I am new to this forum. I wish to know how one would go about teaching a 6 year old from scratch. In particular, what would you recommend in the following respects for a 6 year old(say):
- Help with reading music.
- Appropriate repertoire to start with.
- Attention span. What is their typical attention span? Are there any tricks of the trade to help them focus?
- What should one (conservatively) aim for, say, in a year's time?
Any other advice you all can offer is greatly appreciated.
Best Regards,
Heller.
I currently have only one 6 yr old that I am teaching. However, I have had others as a piano teacher and literally 100's with experience in being "other types" of teachers. Almost everything I am doing with my little one is different than what I have done in the past. I have also been reading, studying, and applying the ideas, informations, and concepts from Bernhard's, Torp's, pianisitimo's, whynot's, Ted's and xvimbi's posts, as well as others on the forum (

). I have been gathering some information from books and so on that are recommended throughout the forum on some of these subjects. So, much of what I am about to say is coming from my experiences with those things, as well as stuff I have added and developed as I have felt the desire to do so.
I have created a list of things I feel I would like for every student I have to be able to "do" by the time they leave my studio. While this may sound rigid, I do not think it is exactly how it sounds. This is simply the backbone to my organization for each lesson as well as middle and longer term goals. This list has come out of my realizing that there are actually, imo, only two kinds of students in the world :
1. Those who learn and study and/or play for the rest of their lives (in ANY way, shape, or form, and no matter what age they start and no matter what career they may have or end up with)
and...
2. Those who do not.
It's as "simple" as that to me. However, I do not truly know which type is walking through my door (the lives they choose to lead will answer that question with time). So, my goal as the teacher is to give this individual as many tools as I possibly can to help them enjoy their relationship with music and piano for, potentially, the rest of their lives.
Ideally, everything within the list gets supported by everything else we do and, along with the content of what I am teaching, I feel it is extremely important to provide the opportunities for each student to apply the concepts I am teachering as well as
success in its application.
That is a nutshell of what my studio is about, at this point.
Now, with that having been said, the point is that I expect every student to develop in
some degree with every element of what I am teaching (even if we come to some realization that a particular thing is not helpful for their experience with piano and music- which, I would not say has happened in black and white, yet), including the youngies. The focus of my teaching is on that of the
individual, so as Maryruth commented, I abide by the idea that no two six year olds are exactly the same, and for that matter, no two people being exactly the same (no matter what age, etc.).
One of the most important values about learning anything, imo, is that of
diligent effort (and no less important,
inspiration). With that, as a teacher I strive to be aware of the fact that I am not merely taking in a "piano student" but an entire person. So, while I believe in the value of diligent effort, what I feel is
more productive for the whole person than learning about "diligent effort" in and of itself, is helping them to also see and experience the
rewards of diligent effort. It cultivates a different attitude in ethics, a different response to results, and an overall better health for the indivdual.
I suppose my main point in having brought all of this up is that we, as teachers, are not just dealing with 6 year old piano students but with entire people who have their entire life in front of them. Now, how do
you, as an indvidual, wish to influence
that ? What kinds of options do you want this person to have (whether they choose them or not) ? How can you as an individual help them with these endeavors ?
I personally believe that students and teachers find each other for reasons. So, while there is a great resposibility with each student, I think that ultimately, we are up to the challenge.
I was actually going to intially post in with the ins and outs of what I do with them in lessons and so on. I am still happy to do so, but as it turns out, I have said what I really wanted to say. With that, I would say that if a person takes these things seriously as a teacher, everything designed to help a student become capable in whatever way will have an overall goal in mind. I think that's the best we can do and hope for.
m1469
