wiping in the direction of the grain. Then, wipe up any excess moisture with a similar dry cloth. Do the same thing as above to clean your keys, but use separate cloths for the blacks and the whites. Don’t use cleaning agents!

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2. Encourage siblings and friends to respect practice time as something special, not to be interrupted.

3. The first lesson is very special. Carry the excitement of that lesson into practice time.

4. Practice on the day after the lesson is important to avoid forgetting things that were done and said in the lesson.

5. Practice is not always playing the music straight through. It may include practicing sections of a piece, working them out slowly, skipping from one part of the piece, working them out slowly, skipping from one part of the piece to another, playing hands separately, analyzing, memorizing, and working on details such as dynamics and articulation.

6. Practice may include playing things for fun (as well as playing the assigned lesson).

7. Emphasize the importance of music study and avoid, if at all possible, switching lessons or practice time for social activities.

8. Lack of practice is not an acceptable excuse for missing a lesson. The lesson is needed more than ever.

9. Accept the fact that students practice for a variety of reasons, including rewards, consequences (can’t play or watch TV until practice is done), human relationships (to please others, get attention), feelings of self-worth (to be as good as others) and inherent joy (love of music and the reward of doing it well).

10. Accept the fact that most kids do not always like to practice. If the child doesn’t want to practice, acknowledge those feelings. Agree that he/she may not want to do it, but try to explain the benefits to reorient him/her. Practicing is a discipline that carries over into many aspects of daily life.  Expect some frustration from your child. Expect good days and bad days.  Work to avoid tension from practice carrying over into other parts of daily life.

11. But above all encourage the love of music. The more your child learns to enjoy playing, the more they will want to practice.  You can be a big part of this.  If you learn to be exciting over practice times, your child will be excited too.

If you play piano…
* Demonstrate pieces
* Play duets with your child
* Check the Theory pages to save time for the teacher
* Use flash cards to review

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