Welcome to my Q&A for piano pedagogy. I hope you'll find an answer here - - perhaps even the answer to a question you didn't know you had!

Read through list of questions before you e-mail me with a question, please. I receive a lot of the same things over and over, and because of my RSI I really want to save keystrokes and avoid answering the same questions again and again! Therefore, please read first to see if there's an answer to your question. E-mail me if you have a question I have not answered, or if you need clarification. This way I can answer more questions before my hands refuse to type!

As these questions are answered in order of receipt, there may be other answers that are germane to your question. Please check list of previous and following questions, as most of the time I have not cross-referenced one answer to another. For example, there are numerous questions/answers about method series; please read all of them before e-mailing me. (Use the "Find" feature in your browser, usually found under "Edit," to search on keywords in this QA file.)

Please also consult my pedagogy home page, as the answer might already be on my site. Thanks for your understanding about my RSI!

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I enrolled a student who had only an electronic keyboard on which to practice, with the proviso that the parents would buy a piano within the next several months. It's been a year, and still the child has no piano. What should I do? I hate to drop the girl; she's very good.

First of all, why has there been no forward progress on the piano? Do the parents not want to spend the money? Have they forgotten the bargain they made? Do they not know where to look to buy one? Do you think they might not want to spend the required money -at this time-? Maybe they're waiting (still) to see if the child "takes to piano" before moving on this? Maybe the student can shed some light on the situation. ("Has your mom or dad said anything about when they will get you a real piano?")

Eventually you must approach the parents. Don't be angry or accusative when you do this, of course. Go in with the attitude of "what can I do to help the student get what she needs?"

"Mrs. Jones, when I began teaching Margaret in (fill in month), we agreed that I would take her if you would have a real piano in the home by (fill in). It's now (fill in), and I want to ask you where you are in the process of getting a piano. Margaret says she's still practicing on the electronic keyboard."

Then be quiet and let her speak. Don't suggest possible excuses or prod her for potential answers.

She might say, "It's so expensive! We just can't afford to buy something right now."

Then you say, "I think we can solve that problem, but most important things first. Margaret is progressing very quickly. I'm so pleased with what's she's accomplished; and you are doing a wonderful job at home with her." Mrs. Jones beams. "She's now at the point, however," you continue, "where now she needs a real piano so she can begin to learn about piano touch. She can't do that on an electronic keyboard. She needs a real piano." [Assure the mom but say nothing specific yet; compliment her on the job she's doing; compliment the child; say why a real piano is needed now.]

"Now, as to solving the problem, it's very true that buying a piano - - a good piano - - for Margaret will require a sizable outlay of funds, so I suggest that you rent an instrument for her and then watch the newspaper for a good used instrument to buy. Since it may take a while to find just the right one, renting in the meantime gives Margaret what she needs, doesn't require a big expenditure, and allows you time to find the right piano."

You might also mention that "my piano tech" often has instruments he is restoring and then will sell. You offer to contact Ms. __ or give Mrs. Jones the contact info. In any event, you call your tech and explain what to expect when Mrs. Jones' calls.

In advance, you have located several music stores that rent instruments and have some ideas of prices. You also have called your favorite piano techs and asked them if they've seen anything recently that's a good buy under $X (make a guess as to what the family might pay, such as $3000).

I encourage you to tell Mrs. Jones -not- to "rent to buy" but just plain rent. (Rent-to-buy deals often are set up so the rental fee applies -only- to the piano that is rented and currently in the home, not anything in the store; in this way, the salesperson "chooses" the piano for the family!)

Anyhow, you say, "I know Ms. Smith at Smith's Pianos and have sent many students to her. Why don't you call her and ask what she has now in the way of rental pianos? You should be able to get something for about $30 a month. Now, it won't be a beautiful piece of furniture because it's a rental instrument, but it -will- be a real piano. Margaret needs a real piano right now, so you can take your time in locating an appropriate instrument - - probably a good used one - - later. In fact, I talked to Mr. Roberts at Roberts Piano Service. I've sent students to him, too, and if you call him and tell him what you want and about how much you want to spend, he'll keep his eye out for one and call you when he finds something he thinks might be what you're seeking."

Try to get a time commitment out of Mrs. Jones as to when she'll call about the rental if she doesn't say something like, "I'll call today." I'd say further procrastination (another six months, say) means that they don't intend to fulfill their part of the bargain any time in the near future. Re-evaluate whether you want to keep Margaret on these terms.

It may be just me, but I don't like the pieces in the beginners books (by Alfred, etc.) that use left-hand triads for accompaniment. I feel the effect is too "thick". I prefer either one or two notes, with a simple right-hand melody line. Or, in some cases, one note in the left hand, with two in the right. How do you feel about this?

As you will read in many of the answers that follow, I generally do not like "method book" songs because, simply put, they are not good music. They are contrived to drive home some pedagogical point. Particularly in books II and above, the amount of work required to get a decent performance comes nowhere near being matched by the musical value of the piece.

I don't use method books. (I have the same complaint about a lot of intermediate books out there by many of today's composers. The work required doesn't have a concomitant musical payoff. But that's another story!)

As to triads' being too thick, yes, I agree with you. It's also a case of three-against-one, as far as being able to hear the melody.

Another BIG drawback to triads-only accompaniments is that the student never learns to read two-voice music, which is a huge stumbling block when it comes to playing Bach or other contrapuntal composers. I prefer to start with the more difficult approach--that is, 2-voice music - - and add triad-accompaniment pieces later. It's much easier to do this than to go the reverse direction; my experience with transfer students has borne this out.

And now you are wondering what I -do- use for my beginners. I use my own arrangements of folk songs from around the world, American patriotic songs, and music of the masters. I use medieval and Renaissance European music, too; this stuff has lots of rhythmic shifts, changes in meters, and other good things that shouldn't wait until the intermediate stage to play. It's just as easy to teach Point A and Point B using a melody of Mozart's than some pedagogue's, and the student is the richer for it.

This all came about (many years ago - - ahem) when one of my beginners announced that she wanted to play "Für Elise." After initially dismissing the idea (the child had been studying piano about 3 months!), I thought about it and decided, Why not? So I arranged the first section for her with the melody divided between the hands (starting on one-line E in the RH and using six-four as the time signature). No accompaniment, just melody.

This was an instant hit with her and with the other students to whom I offered it. (The parents commented that they heard "Für Elise" for 20 minutes or more daily. Wasn't there another section? So, I wrote that out, and at least we had an ABA form.)

This reception got me thinking that maybe this was the way to go. The more I used these materials, the more convinced I was, and I embarked on a journey (I'm still on it!) to find good literature with the span of x notes. I have since developed a filing cabinet full of it. And it's all in quarter-notes as the smallest note-value, since I believe that eighth-notes should be withheld until the child can read 3 octaves and is in at least 4th grade. Some particulars: the first "real song" my beginners play is the theme from the second movement of Chopin's piano sonata ("Funeral March"); it uses only 3 pitches (small a through one-line c [Middle C]). After the Chopin, we continue through Bach(s), Mozart(s), Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Kabalevsky, Debussy, Ravel, Henry VIII, Byrd, Bull, Offenbach, Carr, Saint-Saëns, Clementi, Grieg, Türk, Dvorák, Pachelbel, Rameau, Machaut, Josquin, etc. You can do develop your own teaching materials, too, and I highly recommend it. Your students will benefit from it, but it's a heck of a lot of fun to search and a great way to stretch your own abilities as a teacher.

See also question 15 and question 115 for information on how evaluate available method series, with an eye to making your own (or at least extending and repairing the one you are currently using).

