i agree with much of what is said here. especially john brooks assessment that the best form of compliment is to have your students playing well and receiving the benefits of their practice. also, what he said about 'pianoside manners.'
i think for many years i was well suited for the ages that i taught. i started actually in highschool - teaching a few students who were about 7-8 years of age. i told them at the beginning of lessons that i was working on my bachelor's degree and that whenever it seemed appropriate to them - that i certainly would not be offended if they chose to switch teachers - or if they wanted i could ask my own teacher if he would take them on. a bit presumptuous possibly - but i had a lot of faith (and still do) in my college prof that i had. he would really take the time to explain things. he was a REAL teacher and not checking his watch at the half hour mark. in fact, for students that practiced - he often went overtime. sacrificing his own personal time for others - to finish an idea or a thought.
then, after graduation (and recital) for BM in piano performance - i ended up doing a lot of accompanying and vocal accompanying for my husband. we travelled all over up and down southern california performing church music, etc. but, i knew that my solo piano skills had to be kept up. so after a few years - took more piano lessons and worked some mozart. i was so happy to be back at it.
we also had three children and moved about four times. when i was just out of college - i taught piano lessons on the weekend and a few during the week. i joined mtna and used the syllabus for each grade A LOT. i still use it for general reference. also, i went to mtna summer seminars occasionally.
but, what really helps, too is taking something - anything ! to do with teaching. i got into teaching reading as well as music - and took a tutoring class which showed us the 'cycle' of a student coming in fully dependent and moving them to independence and thinking for themselves and utilizing information themselves to their own best advantage. i realized that i had done a lot of handholding (and still am tempted sometimes to do that) - but you really have to ask questions and do a lot of extraneous things that help them learn a 'process.' i'm a fairly detail oriented person - and so sometimes i would explain too much. i also learned that within all this detail there are limits to each age - and not to overdo with the younger aged children. to let more 'just be.' and then as they progressively age from year to year - (month to month - for that matter) - you start showing them what you expect and really hold to a standard that is realistic for their age and comprehension. sometimes it's not age but the student themselves and how much they are used to learning.
something that stuck in my head from a particular youngish side master chorale conductor is how much a good teacher inspires students to work. the enthusiasm combined with real knowledge is - imo - an incredible gift. to be able to motivate students by showing them what is possible in a set amount of time. to let the time go indefinately shows them how lazy they can be - versus setting a time to really be proficient at something.
i think something else, too, is important. that is - not being closed off to other expressions of music - ie opera, musicals, poetry, art, etc. - because it all ties in together. in fact, science and math for that matter, imo - are just as helpful. the infinite world becomes more open when you see it through different lenses. to have a teacher who is well rounded in many subjects makes them more of a mentor - able to give wise advice in many situations - and not just dealing with music only. i never thought that a piano teacher who was also a friend was a bad idea. it is only in this modern age that we think we should be so 'private' and 'dignified.' one teacher i had when i was much younger - after seeing how much i was practicing would even let me housesit when he and his wife went on vacation. it was such a heartfelt gesture of trust and friendship and helped me get ready for several recitals - which i couldn't do at home with the level of concentration needed the last few days before recital.
with inspiration from family and a friend who also played piano - i went back to attempt a graduate degree from west chester. i would highly rate west chester as a good music campus. they have a great music/listening library - a NEW music building - and very fine faculty. also, they are now an all steinway school! most of the teachers are graduates from julliard - and play extremely well and are very knowledgeable. we took some field trips, too, when i was there that made my day/year/lifetime. we went to steinway hall, steinway factory, and also carnegie hall and julliard. i never EVER thought i would see all this. it was mostly at my piano teachers expense, too, i think. i mean he drove all the students and we got to see things we'd never find on our own(at least not all in one day's time). even the ny metropolitan museum of art! we took one trip one year and another the next year. we saw probably at least three places each trip.