A Sneak Peak At 2016-17

Who doesn't like to have a good idea of what they are getting before they pay money for it? I know that I sure do.  In the case of piano lessons it can be hard to know the quality of the lessons or if your child will like their teacher until you have experienced the lessons that the teacher is providing. So here is a preview of the 2016-17 year. 

Now that I teach piano and music classes full time, I am more able to plan the year ahead than before. Each month has its own themes and challenges.  

The 2016-17 lesson year planned out and posted on my wall.

We have a music goal of the month which each student and I will talk about how they can meet that goal. Then there is the personal challenge of the month which usually reflects the goal, but not always. Then there is a studio challenge or team competition. Some months all my students will work together to meet a goal and other times my students (who are divided into teams) will compete against each other.  
​You can scroll through each month below. 

I love a splash of color to brighten up my day! And boring lesson books can be the worst. Those special pages each month will be on colored paper. I try to be economical where I can, but sometimes a person just needs to splurge a bit. 

Rewards and Prizes! I love them! Of course, its best when a person finds intrinsic value in doing something and that is reward enough. But sometimes, we just need a little help getting there. I have year end rewards that only a handful of students receive. Throughout the year I have a music money program where my students complete various tasks to earn it. At the year end recital they get to spend it at the prize table. The student's and I have enjoyed our little economy. They work, they earn, when they've earned and saved, then they can spend. Every time a student traded in for the 10, 50, and 100 whole notes they celebrated. They didn't know what they were going to get with it until the recital, but it didn't seem to matter much during the year.

​I'm also starting another challenge this year - Pirates Treasure!!! There are 6 levels of treasure task cards. When they have completed the task card they get to unlock the treasure chest! Where there will be some prizes they can choose from. 

Now that I have shown you a touch of the funs stuff we do (I haven't even mentioned the music games!)... you might be wondering, is it all just fun and games? While learning through play and having fun certainly helps re-inforce those boring concepts than when applied make the song sound Oh Sooo Good!, my students last year progressed a lot. My first year students progress ranged from barely playing hands together at the June recital (started after Christmas) to others who could start prepping for Grade 1 RCM exams this year.
Learning is such an individual thing with music and its hard to say how much your child will learn in a year. The bulk of their progress happens at home during the week. My formula for progress is this:  Encouragement x Encouragement + Practice = Progress. And the more progress your child makes the more they want to play!

How many of you want to take piano lessons now!? I'd love to hear all about your experience with music lessons in the comments.