My students are doing fine so far, except for one girl, in grade one, who is not progressing as quickly as her best friend, who started at the same time as she did. They have been practicing together often, and have tried 'duets' - - playing the same piece together, one high and one low. They encourage each other greatly. Should I accelerate the slower one's lessons to help her catch up, while I slow down the other? I don't feel this is quite fair, but I believe that if I can't get them at the same level, the first one, although she would probably do well at piano, may drop out because she is discouraged. What do you think of this situation?

For your situation, I suggest finding duets that are of different levels. If you can't find them, you'll have to write them yourself. Folk songs and holiday pieces are great fodder for this. For example, take Student B and give her the melody up an octave; take the more accomplished student (A) and write her a new accompaniment down an octave. I do this all the time. I make frequent use of 8va and 8vb (also 15ma and 22da), introducing these concepts early (Halloween is an especially good time to do this - - plenty of spooks in the upper registers and clomping goblins in the lower ones). Make sure student B doesn't always get the melody; give it to student A half the time. That way both students learn to bring out the melody when they have it and subjugate the accompaniment when they have that. This should keep everyone happy.

Save a photocopy of your creations because this problem will turn up again (ex: siblings, one of whom started after the other; or child and parent who play).

You -can- do this. It's easier than you think. And even if your efforts at first wouldn't rate a publisher's glance, your students won't mind a bit and will be thrilled with pieces that you created just for them. Write "For Amy and Karen" on the duet for them. Maybe they'd like to title it themselves? If they are hesitant, encourage them. Maybe offer a topic (not a specific title). "How about something about animals?"

A student whom I began teaching last year had had lessons from another teacher in town, but he moved away and I was the only available teacher, so I agreed to teach her. I soon found that although she had appeared to be playing at a Grade 2 (Royal Conservatory) and had learned several songs by rote, she could not even point out where on the page she was at a given time! As a very inexperienced teacher who is still learning, I began to give her songs from a simplified classics book and exercises from a Dozen a Day book. Since then I have realized that perhaps I should have started at the very beginning for her, as she still is not fluent in note-reading.

This is a big problem in the States, too, I assure you! I think the root of it is that teachers feel obligated to produce "results" for parents (though sometimes for colleagues) or for a competition: that is, the child can play a recognizable tune. Thus, the teachers (and/or parents) push the child beyond comfortable limits; the child must compensate by learning the song any way she can - - many by "ear" and others by "hand position" ("this song is in G hand position and I start with finger three;" rather than "this song starts on B") and others by how their hands look at the keyboard. None of these is even a half-way good substitute for note-reading. I am a real bear about this; there is no substitute for note-reading. Period.

Ok, now what to do. Usually a student who has used these make-shift techniques knows it and knows she's doing it rather than reading. In my experience, these folks are exceedingly relieved when I say, "Hmmm. It seems that you aren't reading as fluently as the level of your pieces suggests you should." Student: "You're right. I don't read very well." Me: "What do you say we embark on a specialized program of reading for a couple of weeks until your reading is better? Then we'll go back to pieces." Student (obviously relieved that finally help is at hand): "Ok!" Then I go back to the pieces in my files that I have arranged and make a guess as to the real reading level that student has. I bring several pieces to the piano and say, "I'm just guessing. Maybe these will be too hard and maybe too easy, so you let me know." This sets the tone so the student knows she is supposed to give me honest input and that we will work together to solve her problem. Eventually we find the right level.

Maybe we even have to go back to square one. That's ok because the student has bought into the program and knows she can't read worth beans. "Ok, so we start over. That way we both know you haven't missed anything along the way. And these first songs will be really easy for you. Is this ok with you?" Note that the student is a partner in the endeavor; I am a facilitator, not "Moses on the Mount." (This is just my teaching approach; yours may be different, and that's ok, too!)

I would suggest, therefore, that you find out at what level the student truly reads and back up a tad before that and work from there. It would be good to preface this with a little heart-to-heart talk with the student (and maybe the parent - - at the same time or later, in the way of a conference). Make sure you indicate -quite clearly- that the fault is -not- the student's (but don't cast stones at the previous teacher, either! Don't even mention the previous teacher; the parent can draw his own conclusions.).

After the student is once again reading fairly well, don't abandon this element of the assignment. Give the child a sight-reading assignment to do daily to make sure she continues to progress well.

As an aside, you might also think about putting Dozen a Day on the shelf for a while, too. Those have quite an advanced note-reading range (rhythmic range, too), and you might do better with something more like John Schaum's Finger Power (Primer level only; the other levels have a large note-reading range that don't square with the technique being presented in them).

Also consider exercises you dream up yourself specifically for her needs. An adult student of mine was having difficulty with legato parallel thirds, so I wrote a bunch of devilish combinations for his pleasure; they're now called "Pete's Perils" and other students have them on their assignments! No matter what you devise for one student, you are sure to use it for one or twenty more students, so consider such time -well- spent! And keep a copy for yourself!

More at question 50 and question 51.

I have taught piano for about 1 1/2 years to 6 beginners, but now I am floundering. I am an elementary school teacher on leave while I raise my kids. I had about 9 years of lessons, accompanied choirs and church services on piano and organ, and now play a Korg x-3 for worship services, but I have very little theory knowledge and even less idea how to teach beyond beginners. I want to be able to give my students a better basis than I got as a student. Do you have any suggestions for me? I thought about taking lessons myself from a certified teacher or taking a college class.

It is my opinion that beginners deserve the best teacher they can get because not only is the teacher giving them the technical foundation (how to hold their hands, how to read notes, count, and maintain a steady pulse) but ALSO is setting their life-long attitudes about music, music study, and also certain practice aids (such as a metronome, counting out loud, reading ahead, etc.). Since you acknowledge that your skills are lacking at this time, I suggest that you teach early intermediate level students until you are ready to teach beginners and other levels. Early intermediates already can read (at least we hope they can!), have the basic ideas of different tempi and dynamic levels, know some practice techniques, and so on. You already have a "shared vocabulary" and there's no need to invent the dictionary with these students, whereas this is a major part of teaching beginners.

Also, I'd advise you to call the local president of the music teachers' group. Look in the phone book; ask at print music stores and piano dealers. Someone will be able to direct you to this person eventually. Join this group - - maybe as a student member if a degree is required for full membership - - and go to meetings all the time. Learn. Talk with colleagues.

Read the music (piano) journals. This will help a lot, too.

I'm very impressed that you recognize the shortcomings of your preparation and want to improve yourself. Good luck! You can do it!

See also Question 122.

I am teaching a student whose mother is very critical. The mother publicly puts down her daughter's playing and effort. She tells her daughter that her playing is pitiful. It is all done in a "joking" manner, but I believe that it really damages my efforts to promote motivation in the student. The student doesn't seem to mind (I'm sure that she is used to it), but I believe that the student needs a positive environment if she is going to learn. I have told the mother that I believe her daughter needs lots of encouragement and affirmation even for the small accomplishments she makes. That didn't seem to change anything. I am leery to flat out tell the mother that her critical manner is damaging her daughter's progress. Do you have any suggestions?

I have been tackling the subject of practice habits lately, and I'm never quite sure just how to handle a child, at a lesson, where it's obvious he or she hasn't touched the piano in 5 or 6 days. Do you lecture or what? Sometimes I'm wary that a home problem may be involved, and I hesitate to come down too hard.

