Problems with 1st piano student

[laurie]

Hi. I'm new to the forum and I could really use some advise. I'm a college student and have played piano for most of my life. I started teaching for the first time last summer. I have only one student. He is very smart. He is about 9 years old. He is very good at his theory. I have taught him almost all of his major scales. I'm having problems though transferring his excellant knowledge of theory to the playing it on the piano. It's like he just can't compute it or something. I have been trying to teach him to play the same stuff for almost the whole school year. Today he started crying ten minutes into the lesson when I tried to push him a little harder and challenge him a little more. I think he's burned out or does he not just want to make the effort? Please help me out with the situation!! I'm at my whit's end. I've done all I know what to do to get through to him.

[ludwig]

When you say that he can't seem to transfer his musical knowledge to his playing, what do you specifically mean? There are some tips I could give you, hope it helps.

You could use a few methods, first, imitation, of course this isn't the solution to all your problems but you could get him to listen to what you want him to do for starters.

You could also set goals for him, and have him work towards competitions or grades. That way he'll have experiences of what piano playing is about and have pressure himself to gain rewards and satisfaction from playing the piano.

I'll think of some things later, when I could figure out for myself how to be a better piano teacher

[phillipfawcett]

i always believe in teaching scales, arpeggios etc to students from the keyboard perspective first.
This means i teach them the notes of a scale from the keyboard, so they learn it visually as the black and white keys they are playing .and they memorize them from a keyboard perspective. I think this is essential for anybody to progress far at the piano ..it is the 'geography' of the keyboard.
I don't provide a manual of scales and arpeggios for a student for this reason, although of course reading is important too.

[Karin]

I might be a little presumptuous to call myself a piano teacher.  I am teaching my husband, and he said he wanted to learn all scales before playing a piece!!  So far we've done C and G major and the chromatic scale.

This is so opposite of me, it took me a long time to enjoy scales, I thought of them as spinach initially.  He is very good at the theory and interested in it.  

I think some of the necessary but boring repetition will be difficult to get in.  Sorry I'm of no help with the answer!

Karin

[dkw]

Hi - you say you've been on the "same stuff" for a while now - most of the school year. Maybe the "stuff" is a little hard or detailed. Playing easier songs/pieces provide the confidence to achieve greater things. At the age of nine I feel kids confidence levels are on the line. Play easier pieces in multiple ways - rhythms - stoccato -legato. Above all make music fun and goals achievable. If he is smiling alot - he is learning a lot!