Beginning piano lessons require a commitment from more than just the student. It takes the input of the entire family to raise a happy pianist.
Why? Because unlike other activities such as dance or soccer, the greatest amount of learning occurs BETWEEN times spent with the teacher/coach. Without support and quality practice time at home, students will not progress. Instead of finding piano enjoyable and confidence-building, they will become frustrated and discouraged, and start believing they’re not good at piano or even music in general. Not only does that waste the parent’s investment in lessons, it tragically creates a negative experience for the child, the exact opposite of what parents intend.
Because of the above, I expect the following from the families of my beginning piano students:
- Parents must be involved in attending and understanding as much of the lesson as they can (you don’t have to know music to follow along in beginning lessons). That means watching what student and teacher are doing, and taking notes to remember important points.
- Parents must directly supervise practice time—they will need to read/interpret instructions for the child, and redirect, encourage, monitor time, etc. For the 15 or more minutes the child practices, they need the parent’s full attention.
- The family must cooperate in ensuring there is quiet space and time for the student to practice (including turning off the TV, etc., if the piano is in the same room).
If you want your child to find joy and success in lessons, the above is absolutely necessary (it is a VERY RARE child who takes to the piano like a duck to water and goes swimming off alone immediately).
[For parents who are overwhelmed by the above, keep in mind this is just for beginning students. Numbers 1 and 2 above reduce over time, though greater parental involvement is almost always more positive than less. The typical student is pretty independent by age 8, though some students only need minimal supervision and support (mostly reminders to practice) by age 7.]