If the problem is not antipathy toward piano playing, I then try to find out if the problem is that practicing is "getting in the way" of fun things. This is the case 97% of the time! I reiterate what I said at the interview, which is that for the child, schoolwork is the most important thing. I expect her to complete her schoolwork first thing when she comes home. Then she must play piano (I try not to say "practice"). THEN she may watch TV, talk on the phone, go out and play, etc. At the interview we've already discussed that some days when homework is so heavy or there's a dentist's appointment after school or some other reason she can't control that means a lot of time spent at the books. By the time piano is done, it's time for supper and bed with no play time. I remind the student of this conversation. Generally, the student will remember this conversation. I then ask whether she's been following this time management plan. If not, I ask if she can do better next week or if there are questions. How can she do better? Are there some things that give her problems every day? How can we work together to solve this problem?

Sometimes I have to use the "Those to whom much is given, much is expected" idea. True, this is a dose of guilt. Really bright kids often have terribly overloaded schedules; they can handle it if they're careful about time management, but most of the time, time management skills are new to them, and they're not very good at them. I go over the schoolwork-first-then-piano philosophy. In nearly all cases (98% and upward), it's a time-management problem: the child doesn't want to get on with bingo but takes a detour by way of the telephone. But who has not done this? And who among us adults doesn't wish she could do that just about all the time?

To answer your question directly, I'd let it slide the first time. It may have been a bad week; we all have them. If it happens the next week or one shortly after the first one, don't let it slide. Address it immediately, even if the parent is in the room. If the student knows you expect her best, she'll try to give it to you because you'll call her on it if she gives less than this. If she thinks she can hoodwink you, she'll try this when it suits her purposes. If the pattern is random but happens with fair regularity, I would also address the problem as soon as you decide it -is- a problem.

The parent is paying good money and making the effort to get the child to lessons. You are giving a spot in your schedule to the child; when your time's gone, there isn't any more. The child must learn to honor commitments made. I'd say that for everyone's good you should address the problem as soon as you see it.

I am teaching a 49-year-old beginner who had four teachers before me. Her progress seems very slow. What am I doing wrong? How can I help her learn faster? Her note-reading is note-by-note instead of patterns, too.

My advice is not to push. Be sure she has a solid foundation in note reading and counting (you might even want to use unit counting instead of meter counting). Rhythm may be this student's major difficulty, especially as she had four other teachers prior to you; the woman has now been required to use four (now five!) different approaches to counting.

That she reads note-by-note suggests she cannot read well. No one really can teach a student to read by taking in whole patterns (Gestalt reading) because each student comes to this skill using her own logic and perception and in her own good time. As this student is not a sophisticated musician, don't worry that thus far she still reads note-by-note.

Put your student on a concentrated regimen of sight-reading, paring back other elements of her assignment to focus her attention on it. Accompany this with rhythmic drills using quarter notes and rests: first divided between the hands, then with two hands playing different parts, and finally as duets of different material with you. Make the early drills extremely easy; remember you are teaching notation recognition (types of notes, rests) as well as rhythmic consistency. Progress slowly, with frequent repetition, before adding new material so you can identify the exact point where her understanding or facility breaks down. These drills will help her hold her own rhythmically and develop confidence in her ability.

After a month of two, start simple duets using no note values smaller than quarter notes. Only when she is completely comfortable with quarter-notes should you introduce eighths. This may take a year or more, so be patient. For eighth-notes, use the same three-part strategy of sight-reading, rhythm drills, and duets. Also give her pieces to prepare on her own that are two levels below her current ability; as she improves, raise this to only one level below.

Adults who seem to have no innate sense of rhythm do catch on eventually. I have taught adult students who took years and years to develop a firm rhythmic sense, despite great facility at note-reading. Do not communicate to her any of the frustration or impatience you feel about her progress. If she senses that you are dissatisfied or frustrated with her, she may substitute a faulty personal system for true note- and rhythm-reading. You don't want that! (That's probably what she's been doing!)

Each student is different, and this student is learning at a speed that feels comfortable to her. Her slow progress does not mean that either of you has failed. If she is happy with her progress and practicing daily the minimum amount you require, you must accept her rate of progress.

I want to earn a master's degree in pedagogy. I have already taught while a bachelor's candidate and find I like it very much! Unfortunately, there are no pedagogy studies at a graduate level in Canada. Can you tell me which schools in the US are good? I hope I can afford to study there! I would like to think that I would become more in demand once I return to Canada with my Master of Music in Piano Pedagogy (and Performance).

Is it possible for a group learning situation to be as effective as a one-on-one environment? Would some students be hindered? Others bored?

More below.

Do you feel it is helpful or harmful for a child to study for upwards of one year with the idea that their pieces are "in C position" or "in G position" without any other type of playing?

Children - - adults too, of course - - should read notes! It doesn't matter if that note is played with the RH, LH, or the nose. That dot on the staff is location-specific to a place on the keyboard.

This is why I do not like "multi-key" beginner approaches: the student is busy thinking, "This song is in G position and I start on my third finger" rather than, "That's a B." And how is he going to find the starting note if that song is in F position? Either the teacher must tell him or he must wait for a heavenly vision! (More on multi-key problems in other entries here.)

What is the best way to introduce minor keys to beginning students? When? Is it necessary to go into depth in theory explanations? How much explanation is valuable?

As a matter of course, do you have your students study triads? By this, I mean play them. (I like hand-over-hand ones and work through all 48, starting with the majors and minors by key signature - - that is, no sharps or flats, one sharp, one flat, two sharps, two flats, etc; the augmented and diminished I assign chromatically. My students also "build" all the triads.) If your students do study triads, then they can see for themselves that major triads have 4 half-steps between root and third (always speak of it as "4 half-steps -away-") while minors have 3 half-steps. This makes the minor triads sound different. Can they hear the difference? (I have a file on ear training for beginners which also may be helpful.)

If you want to go farther, and at some point you'll need to, discuss how scales are built. Major and minor scales have a different arrangement of whole- and half-steps. I like to have my students derive scales. This way they see -why- certain keys have "the black notes" they do. You can tie this in with study of relative major and minor.

See my discussion of this question 190. About the 2nd year - - or after students have mastered enough triads so they can identify them in the music--most beginner pieces are in the simple keys - - start to ask them to identify the key of the piece. Not by looking at the key signature but by -analyzing the final chord-, which is always more reliable. Then point out the key signature. They will find some songs in minor keys, so then you ask them to find the raised leading tone and point that out. You reiterate why that's there, etc. (That is, the raised leading tone preserves the half-step relationship between the 7th degree of the scale and the upcoming tonic which is found in major keys; the reason the half-step relationship is important is because the 7th degree sounds unstable; it "wants" to resolve upward to the tonic; a full step, which is in the pure/natural minor scale, is static and "feels no urgency" to resolve).

When you come to a new song, one of the first things to do - - before a note is played - - is to ask the student to determine the key. And then always ask, "Why?", regardless of whether the answer is correct or not. The student should be able to tell you how he arrived at the conclusion. In this way, he cements the reasoning in his memory and can apply it whenever he likes. If he memorizes some "trick" and forgets the trick, he is skunked. Of course, he might say, "I just guessed," which means you need to re-do the explanation in an entirely different fashion until the student understands.

I recently got an adult student, and I don't have a lot of experience with adult students. My student can read treble clef only. What do I do for the first lesson? What kind of material do I use? Do method books for adults work? Which series do you suggest?

As to materials, I think you'll have to write stuff out for him. I know of no book that is designed for this. (This would be a good niche in the market for -you- to fill!) You might be able to glean LH materials from a variety of method books, though. As this would be a huge expense for the student, especially if the rest of the materials were unsuitable, so I suggest lending him your books. (Photocopying just the songs you want him to play is illegal, of course.)

