My First Student

[devbanana]

I just taught my first student today. My wife's coworker has an eight-year-old daughter and she wants her to take piano lessons.

I was nervous as this is my first student, and I didn't know how I am with kids. But it went exceptionally well. We learned all the notes and their names, and I taught her how to find C's on the piano. We learned Twinkle Twinkle and she tried playing it in different registers on the piano. She was entertained at how it sounded in the lower octaves.

So I'm excited. She seemed to really open up to me and she gave me a huge hug before she left.

The only thing I'm nervous about is how I'm going to teach how to read music. I am visually impaired and myself read braille music. I know enough about print music, such as the staff lines and where the pitches go. So that part will be a bit of a challenge, but I'm optimistic about it.

Any tips would be appreciated. I'm trying to find ways to help her to appreciate piano since she's not been exposed to it much before. I know internal motivation is much stronger than external, so I'd like to work on triggering that internal motivation in any way possible.

I'm just excited I finally have a student. Please wish me luck.

[awesom_o]

Good luck! Now that she knows Twinkle well, see if she can play it with you providing basic improvised accompaniment in the secondo register!

Are you planning to use a method book? I like Suzuki for that age group.

How visually impaired are you? Can you read any print music? I've heard that braille music is quite bulky, which must be inconvenient when dealing with longer pieces...

[devbanana]

Are you planning to use a method book? I like Suzuki for that age group.

Yes I plan on using a method book, but wasn't sure what would be the best. Can you tell me what you like about the Suzuki method?

How visually impaired are you? Can you read any print music? I've heard that braille music is quite bulky, which must be inconvenient when dealing with longer pieces...

I have no vision at all. Yes braille music can get bulky, say about 4-6 braille pages per print page, but it's not all that bad.

[awesom_o]

I have no vision at all. Yes braille music can get bulky, say about 4-6 braille pages per print page, but it's not all that bad.

My goodness, for some of the works I'm studying, that would amount to over 500 pages!

I like the Suzuki method for various reasons. The progression of difficulty is quite rapid in book 1, and by the time you get to book 2, the music is by real composers, like Hummel, and Bach, and Schumann.

The beginning of book 1 is a little too difficult for MOST 5-year-old children, but with parental support, they get there eventually.

Most 7-8 year-old children find book 1 quite easy, and can master all of the pieces it contains within a year, as long as they practice every day.

I can't tell you everything about the Suzuki method, as it goes well beyond the scope of a single forum post. I studied the Suzuki method on several instruments as a child, and it has had a lasting impact on my lifelong love of music.

I don't teach JUST the Suzuki method, as I have many methods of my own to fill in the gaps which exist in ANY method.

[devbanana]

My goodness, for some of the works I'm studying, that would amount to over 500 pages!

Same here, trust me. Any kind of piano concerto is massive in braille. In that case they just split it into volumes.

I like the Suzuki method for various reasons. The progression of difficulty is quite rapid in book 1, and by the time you get to book 2, the music is by real composers, like Hummel, and Bach, and Schumann.

The beginning of book 1 is a little too difficult for MOST 5-year-old children, but with parental support, they get there eventually.

Most 7-8 year-old children find book 1 quite easy, and can master all of the pieces it contains within a year, as long as they practice every day.

I can't tell you everything about the Suzuki method, as it goes well beyond the scope of a single forum post. I studied the Suzuki method on several instruments as a child, and it has had a lasting impact on my lifelong love of music.

I don't teach JUST the Suzuki method, as I have many methods of my own to fill in the gaps which exist in ANY method.

Thank you. I will take a look.

[cometear]

I just started teaching as well and I have 5 students ranging from 9 - 14. I am in NO WAY a professional but I believe that I can share knowledge with those who would like it. I have taught them all by using the staff and using the Piano Adventures method book. I've only had them for a month. Keep in mind I teach the Taubman Approach so it is a slower start than other methods (such as the Suzuki). I'm not saying to teach the Taubman Approach but I would work at a slower and more traditional method than the Suzuki.

[luxuchu]

Hi,

I am a blind classical pianist who also teaches kids, college students, and adult students both piano, theory, and music history. What i find interesting about method books is how you use it. I usually would not stay with one method, rather, I would use the books to select rep for my students, encourage them to listen to the works, and encourage them to love the works. I am a strong believer that learning piano is part of learning about yourself and exploring yourself, and it doesn’t matter if I am teaching an 8 year old or an 80 year old. I do understand your concern about teaching sight reading. I like to introduce the idea of interval during the first lesson and use it as composition tools for the student to explore how to be expressive by using different intervals. Then we will figure out how to notate the music. As it’s probably a good idea to not write a whole article here, I will just share one more tip. I like to keep kids “busy” by introducing at least five short pieces in two weeks, so they feel confident and would have the encouragement to perform. For some students, I would try ten pieces in three weeks. The goal is not to make sure they can do everything right at first. I think the goal is for the student to enjoy making music and keep the interests going. Wrote to me at tonylu.piano@gmail.com should you have more questions.

Best,
Tony