I am updating this post to let you know that I went live on Facebook with Glory St. Germain from the Ultimate Music Theory Friday, June 14th, 10:00 am CST. Glory interviewed me, where I shared, 5 Ways to Motivate Practice Over the Summer! If you couldn't make it live,...
Help! My Student Wants to Quit!
Like all of us, over the years I have had students quit. Quitting is inevitable, we know this, but what makes it especially hard is when the quitting happens prematurely. It absolutely kills me when a student that has so much potential and is on what I would consider...
Video Practice Packets (Music Teacher Tip #12)
In 2016 I began another of what I like to call a win-win. It has become a favorite option to give to my students as an "extra" option over the summer or as an option if they can't participate in a camp. It also works very well in lessons when students need to miss...
Holding an Online Workshop with Your Students
Last week my students and I had a chance to connect online with Jason Lyle Black. From Nashville, TN, Jason is a performer, composer, speaker, and entertainer who is also nicknamed the "Backwards Piano Man". You might be familiar with Jason from this YouTube video he...
Strive for 5!
We are about 8 weeks into the school year now and while students are getting settled into their routine, sports have been starting to take over in their mindset. As we know there are ups and downs in how busy students are. Sometimes it feels like some of them are...
Be Our Guest: How Does Simon Teach Us How to Practice?
Today I have asked Andy Fling with MakingMusicFun.net to share a recent post he wrote for his email subscribers. In this post he shares how using the game that many of us have grown up with, "Simon" and apply it to practicing. I have personally used this game (via the...
Feature Friday: Practice Makes Perfect or Does It?
Practice Makes Perfect or DOES It is a workshop I have been holding with my students for over 10 years. It is one of my favorites because students walk away fully armed with a better understanding of how they should practice. Watch the video to find out which resource...
Teaching Students How to Practice
I've been holding a practice workshop with my students every few years for awhile now. Even if the same student took it just a few years prior, their experience with it totally changes because they are older and have advanced in their studies. This past year I made my...
Summer Practice Packets
The idea of summer practice packets came last year after I read an idea from a teacher going on maternity leave and what she was doing with her students. (You can read about the details in the original post here). So last year I offered summer practice packets as an...
Review: Carnival of the Animals Music Camp
After a disastrous concert tour in Germany, Saint-Saens withdrew to a small Austrian village and composed what would eventually become one of his best-known works, The Carnival of the Animals. I love teaching the music from Saint-Saens Carnival of the Animals to...