Start writing songs in 5-finger position-and in only one position. I recommend C for LH (C for RH, too). You'd be surprised at how many songs are in the 5-finger position: Beethoven's Ode to Joy, Mary Had a Little Lamb, Jingle Bells, Bluebird Waltz, first theme from Dvorák's "Largo" (New World Symphony), Lightly Row, Dreidle, As I Was Out Walking the Streets of Laredo, When the Saints Go Marching In, etc. Also look at the duets by Diabelli from Op. 149; the primo parts are all 5-finger position pieces; transpose to C where needed; convert rhythm so smallest note value is the quarter-note. Some other tunes fall in the 5-finger range but don't use all the notes (such as Hot Cross Buns, part of Frère Jacques, theme from Chopin's Funeral March, etc.).

As to method books, the reason I began arranging my own materials eons ago is that I do not care for method books. There have been many new ones published, but I still find the tunes to be musical deserts because they are written solely for a pedagogical purpose; and I feel that method books introduce eighth-notes far too early. I therefore can't recommend any method books to you. How about talking to your local music store and to members of your local teachers' group about what they use? Sorry I'm no help here!

Another thing I do to reinforce bass clef reading is with the technique book by Aloys Schmitt (Preparatory Exercises for Piano, Op. 16). Right out of the box, I ask my students to read the LH part only; and I -paint out- the right-hand part so they cannot inadvertently fall back on old habits. So my folks read bass clef only through exercise #33. I tell them that "reading bass clef for these 3 pages" means they will never have trouble reading bass clef again. And it's true!

How do you set a metronome to correspond to time signature?

I have two questions. (1) I am a college student who taught beginning piano students as a high school student. I would like to continue teaching because I found it so enjoyable and fulfilling. Several of my students went on to other teachers when I left for college, and I have received very favorable comments on my instruction of these students from their new teachers. I was accepted into the piano performance and pedagogy program at my university but was unable to continue becuse of severe tendonitis. I wondered if it would be acceptable for me to teach piano to beginning students? I am not currently working toward a music degree because of my RSI. I know I am not as qualified as some, but I have a strong foundation in theory, sight-reading and sight-singing, and other important areas. (2) Is there a particular series of books (perhaps you have written a series?) that you recommend for using for beginning students. I have used various books, the Alfred series, Finger Power (Schaum), Clementi, etc., but I haven't found a series or combination I really like.

Have you read the other pedagogy files on my web page? If not, please do and then examine which of what I said coincides with what your theory of teaching is and what you think is important for students to learn. That will give you at least a jumping-off place for designing your own teaching materials.

See also question 2 and question 115 for information on content of "my series."

Also look at all the method series and write down what you like and don't like about each. This will further refine your ideas. Then see if there is a series that is a close approximation to what you'd like. (For example, I didn't like the poor quality music and the fact that eighth-notes were introduced -way- too early! So, my first three "books" are all quarter-note-based.)

Also, what series did you use before? Did it suit you at all? What would you have changed about it? Is there enough good material in there to justify having the student purchase the book? (Remember, you cannot photocopy!)

Sometimes a book will have a bunch of useful things in it. Feel free to skip over the useless aspects. Also feel free to use an opaqueing fluid. I use it in abundance to paint out editorial markings I know are wrong (or feel so), excess fingering, etc., etc. Remember, you know your students best, not some editor.

Probably you will end up selecting the method series that does the least damage, in your estimation, and supplementing it with materials you have arranged

I am a senior in college and have been teaching about 1 1/2 years, through the pedagogy program at my college. This week is my last lesson with students I have taught for the past year and a half. It's so hard to see them go and not know if they will be able to continue. I will be doing an internship next semester, during which I will have the opportunity to teach lessons, as well. I am unsure if I should or not, because I would only have the students for about 5 months. What do you think?

I have been playing the piano for over 13 years now, and I'd like to try my hand at teaching in the near future. I have no idea where to start teaching a student who has never touched a piano before. How does one begin to teach a young child the piano? Where do I start?

Second, sit down and decide what you want to impart to your students. Physical skills? Attitudes? (Go to the pedagogy section of my home page for some files on these topics.)

Also, why are you teaching? Money? Stop-gap job until "something real" comes along or until you "go to ___"? (Try the business section of my home page for files on these and other business topics for beginning teachers.)

What ages do you have in mind to teach? Young beginners have special needs. Older beginners, who have been in school already, are not quite as vulnerable. You also might be interested in my file Pedagogical Guidelines Based on Age and Achievement Level. I also recommend some reading in child psychology and learning theory (how people learn; different kinds of learning processes different people use; how you must adjust your teaching to the student's method of learning. I have found the Myers-Briggs Temperament Inventory (usually called "the Myers-Briggs") to be of tremendous help. There's file on learning and teaching styles which includes a link to a boiled-down version of this test available free and on-line.

And you'll need a method book or some other beginner materials. Many teachers use Alfred; please hold off on the eighth-notes. Just skip over those songs entirely or convert the eighth-note pairs to a quarter-note. (Play that part of the melody both ways; it will be pretty easy to tell which note to make into the quarter and which to discard.)

I also advise you to stay away from pre-notation or one of the really unusual and non-mainstream notational systems (such as Lo-No-Play).

It is my opinion that beginners need the -best- teacher they can find, so since you are untried and untrained to teach, I would recommend that you seek intermediate students instead of beginners. These people would have at least some of the skills down (counting, note-reading, etc.), and it will be easier for you both since you'll have something there to build on.

You do not state your age or whether you've had any college training in another area. I would suggest that you contact the local teachers' group and join. Try to find a mentor teacher. Ask if you can observe some lessons before you try to do it by yourself. If there are appropriate courses at the local junior college or university, enroll in those. And of course, keep up your own private study with an excellent teacher; the more you know about the instrument and its literature, the better teacher you will be.

I recently got an adult student, and I don't have a lot of experience with adults. My student played saxophone and clarinet in high school, but he can read only treble clef. What do I do for the first lesson? What kind of material do I use? Will method books for adults work? What are the good series that you will suggest for me to use?

You'll have to write stuff out for him. I know of no book that is designed for this; good niche in the market for you to fill! Start with stuff in 5-finger position--only one position. I recommend F for LH (and C for RH). This will help him see the connection between the staves, as (after you start the treble clef review), Middle C will be the common note.

There are lots of songs in a five-finger pattern: "Mary Had a Little Lamb," Jingle Bells," "Oats, Peas, Beans, and Barley Grow," "When the Saints Go Marching In," "Ode to Joy," "Lazy Mary," "Go, Tell Aunt Rhody," etc. (If you pursue this, I encourage you to use quarter notes as the smallest note value! You will discover that what "normally" fills one measure (when using eighths) must be spread over two measures. No problem! This is beginner stuff! You are not exactly replicating the original; you are making a beginner arrangement.)

I cannot recommend any adult method books. I don't use them. I don't like the pacing or the material chosen. A lot of teachers use Alfred, however. Sorry I'm not a lot of help with this!

Incidentally, all those songs in the five-finger pattern are great to use to introduce transposition!

What is the best way to introduce minor keys to beginning students? When do you think it should be done? Is it necessary to go into depth in theory explanations? How much explanation is valuable?

If you mean figuring out the key signature and noting the raised leading tone [LT], then you'd have to talk about relative majors and minors. I'd start out by talking about triads. As a matter of course, do you have your students study triads? By this, I mean play them. (I use hand-over-hand triads to start.) If so, then they can see for themselves that major triads have four half-steps between the root and third while minors have three half-steps. This makes the triads sound different. Can they hear the difference? (It's never too early to start ear-training.)

