When I first started teaching piano in the 80s, there were no blogs, webinars, or facebook groups for piano teachers. No downloadable teaching tools, no youtube videos. I started out armed with a notebook full of ideas from my pedagogy professor, a survey of the various methods on the market, and the 2-volume set of […]
Not Your Grandma’s Piano Lessons Read More »
This week’s ‘splainer video is intended for older students, piano parents, and piano teachers. If you have a child studying piano, or if you have people of varying heights all using the same piano bench, you need an adjustable model! Even adults of roughly the same height can need to sit at differing levels due
All About Adjustable Benches Read More »
In Part 1 of my returning to in-person teaching posts, I discussed my cleaning protocols for keeping students safe from germs in the studio. This post will discuss policies that I’ve created for students/families. First of all, I continue to offer online lessons for anyone who wants them. It’s not my preferred way to teach,
Returning to In-Person Lessons: Part 2 Read More »
My county, as of 8/8/20 – Harvard Global Health Initiative Well, piano friends, the schools in my county have been back in session for a week now. The elementary schools are open a full 5 days/week, and the middle and high schools are doing a hybrid of in-person and online. All of my piano students
Returning To In-Person Lessons: Part I Read More »
As I approach another one of those birthdays that starts with the number 5, I’m shocked to realize just how long I’ve been teaching piano. I opened my piano studio in 1987, almost 3 decades ago. I took about 3 years off during graduate school and when my daughter was a baby, but still, it’s
Reflecting on Nearly 3 Decades of Teaching: What Has Worked Read More »
The obvious answer to the question above is, “Of course!” But, I think it’s the wrong question. I like this question better: “Is learning its own reward?” I think the answer is “sometimes.” Usually, when I hear the question, I walk quickly away because I know the conversation is about to become heated as lines
Should Learning Be Its Own Reward? Read More »
1. Elissa Milne asks some provocative questions about creativity in Repertoire: A Well-Defined Or Ill-Defined Problem? 2. Tim Topham must have read my post a couple of weeks ago where I lamented that I often don’t know the music my students listen to and ask to play. He answered some of my questions in How
Whether you call it a Piano Festival, Achievement Day, or something else, an evaluation event is a great way to motivate your students. There are lots of reasons why you might want to host one just for your studio. Maybe you live in a rural area without a local music teachers association. Or maybe the
Ten Steps To Hosting Your Own Piano Festival Read More »
I like to give a small Christmas gift to my piano students each year. Since there are quite a few of them, I need to keep the price low, so crafting something is my usual solution. This year, I gave each student a really cute ornament. I found clear plastic ornaments at Michaels for half-price,
Christmas Presents for Students Read More »
I’m astounded to realize that it’s been over a year since I posted here. I guess I was busier than I realized! Two part-time jobs, a middle school-aged daughter, and too much responsibility with organizations I belong to caught up with me, especially when I started to add more frequent trips out of town to
Last Year’s Incentive Program: Earning Composer Cards Read More »
