HOME
The home environment plays a central role in the success of the student, as it shapes a child’s attitude, consistency, and overall musical development. Parents play an essential role at home by supporting home practice and regular listening to recordings to reinforce learning. Teachers work with the parents to establish a consistent practice routine and a positive but structured environment for practicing that will contribute to a young student’s motivation, progress, and confidence.
Parent Involvement
It is essential for parents to be involved in a child's learning of an instrument, and a working relationship between the parent, teacher, and child is at the heart of our method, in which children learn their instrument with a similar approach to that of learning a language: through listening and repetition. While not required, parents are also encouraged to learn the basics of the instrument themselves in tandem with their child. This allows for a better understanding of the process, the expectations, and the instrument itself, and can also be extremely motivating for the child. We require that parents be present and actively engaged in note-taking during the lesson for young children, and must monitor and guide the child's practicing at home, acting as the "home teacher."
Daily Practice
Like in the learning of any skill, learning a musical instrument requires the development of a good habit: that of a consistent, daily practice routine. Just like brushing your teeth, eating meals, and sleeping, practicing needs to become a habit that is incorporated into the daily life of the student. For young children (up until the age of about 12, sometimes slightly younger or slightly older, depending on the child), parental support is essential for developing good practice habits. For older and adult students, the only difference is that the student must enforce the habit themselves. Practice sessions do not need to be long to be effective! In fact, the most efficient practices focus on efficiency and attention to detail. At the very beginning, we generally expect our young beginners to practice for just 5-10 minutes each day, and our older beginners to practice for 10-15 minutes each day. As the student progresses, the length of practice time gradually increases over time.
Listening to music
Our students and families are expected to integrate active music listening into everyday life. Just like with language learning, when we immerse ourselves in music we learn faster, more accurately, and with a better and more complete understanding of rhythm, phrasing, and nuance. As well as listening to the curriculum repertoire, it is important to also absorb music in other ways, such as attending live concerts and listening to recordings of classical and other genres of music.