If you want to go farther, and at some point you'll need to, discuss how scales are built. Major and minor scales have a different arrangement of whole and half steps. I like to have my students derive scales for themselves at the lesson. This way they see -why- certain keys have the accidentals they do. You can tie this in with relative major and minor, too.

About the 2nd year - - or after they have mastered enough triads so they can identify them in the music - - start to ask them to identify the key of the piece. Most beginner pieces are in the simple keys. This should not be done by looking at the key signature (and, heavens!, not by any of those count back one flat systems!), but by analyzing the final chord, which is always more reliable. Then point out the key signature. They will find some songs in minor keys, so then you ask them to find the raised LT and point that out. You reiterate why that's there, noting the high incidence of that accidental, etc.

(Note: About 5% of pieces do change keys. A good example is Bach's Prelude in C Minor/G Major, BWV 999.)

Big leaps, usually in the left hand, are so hard to play. Any suggestions on how to teach them?

There are four approaches to piano methods generally recognized: 1 - Middle C (such as J. Thompson, Schaum, M. Aaron), 2 - Multiple Key (such as Robert Pace, Bastien), 3 - Intervalic (such as Music Tree or Music Discoveries), and 4 - Modified or Eclectic (combining features the first three; such as Keys for the Kingdom or Faber and Faber). What do you think are the strengths and weaknesses of each approach? What differences do you think I'd see in a student after two or three years of study in the various methods?

I'm flattered that you think so highly of me that you want me to do your research project for you! (1) I point you to my voluminous comments elsewhere in this file, plus germane materials that you can access through my pedagogy front door. (2) I will say some things you may quote in your paper, provided you give me proper attribution.

My preference is for the Middle C approach because I think it promotes good body balance (centering) on the bench and good reading - - true reading. In my opinion, the multiple key approach is the weakest, as students to do not learn to read but devise "alternatives methods" for each song since they are not in any one "position" long enough to read well in it. Every student who has ever come to me in a multi-key method series cannot read. Every single one of them. Anecdotal, to be sure, but damning, in my opinion, just the same. Intervalic seems "strange" to students. Steps and skips can be seen readily, but soon the student parts ways with this concept. "A fourth? Huh? A skip + a step? Really? Gosh, that's hard to see, isn't it?" Assuming an eclectic method chose the best from each of the other three, then this would be superior.

I have very little positive to say about method books except that they give the inexperienced teacher some guidance as to what might be presented and in what order. A college-educated teacher should have her/his own ideas about what needs to be presented and what printed matter will do the job. A method, by definition, is based on the norm. And what student fits "the norm?"

Now you know a little of what I think. What do you think? By doing your own work, you will learn what is important to you. I highly recommend it!

I have come up with some problems in interpreting Clementi's Gradus ad Parnassum. Would you please give me your opinion?

If you are looking for etudes, I like Czerny's Op. 821, which is a collection of 8-measure-long etudes. I like them because they are short!!! Students can finish them in a week or two. For lower level students, Czerny has other books. (I do not use the "velocity" books, however. Students play them too fast, and technique goes downhill insted of getting better!)

I have recently written a small collection of harpsichord pieces, my first for that instrument. (1) Is it true that there is little the performer can do to alternate between fortes and pianos, other than to add a rank of strings or eliminate one (or use a damping function)? (2) My inclination is to include performance indications in terms of fortes and pianos, along with crescendos and diminuendos, if for no other reason than to indicate the character intended for the music. Would this be of any use at all to the performer, or would it simply be seen as a visual encumbrance to score?

(1) Yes, more or less, true. The harpsichord is a plucked instrument, not a percussion one. No matter how "loud" or "soft" you try to play, the sound is not affected. It has been said the harpsichord is an "instrument of artifice." To play forte, you would arpeggiate chords, add ornaments, double roots and fifths, in addition to adding another rank of strings. Another possibility is offered by only a double-manual harpsichord: couple one manual to the other.

To play piano on a harpsichord, thin the texture, keep the voices close to each other and avoid doubling, and of course, remove any extra ranks or coupled manuals.

There is no generalized damping function such as the damper pedal on a piano. When you lift your finger from the key, the jack falls and the damper makes contact with the string. If there is any sound remaining from the pluck, the damper stops it.

The jack is the vertical piece of plastic (although it could be wood) that is sent upwards to pluck the string when the key is depressed. Attached to the jack is a piece of felt. This is the damper.

A further note on harpsichord mechanics: The part which does the plucking is called the plectrum. You will see that the plectrum is "hinged" in the jack. When the key is depressed and the string plucked, the plectrum is also above the string. Therefore the key must return to its original position in order to pluck again. If the plectrum does not fall below the string (the "hinge" allows this to happen), the string will not sound again if the key is depressed. This "problem" was "solved" by the piano's action.

There are other tone colors on most harpsichords, such as a buff stop, lute stop, etc. For example, a buff stop is a "rank" of bits of leather that can be moved to rest against a rank of strings. This changes the tone color of the strings when plucked.

(2) Not only are such markings a visual encumbrance, but a gross error. Omit these markings entirely! They will give the player no information at all! In fact, if you put these in your score, you lose credibility immediately! A harpsichordist would question whether you knew very much about the instrument for which you had written.

Based on your query, I question this, too.

And now something you will doubtless find insulting. -Do- you know the harpsichord? It sounds very much as though you do not.

It sounds to me as though you chose the harpsichord for the wrong reason. Perhaps it had the tessitura or color you needed for your ideas. Perhaps you selected it for its "novelty" value.

It sounds, however, as though you have just plugged in your ideas, rather like an orchestration homework assignment. You have written a suite for harpsichord and do not know the basics of how it makes music?!!

My -exceedingly strong- recommendation is to spend some time with a harpsichord. Only by being familiar with it can you write effectively for it. Writing effectively for this instrument is not like taking an orchestration course, where basically all you have to do is check that the notes you want to assign lie within the instrument's range/capability and then rely on whim/artistry as to which instrument is assigned the melody and which the accompaniment notes.

(Orchestrators: I know I have grossly over-simplied how orchestration is done. Please forgive me!)

The character of the music must be implicit in the notes, counterpoint, voicing, etc. when writing for the harpsichord. This makes is quite a bit more demanding than writing for piano!

Contact your local university and ask for practice time; or perhaps someone in your community can point you toward a private citizen with an instrument in the home (try the local orchestra conductor, choral conductor, and music directors of churches with good music programs; the local organ and piano instructors are another source). You'd better start looking in the want-ads and check with builders for an instrument to buy because you're sure to fall in love with it!

For now, rename this composition as a suite for piano. You can write a real suite for harpsichord when you understand how the instrument works and "plays."

Do you devise detailed lesson plans every week for every student? Do you think this is very essential? And what do you feel about keeping track of practice times? I feel this is a waste of time, but some teachers I have met insist on it? What do you think?

As to practice minutes, no. Never. There is a file somewhere on my site that deals with this. Look on the pedagogy front door.

If what other teachers do seems stupid or busy work to you, don't do it! You don't owe anyone any explanation of what you do or how. How you run your business is up to you.

I have a 7-year-old student who is a bright girl, but she is having difficulty learning to read notes on the staff and knowing which keys they represent on the keyboard. What can I do to help her? I have been teaching for almost a year, and she has been with me the whole time. Her method book does quite a bit of pre-staff notation, in which she was allowed to choose any octave, and now she doesn't seem to understand that Middle C represents only one key on the keyboard.

