Parent Letter - CLICK HERE
Need help choosing which instrument to learn? CLICK HERE
Some tips to help your child succeed in band:
1. Encourage your young musician. Learning an instrument is a difficult endeavor - be sure to praise your child for good practice habits, good sounds, and for their effort. Take a few moments to sit with your child and listen to them play. Also, consider an occasional small reward for good practice.
2. Help your child to set a practice routine and have a set practice area. Figure out what days and times to practice are the best for your schedule and situation, and STICK TO IT! We are aiming for at least 100 minutes of total practice per week.
3. Try to have a practice area that is comfortable and within a distance that you can monitor. I grew up in a small house with no basement, so having to go to the unheated unattached garage in January to practice was not something I looked forward to.
4. Help your child keep track of their practice time in their practice chart (on the inside cover of their book). Use a kitchen timer, egg timer, timer app., etc. to track practice minutes. For example, set the timer for 20 minutes and him/her practice until the timer goes off.
5. Don't use practice as a punishment or in a negative way. "Please get out of my hair and go practice!" or "Knock off the racket, I can't hear the TV!" will not encourage your child to practice more. If you are at your wit's end and just can't handle another note, (trust me, I've been there!) calmly say something like "sweetie, I have a bit of a headache, but it is super important for you to practice, so could you practice in your room until my headache goes away?"
6. Enjoy the music while you can. It seems like just yesterday that my own kids were going to kindergarten and in a short time they will be out on their own. The house will be very quiet soon, and we will miss sounds (both the beautiful and the not-so-beautiful ones) that once filled the house.
Need help choosing which instrument to learn? CLICK HERE
Some tips to help your child succeed in band:
1. Encourage your young musician. Learning an instrument is a difficult endeavor - be sure to praise your child for good practice habits, good sounds, and for their effort. Take a few moments to sit with your child and listen to them play. Also, consider an occasional small reward for good practice.
2. Help your child to set a practice routine and have a set practice area. Figure out what days and times to practice are the best for your schedule and situation, and STICK TO IT! We are aiming for at least 100 minutes of total practice per week.
3. Try to have a practice area that is comfortable and within a distance that you can monitor. I grew up in a small house with no basement, so having to go to the unheated unattached garage in January to practice was not something I looked forward to.
4. Help your child keep track of their practice time in their practice chart (on the inside cover of their book). Use a kitchen timer, egg timer, timer app., etc. to track practice minutes. For example, set the timer for 20 minutes and him/her practice until the timer goes off.
5. Don't use practice as a punishment or in a negative way. "Please get out of my hair and go practice!" or "Knock off the racket, I can't hear the TV!" will not encourage your child to practice more. If you are at your wit's end and just can't handle another note, (trust me, I've been there!) calmly say something like "sweetie, I have a bit of a headache, but it is super important for you to practice, so could you practice in your room until my headache goes away?"
6. Enjoy the music while you can. It seems like just yesterday that my own kids were going to kindergarten and in a short time they will be out on their own. The house will be very quiet soon, and we will miss sounds (both the beautiful and the not-so-beautiful ones) that once filled the house.