Parent Info

How You Can Help Your Child Succeed

Encouragement, support and routine are the keys to music success. Students who are enjoying music and practicing at home will be successful. The tough part comes when musical challenges seem insurmountable - this is when students need to taught persistence and "stick-with-it-ness"; not too give up too quickly on a challenging (though ultimately rewarding) activity (picture Bart Simpson's closet of cast-off equipment related to activities that require too much work!).

Why Music is Important for your Child clarifies the importance and value of music, Parent Support same. Habits of Mind is a very interesting article examining important traits we would like all learners (all ages!) to exhibit. Also check out Why Music? (a music advocacy site), Parent Guide (to help parents encourage music in their family).

Home Practice

There's no getting around it; home practice (regular & focused) is crucial to music success. It must be regular to reinforce the mental and physical repetition need to execute musical patterns quickly and accurately. It must be focused in order to improve the skills that need improvement - different for every child. Take an interest, listen to your child and help them fill out the monthly practice sheets. A comfortable place and a music stand will help! Download all practice sheets here.

Private Lessons

Private lessons are not needed to be succesful in the Middle School music program. I strongly feel that there are many opportunities and experiences that will make a musician of every child in our program. However, if your child has a reall passion for music, and is excited and willing to work (and has the time), private lessons can be a rewarding experience and of great benefit to your child. Take a look at some private teachers here if your (and your child!!) is interested.

SmartMusic

One of the best practice tools available to young musicians is SmartMusic. Check out SmartMusic for more details, video tutorials, and much more information.