(1) If I'm writing music, how I can copyright it by myself? (2) If I want to have it copyrighted by a professional, how do I go about doing that? (3) Is there a difference between the two besides the price? (4) How much would it cost to get a song copyrighted?

(1) Your song is copyrighted -as soon as- you set it down on paper. All you have to do to invoke copyright protection is put your song in some kind of concrete format.

(2) I think you're confused with registering a copyright. You don't need anyone else to do it for you. There's no mystery: you fill out the form and send the money. You don't need an "interpreter." Refer to that section on my music copyright page for information about where to get the form.

(3) These questions are addressed in the link above.

(4) Zero. Copyright is automatic as soon as you write the song down. It's free. Registration costs a small fee ($20-$25 these days, I think - - I haven't checked recently).

I recently began teaching piano out of my home and hope to make this my career. I studied privately for 12 years but did not major in music in college. (I have a BA and an MA in the sciences.) I fear that I'm not very qualified to teach. I currently have 7 students, all beginners. I want to be able to give my students the best foundation I possibly can. What can I do to better myself and give myself more confidence as a teacher short of going back to college for a BA in music? I have tendinitis and fear I will not be able to do a BA in piano, physically. Is there anything I can do sort of in lieu of a degree?

Yes, there are things you can do, but eventually, I think you will want some college-level music study. Perhaps you would like to switch to harpsichord or organ? Meanwhile, take all precautions to guard against flare-ups of RSI.

Here are some suggestions in improve your teaching skills:

Join your local music teachers' group. Here you will find experienced and collegial friends. You'll recognize almost immediately those whose advice you will trust. Ask them about specific pedagogical questions you have. If you don't know where the group is, ask at any retail music store or instrument dealer.

Go to the group's meetings and listen to the speakers. If you can, go to conventions and listen and participate.

Listen to a lot of music - - not just piano music - - listen to vocal, orchestral, woodwind quintets, string quartets, etc.

If you are not currently singing in a group, find a civic chorus or church choir and join it. You'll become familiar with the masterworks of the vocal repertoire and also learn a lot about phrasing, feminine endings, and general musicianship. (If the best choir in town is not your church denomination, I'd suggest backing your ears and joining anyway.) There also may be a civic chorus at your local college or junior college. The more you know, the better a teacher you'll be.

Look into classes at your local college or junior college and see what's there for you. I'd advise classes in applied piano (hope your tendinitis is better!), music history, theory, form and analysis, and music literature (not just piano lit). When there's time, take a pedagogy class. My opinion is that pedagogy can be covered fairly quickly - - that is, learning the basics - - of course, it takes a lifetime to get that learning polished and in place in your studio - - but more "core material" will serve you better than "how-to" material. For example, you benefit more from a class in music history than one in the history of education.

Think back on all the teachers you've ever had and make two lists: what they did effectively (and apply whatever is applicable to your own students/classes) and wretchedly (and avoid that!).

How much does a university job pay? What are the hours? How should I dress? Do I need a doctorate?

The particulars of dress, hours, pay will be available from the college/university in question. I'd say, though, don't expect to get rich! You need a doctorate these days to be competitive.

I am looking for creative ways to teach children.

Here, you must be inventive. You know your students better than anyone else. And you know the content of your curriculum. You really can't rely on someone to have something that's prepackaged and that also "works" in your studio. You have to do it on your own. Actually, all that prepackaged stuff is what the writers worked up for their own studios; it is therefore very slanted. And we would be suspect if it weren't - - have these writers never taught kids before? (I suspect some of them actually have not - - or haven't in the last 30 years!! - - and are making it up out of whole cloth!)

Think like a kid. What did you like when you were a kid? What did you not like?

Think about your past teachers. What things did your piano teacher do that you liked or really liked? What did you really not like? What did classroom teachers do that you liked/didn't like?

Some ideas:

Kids like games: cards, board games, movement games, etc. They like silliness (funny names, nonsensical ideas). They like personalization ("Eric is a Star"). They like spontaneity (you write a song, and they give the title). They like to have some input into what they are doing. They like to be creative (encourage them to write a song on paper and play it for you; ignore all the notation errors and praise the effort, making sure an opus number and date is attached to each; when they are a few months into study, they will look at their pieces and see that they can't "read" them because the notation is incorrect - - then they'll ask for help). They like to see concrete evidence of progress (use short songs, technical exercises). They like immediate gratification (stickers, funny awards you draw such as "Good Sight-Reading Award" or "Terrific Playing Even with a Band-Aid Award"). They want a safe place to explore, a place they know they will not be ridiculed.

They don't particularly care for flash card drill (in my experience). They don't like regimentation (practice minutes charts). They don't care for the "Moses from the mountain" approach.

I've been toying around with the idea of teaching music from my home, but I've no idea how to get started. Do I need some sort of degree? How good should I really be before I can teach?

First, you need to ask yourself why you're doing this (or thinking about it); this topic discussed about halfway down in this file. This is not a job that anyone can do, like flipping burgers. If you are unprepared to teach piano, get some training.

Most parents seek a teacher with a degree, anyway. If you have no degree, you will attract parents who seek a teacher based on price. These are not the kind of students a professional teacher would want. What are you going to charge? There are several files in the business section of my home page that I think you should read.

But yes, you should have a degree to be believable. Naturally, the more data in your database (brain and fingers) the more you can offer to students.

Second, do you have any training or experience in teaching? Just because a person can -do- something does not mean that person can -teach- someone else how to do it.

Third, do you have a degree in anything?

As to how good do you have to be to teach piano: how incompetent would you allow yourself to be without embarrassment or moral discomfort?

I've discussed teacher preparation in many of the above responses. More information there.

How do you teach sensitivity to key speed as it relates to legato, staccato, portato, and finger pedaling?

I know you are not terribly impressed with method books, but if you could choose a method for a 14 year old with some piano experience, what would you recommend?

I would go straight to literature and avoid the methods, but since you're making me be very specific, look at Denes Agay's The Joy of First Year Piano (Yorktown).

I just completed a course in piano pedagogy. It covered actual pedagogy only lightly and then went to music history of piano composers. I am finishing a music education AA in voice. I am also working on Early Childhood Education credits, and I'm trying to decide where I fit in the field of education today. I am not an accomplished piano player, as my first courses were in college. I received an A grade in a Piano 1 class last year but haven't kept up daily practice. I am interested in teaching young children at the beginner level. How can I prepare for this?

As I understand the job market today, there's not a lot of demand for young children (therefore, beginner) music specialists, per se. If you do other things and -also- are a music specialist, the music specialty is a plus. In today's job market the music with young kids shouldn't be the main job skill you are selling. Mainly because there's not much of a specific market, not because it isn't a worthy field.

As far as piano-for-young-children, to be completely honest, it appears to me that you have insufficient preparation, the most minimal of skills, and not much interest at this point in time. Teaching beginners is not a toss-off.

Beginners deserve the very best teachers, although it is commonly thought that someone with a few skills will be able to deal with them adequately.

As to insufficient interest, you say you have not kept up with your playing/practicing. If you don't find it interesting enough to make time for it in your own schedule, I think it will be difficult for you to convince young children that playing is important! Because you haven't made the effort to continue learning and began piano only in college, your technical skills at the instrument no doubt are very, very minimal. You cannot teach something that you can hardly do yourself! I wouldn't hold myself to be a golf teacher just because I knew which putter to use at the tee!

If you want to teach piano to young children, I think you need to read adjust your focus and really bone up on piano. Forget the young children for the moment. Instead, take a straight degree in piano. Piano performance, not piano pedagogy. Or, take ed courses as your elective courses in your music degree.

