What are the important benefits of learning to play the piano?
Increased abilities in language arts and math (based on university psychology study with preschoolers)
Increased coordination and flexibility (MD Rx for patients with arthritis)
Expanded concentration
Further development of self-discipline
Further development of problem-solving skiills
Exercise in following through on a long-term commitment
Satisfaction of achieving a standard of excellence in a skill
Greater self-confidence
Added initiative and ability to participate in other musical activities
Creative outlet for self-expression
Relaxation from stress
Further enrichment of student's life and that of their family
Just plain FUN!
How do I know my child is ready for piano lessons?
Some children can be ready as early as age 2 1/2 or 3 for piano lessons and many are ready at age
4 or 5 especially if older siblings have been taking piano lessons, but most children are not ready
until the age of 6, 7, or 8. There are several ways to determine your child's musical interest and
keyboard readiness.
You can start by completing the "Readiness Survey" found in the "Prospective
Student" section in the left menu bar. This survey gauges your child's interest level, cooperation
level, learning readiness, symbol reading readiness, and music writing readiness.
You can enroll your child in an early childhood group music class offered by a music school
or by your local parks and recreation. These classes generally run from six to 12 weeks, usually require
parent attendance depending on the age group, and introduce the child to fundamental (movement to music,
singing, steady beat, low/high/slow/fast sounds, etc.) as well as more sophisticated (harmony, improvisation,
keyboard readiness) musical experiences. Because you the parent are present, you will be able to observe
your child's responses and potential abilities. Also, because the classes are usually self-contained
and have a termination point, you and your child have the freedom to discontinue should you discover
your child is not ready or is not interested in learning music at that time.
You can choose to enroll your child with a private teacher who is experienced in working with very young beginners.
Keyboard teachers who are trained in early childhood music programs such as
Kindermusik.com,
Music for Young Children,
Musikgarten.org,
Yamaha (Google Yamaha piano teachers), or Suzuki (Google Suzuki piano teachers) can offer
an added advantage to assessing your child's readiness. These programs sometimes offer four to eight week introductory
courses during the summer to help you and your child determine if you want to make a further commitment during the school year.
How do I find a competent teacher? How do I find the "right" teacher?
Ask your friends whose children you have heard play musically and are enthusiastic about their music learning
Consult music teacher association directories such as
mtac.org or mtna.org.
These organizations accept music teachers who have attained the proper music credentials and proven their knowledge about successful
music teaching. These organizations also offer continuing music and pedagogy education for their member
teachers and incentive programs/performances/scholarships for those teachers' students.
Trust your intuition when you are interviewing with a teacher. You know your child's personality best.
You also can gauge whether you as the parent or adult student can relate well with that teacher.
What can I do to make the most of my interview with a teacher?
Make a list of questions relating to the student's musical needs and life situations (e.g., How are
make-ups handled when the student has a schedule conflict? Do you teach jazz and pop as well as classical?
Have you had experience working with an A.D.D. child? What is your philosophy about learning piano
as a hobby? What is your philosophy about entering students in competitions? etc.)
If you or your child have taken prior piano lessons, have a list of music books handy with the most
currently used materials at the top of the list.
Gather any evaluation (Certificate of Merit™, Guild, etc.) documents from previous teachers and sort with the most
current keyboard proficiency level on top. Refer to them in your telephone interview and present them
to the interviewing teacher when you meet in person.
Decide if you and your child will need a sample lesson or a face-to-face interview meeting with the
teacher. When you call, ask if the teacher is willing to include a 15 or 30 minute sample lesson with
your child to determine rapport and teaching style. Offer to pay for that portion (sample lesson)
of the interview time as a courtesy for the teacher's extra work and assessment. The teacher may require
your child to perform his or her favorite piece if he or she has taken prior lessons. This and other tests
aid the teacher in assessing the student's progress and current level as well as determining music strengths
and weaknesses.
My child has been taking piano lessons for a year or two but does not seem to be progressing
or seems to be losing interest. Should I look for a new teacher?
Before deciding to look for another teacher, first make an appointment with your current
teacher to discuss your concerns. Most likely, the teacher is aware of the situation and may already
have a strategy in place. Discussing with the teacher your awareness of the situation allows the teacher
to include you in his/her planning and thus ensure that your child receives double support. If the teacher
is unaware, then s/he will thank you for bringing the matter to their attention so that a strategy can
be determined and again, both teacher and parent help to sustain the child's interest and ensure his/her
success in music learning. How is it that a teacher may become unaware? Sometimes, students who want
to please their teachers will show interest and initiative at their lessons and will actually progress
by the end of the lesson with the teacher. If the student is engaging during the lesson, the teacher
may conclude that the slower rate of progress is that student's best effort, not knowing that the student
at home may only be "putting in practice time" but not engaging or monitoring as s/he does
at the lesson. A parent's input can correct this misperception and prompt the teacher to help the student
set a higher practice standard. This might require more parent involvement with giving auditory feedback
for the student so s/he knows the way he practices makes a difference just as it does at lessons. Effective
student monitoring of their home practice will bring more successful playing results which often boosts
interest. Also, setting performance goals might be a needed incentive for your child. If s/he knows
s/he will have the chance to perform a piece in a month for an event, s/he may become more motivated
to practice toward that goal.
Discuss with your child about his/her interest in wanting to play the piano. Notice I did
not say ask your child whether he or she wants to continue lessons. Most students want to play the
piano but do not enjoy practicing the piano, especially when they encounter common difficulties
with their reading, counting, or coordination skills in piano learning. Expressive piano playing is
a very complex skill. Children often do not understand the consequences of their decision to stop an
activity just because they find it becoming difficult to do. It is human nature to dislike something
which (1) requires extra effort and (2) makes us feel inadequate until we have mastered the skill.
All learning demands effort; some students struggle more than others with different aspects of piano
playing. An experienced teacher recognizes a student's musical weaknesses and equips the student with
strategies to tackle their obstacles to playing the piano well. If your child answers that he or she
does in fact LIKE PLAYING the piano, then he or she can be advised that continued practice is all the
more important to attaining that goal (of being able to play the piano well). Piano learning is analogous
to hiking up a mountain trail--the climb is sometimes easy, sometimes grueling, many times takes perseverance
and determination, one step at a time. You're not thrilled about getting stuck on a plateau,
you're glad for the vista points along the way, but you can't wait to get to the top and when you do
finally arrive, the view at the top is worth every bit of the extra effort!
It is possible that even after discussing with the teacher and attempting new approaches
and even new music over a given time period, that progress and interest still wane. If you have tried
all possibilities with the current teacher or have realized that your child is not responding as well
to the current teacher, then you certainly can exercise the option of finding another teacher. A wise
teacher would even suggest to you that a change of teacher might be helpful for a better blend of a
student's learning style with a teacher's teaching style. Sometimes, a teacher with more diverse skills
to offer (jazz, rock and roll, improvisation, playing by ear, composition, etc.) might spark an area
of interest within the student so that s/he is motivated to keep up with the rest of piano learning
as well.