‘Practising piano at home’ a practical read for parents

‘Practising Piano at home’

a practical read for parents

Your kid has started piano lessons. How to know if they study effectively  at home?

Even if you have never been taught a musical instrument or it’s been too many years and you cannot remember, there are ways to understand if your kid is practising effectively and also help them build strong  practising  habits.

You should benefit greatly from attending three  lessons  (not necessarily in a row).

Here are ways of studying the piano at home with examples of effective practising even  for  inexperienced parents in music:

1. ‘Counting out loud’: the most efficient and correct method to study even during the lessons. If at home you often hear ‘one And, two And, ‘ ‘one two three four,’ etc., rest assured that your kid has conquered the most important  habit of a musician. An example I like to give to my students is that if they learn to count out loud while studying alone, it’s like they are becoming the teacher– that also uplifts their spirit, since they feel honoured for being trusted with such responsibility.

2.Practising in a slow speed/tempo. How can you tell? The counting out loud is done at a slow pace.

3. Repetition of a musical phrase (motif) many times and slowly, especially of those that the little pianist struggles    to play. Here, you can also help: if something does not sound ‘right’ to you, point it out and ask for your kid to play just that part at least six times.

4. Scales: a warm-up of the fingers, ears and a sense of rhythm. What is a piano scale? It is an exercise  (a monotonous melody) you will have to get used to hearing, since every good practice has to start with scales. Imagine an athlete having to compete in their sport without a warm-up!

5. Separate hands. For the pianoforte it is very common that one piece is practised first with the right hand  (which is most likely to have the melody ) and then the left.

6. Written music theory exercises: in the first one-two years the student is taught music theory by his piano teacher so they should have written exercises to complete as part of their home practicing.

As you can see, there are plenty of ways to help your child to practise  the piano effectively at home and therefore build strong foundations for an impressive and quick progress.

Two more practical pieces of advice:

Studying has results only if it’s uninterrupted. Keep in mind that deep focus starts after the first 10-15 minutes.

Practice Duration:

for children aged 6 to 7 –   30 minutes

for children aged 8 and older –   45 minutes to 1 hour

Practice Frequency:

for optimal performance and progress – 4/5 times a week

for a reasonable performance and progress – 2/3 times a week

for recreational purposes – once a week

May our little pianists have a fruitful progress!

by  Anastasia  Kaminskagia, 10.02.23