Here is a secret about university departments of education: their main goals are to justify their existence within the university structure, to fight for their share of university funds, and for the profs to protect their specialty turfs and their jobs. Ed departments will never acknowledge this, however, but it is 100% true. How many truly wonderful teachers are there of subject x who have a degree in education rather than a degree in subject x? Ask teachers you think are splendid what their degrees are (music or any other discipline)!

In my opinion, what teachers of subject x need, as far as education courses go, can be contained in a couple of courses: child psychology, learning theory (how people learn). The rest is learning stuff so you can speak educationese with the best of them! There is -no- need to spend a semester on the history of education, for example. (Unless your field is to be the history of education.) The history of education can be done up in a week's worth of lectures, if it takes that long! In my opinion, it can be summed up as: basics/try-something-else/back-to-basics. Horace Mann is in there, somewhere...)

What you need to teach music of any kind to any age student is a degree is music, not a degree in education. Specialize in music first; then apply it to young children. Don't start the other way 'round by picking through musical knowledge for what might apply to wee ones!

I have a 10-year-old transfer student who's been playing for four years, but mostly "pop" type pieces, full of arpeggios and fluff. The old teacher played them for her and wrote in the letter names above each note. She couldn't point to the place in the music where she was when I stopped her to ask. The parents thought their daughter was a very accomplished pianist, when in reality, the child can't read a note! I do have the mother's support now since she sits in on every lesson and has realized that her daughter literally cannot find Middle C. My question: I'm afraid the child will be bored with easy songs and quit altogether. I had her doing 5-finger songs for a while. I now have her working on a more challenging piece, but she still can't play it after two weeks of only being assigned 10 measures. Help!

I am glad to hear you have the parents' support. This tells the child that learning to play piano this way is important and that they have put their imprimatur on your teaching as valid, so the child can feel safe using your methods.

One more party you must bring to do the negotiating table! Do you have the -child's- support? Does she know that she can't read? If she doesn't, she may not understand what you are doing and why; and be rebelling at the "baby songs" and therefore is not giving them attention and effort. She probably is playing her "old songs" at home (at least some of them and sometimes) because those give her gratification. We all like to play "old songs" for the very same reason!

Have you had a chat with her about the reality of what she can do? If you can get her to buy into going back to square one and a half, it will be much better for you (and, of course, for her). The secret: show her how she's going to benefit from doing this.

Start by pointing out what she would be able to do with her present skills if she adds note-reading to the pot. Example, she'll be able to take a piece of sheet music she's never seen and learn it pretty quickly and then add all the frills and flourishes she already knows how to do. The piece will sound fabulous and with very little effort!

It will never work to say she "must do it this way now." You have to sell it as a *benefit* to her. It's like any other sales situation! Read my file on marketing and pay particular attention beginning at the section about what people buy and why.

Treat her like a grown-up. Be frank with her: "Look, I know this is not a lot of fun right now, but I promise you, promise you that if you can hang in there with me for just a little while you will see -such- a big difference and you'll be able to play even more songs and learn them even faster!" Get her to buy in by being honest.

Be alert that other problems may be the root. Does the child need glasses? Perhaps there is dyslexia. There could be other kinds of things making her resistant to learning to read, if, in fact it is a conscious decision "not to learn to read." She might be covering up some "defect" (for which she is certainly not responsible!) by being intractable so you won't find out and eventually will quit and leave her alone with her deep, dark secret.

On the other hand, maybe she's not being intractable. She genuinely might not understand. It's your job, therefore, to find out how much she understands and the best way to deliver the goods on the knowledge she still needs.

I am hoping that you are teaching her by intervals. By this method, I don't mean in the Alfred series' fashion. Kids can't absorb all those intervals.

Use only step and skip (2nd and 3rd, respectively) at this point. Later you can talk about empty triads (5ths) and octaves. Even mature readers don't think, "This is a fourth" and "Here is a sixth." They see distances and sort of "eyeball it." Gestalt reading, I call it. When -you- sight-read through something, what do you do? You use Gestalt, too. It's something that really can't be taught specifically. It comes with experience, and each performer comes to it in her own time and in her own way.

Since she's 10, and particularly as she's a young 10, she'll still enjoy games. Devise some note-reading games for the family to play at home. Play the game once or twice at the lesson, when it is new. This is for reinforcement and also for her to see her parents are supporting you and your techniques. Card games and board games are popular with my students, and I assume these might work with you student, too. (More info on games elsewhere in this file. Also look on my pedagogy homepage in files about teaching young children.)

Change what you do at lessons so you really focus on reading.

Here's an example. At the next one, work with her on one or two new measures only so she learns them well at the lesson. This will (1) show her how to learn new music "the new way;" and (2) give you insight into how she likes to learn and perhaps what she is doing at home by her comments on "what I used to do" or "what my old teacher used to do."

I suspect you'll have to spoon feed her a couple of measures a week for one to two weeks. Then do two measures as usual at the third lesson, but -also- talk about the next two measures. Don't learn them together. Instead, talk about how these measures are the same as and different from the ones she already knows. Engage her in an analysis and encourage her to tell you. Be sure to wait long enough for her to think and answer; don't just jump in and prompt her (we teachers tend to do that too often!). If she looks at you kind of befuddled, you say, "I'm not in a hurry. Take your time and tell me what you see in that next measure that is like what you already know."

Also talk about -how- she's going to read those next measures. Actually, you are "learning" them at this lesson. She just isn't playing them! You'd say, "Here you are on this note [you point to the last note of the previously-learned measure]. How far away is this next note [in the new measure]?" Talk about the music hands apart. If there are any kind of patterns, such as a triad divided between the hands, note that. Pay particular attention to any patterns which she already has mastered, such as a chromatic scale.

As you conclude the lesson, tell her how pleased you are with her effort and progress today. And that, "There is nothing there you can't do in this extra material." And "If you feel you are ready near the end of the week, why don't you take a stab at one or both of those new measures and see what happens? If you have a problem, we'll sort it out next time. I'm very confident that you can do this because I've seen you learn _ measures here today. I'm so proud of you!"

My guess is she also may be very afraid to learn by "this new method." She needs to see she can have success at this method, as well as the one used by her old teacher (faulty as it was!).

Also change the focus of the home assignment. Eliminate the technique and other kinds of things you normally assign. For a while, assign only the one piece. For variety, you might ask her to play "a review song" every day and perhaps "choose an old song and memorize it" so it's ready for the next lesson. Also consider asking her to "make up a song;" at the next lesson, you write it down together. This is an excellent exercise in note-reading by itself! "Does the next note move up or down?" and "When does the left hand change?" Playing by ear is another way to flesh out a weekly assignment that has only one song on it so it seems like a full assignment. I would advise *against* filling out the assignment with extra theory workbook stuff; in fact, nix the theory workbook altogether until the reading problem is solved. (I'm not a big fan of theory workbooks - - busywork.)

Another activity might be improvisation on the black notes. Try thundering chords and octaves, Alberti bass patterns, a RH melody that crosses over the LH accompaniment, a "music box" idea in the high treble, melodic sequences, and so on.

Also see Question 4 and Question 8. There probably will be similar questions later on in this file, as I often receive related questions.

My students short-change half-notes in their music all the time! What can I do to help them?

It's a real challenge to get beginners to give two counts to half-notes, I agree. Rather than "nag" at them, I suggest you make a joke about it the short-changed note. Here are some of the ideas I've used (and used and used and used...! This is such a common problem!)

• Write 1 2 in the music. I use a blue pencil (a blue one is always a "counting reminder" in my studio), and I write the counting in in large numbers between the treble and bass staves. This way the numbers are not confused with finger numbers or other notations in plain graphite pencil.
• Have the student write in 1 2 every place there is a half-note in the music. I suggest a colored pencil, as above.
• Draw eyeballs just before the note that is habitually short-changed. Let the student do these - - in color - - and add eyelashes or glasses or whatever will snag their attention. If the problem is of three or more weeks' duration, I draw [poorly] a skull and crossbones
• Count in French or German or Japanese or whatever the language of the student's ethnic heritage is or the language the student is studying in school or already speaks.
• Tap with a pencil (or use the metronome) to call the student's attention to the on-going beat. This is especially good while calling out, in a loud voice, "Uno! Dos!" or whatever each time there's a half-note. For adults, you don't need to be a linguist. Just tap; sometimes you'll need to count 1 2 aloud.
• Say,"Gotcha!" when the student doesn't give a half-note a full two counts. This also works with adults. Sometimes with kids I'll say, "I win!" They know I'm just teasing, of course.
• Ask the parent who is sitting in on the lesson to "please stop by the grocery store on the way home and get a big bag of half-notes." Otherwise, make a "mock shopping list" on a fresh page of the assignment book, and list the 100-pound bag of half-notes.
• Draw a picture of a big bottle filled with half-notes. The prescription says, "Take 5 [whatever number necessary] each time you play (name of song)."
• Tease the student about "working too hard. It's much easier to play a longer note than what you're doing right now!" Similar to the above.
• Remind the student that the long note is "a vacation" - - a payoff and a rest - - because the composer wanted a contrast to all those fast notes. "This is your vacation! Take advantage of it!" This strategy also works for adults.
• For adults, remind them with, "Don't rush." Usually kids don't have such an immediate awareness of the beat, so they don't have anything to compare the rushing speed with.
• The ultimate discouragement for my students: I threaten to sing! Perhaps you sing as poorly as I do and this would be an adequate deterrent??!

Don't give up! A few months of concentrated effort will pay off, and then you'll need only occasional reminders.

Do you have any suggestions about how we piano teachers can plan out discussions with parents? Should they be patterned after the parent-teacher conferences done in the schools? Should I take lesson time for this?

Yes, your idea about patterning these discussions after a school conference is one idea and a good one! If you have children, think back on what you have liked and disliked about your children's various teachers and the way they handled parent/teacher conferences.

Another idea is to plan what to say according to what you'd put in transfer papers for this student: (1) where is the student now in the areas you deem important (ex: notereading, counting, steadiness of rhythm, keyboard techniques such as arpeggios and scales, etc.); (2) what literature is the student now studying? what is the purpose of giving him these particular pieces? what will be coming next and why? show parent the present pieces and the pieces the child was playing x months ago (maybe "6 months", since you've not had "conferences" before); (3) mention any problems you see or foresee; (4) ask how things are going at home; thank the parent for his/her support; where warranted, add a compliment, particularly on something specific; (5) ask how -you- can help the parent do the job at home (more structure? clearer assignment pad notations? more songs? fewer? start some pop pieces now? explain concept xyz to the student [again]?)

I see nothing wrong in taking half a lesson (or 10 minutes) to use for this purpose. Make yourself some kind of "report card" that you can fill in the details for each student. Mostly this is for you as a memory-jogger, though of course the parent will probably want to take it home.

As to how to institute these conferences if you've never done them before, contact each parent in advance - - say 2 weeks - - and say you are going to hold parent conferences for __ (fill in the amount of time) during lessons the week of ___. Ask that any parent who would like a conference longer than 10 minutes to let you know right away. This way the parent decides how much of the lesson (for which he is paying, by the way) will be used in this fashion. Don't ask "if it's ok that we use some lesson time for this." Make a statement that this is what you will do. This is your business, and you are in charge.

At the conference ask each parent whether they would like another conference in X months (12? 6? when school lets out in June?) or whether they would prefer to forego future conferences. Try to avoid a "parent requests" kind of set up because then you have to drop what's going on presently in the studio to prepare for only one conference because Mrs. Blushbucket decides she wants one. It's better to have set times for these.

This is not to say that parents shouldn't talk to you at any time. I believe they should have free access to you for their questions and concerns. I'm saying that this formal conference should only be offered at specific times in the year so you use your time most efficiently.

For the past 6 months, I have had a bright, agreeable, practising student who comes from a wonderful home; she is being home-schooled. Despite all this going for her, she doesn't seem to "get" anything I'm teaching her. She'll do some step and skip identification exercises and get most correct and then will suddenly skip over one or two or suddenly do an assignment backwards (example: 8 tasks where she is to "skip up;" she'll do 5 correctly and then do 3 as "skip down"). It took her three weeks to memorize four measures! We've talked at length - - almost every lesson - - about which direction the note moves, but each week, it's, "I don't know what you mean." If I ask her to play the notes and say the note names, she says, "I don't know what you mean." This is -not- a stupid child. She has a good vocabulary for her age (8) and can hold wonderful conversations typical of her age. She is sensitive, and I know that when she gets overwhelmed, her thinking processes don't work very well. I did talk to the mom tonight and asked when she was able to first grasp the concept of the letter "A" being more than the cute first "word" of a nursery rhyme; that is, when did she discover the "concept" that the letter A could be used to form words? Answer: age 6-1/2! In a phone call, I asked whether or not she struggled with any of her schoolwork. Except for the times tables, she is doing well, said the mom. I asked the student the same question at her next lesson, and she had the same answer: she can't remember times tables. Mom said her vision tested fine.

[An additional question and answer concerning this student about learning steps and skips in order to read notation. Also see file with suggestions about teaching a student who is slow to learn the concept of lines and spaces. The end of this file is how I teach all students to read notes.]

It sounds to me as though this child has a learning disability - - possibly two, as they often occur in what's called a "constellation" of conditions. I'm -guessing- dyslexia and attention deficit disorder. I am not a trained medical professional nor a music therapist. I'm just a piano teacher, but one of my sons has learning disabilities and so I've had a very personal interest in reading everything I can find on this subject. I've also had several learning-disabled students and recognize the symptoms you describe. As I said, I am -not- a professional in the area of learning disabilities, so please consider my answer in this light.

When you said the child doesn't have any sense of note-direction, I thought immediately of dyslexia. It's as though she's seeing these things in 3-D while you and I see them in only two dimensions. Not only three dimensions, but these two notes are sort of "swirling around" in the three dimensions, and she doesn't know from which direction to look at them - - think of the TV ads where you've seen a CAD drawing program rotating the engineering drawing for a new car. This is how she perceives things, and she'll have to learn how to cope with it, but right now, she just can't do it because she's so young. She doesn't even know what's wrong!

When you said she "shuts down," that rang the ADD bell with me. It's sensory overload, and the child does the only thing she can: she turns off. She can't handle the input she has on board - - let alone any more - - so she just closes down. This is what my son did, over and over.

Another possibility might be a vision problem, but it sounds as though the mom has already checked that.

Now, the parents will -not- be happy to even entertain the idea that their child has learning disabilities. This is a terrible stigma in our society, and what a shame this is! The child is "damaged" from the get-go thinking she is "dumb." In addition, the parents think they've "done something wrong" or "have bad genes" and will feel personally indicted.

Learning disabled kids are not stupid. In fact, most learning disabled kids are -above- average in intelligence, not below!! *They just learn differently.*

These kids just learn differently.