On Influence

I heard a message preached from the Bible tonight about how we regard our influence on others.  Do we esteem our influence highly and remain humble that we might have a genuine affect on others?  Or do we walk through life not really caring what others think, thus not having to really care about what we do?  Tempted as I am to shirk the responsibility and not admit that my life actually influences others, I realize that being a teacher has one of the greatest impacts on our students.  I've heard of students who tell their piano teacher things their parents don't even know.  All of this got me thinking about what influence each of my students has as a musician on others.... how does their music affect the listener.  I don't really mean the song itself, but what does it reflect about their character that sets an example others may follow.  Does their playing say "I love this ability God has given me," or "I could care less about developing this skill;" "A little more practice and I'll get this right," or "Who has time to play piano this week?!"  Does it say "I hope this music draws my listener closer to the Lord," or "When is this going to be over..?"  I hope to challenge some of my piano students, and perhaps some of the young people in our youth choir, to really consider the heart behind what their doing.  It's not always about playing great, but also remembering that others are watching us, and what we do reflects how important the Greatest One we're doing this all for really is to us.

Teaching How to Take Ownership

On a related note to the last post, as most of my students are learning piano and theory for the first time, I am trying to be careful about making sure they actually understand what is being introduced to them.  I know some things really can only be taught by rote, and it will come together for them later, but I am trying hard to connect the dots as soon as possible.  Maybe it's my personal love for theory: new doors opened for me when I began studying improvisation further and learned about chord substitutions and extended chords, which would have been gibberish if I didn't understand a few basic things.  So one thing I do appreciate about some students who don't "get" it is that I can try to figure out just what it is that might be the missing link of their understanding.  For example, this particular student was never taught pentascales (or if he was he's forgotten them all!), so it's very difficult for him to figure out simple major and minor chords.  He can play a full scale, but has difficult picking out just the first, third and fifth notes to form that triad.  So I am constantly reviewing a pentascale here and there during my new student's lessons.  They can figure out the chords, they know what "position" they need to be in, even if it changes throughout the song.  It's just such a simple skill that we can all benefit from.  Next, I've noticed my student doesn't connect scales with their key signatures. When he plays G, he doesn't know if it's an F sharp or G flat, and still can't identify it when its written.  So now I am teaching scales by having them say the letter names (G, A.....E, F#, G), and showing them a picture of the key signature.  I am slowly working on these things with my older student as well, but it will take time, as he knows many scales.  I've missed the opportunity to build on them one by one though.  How important that firm foundation really is....!  I desire above all that my students don't just play things by rote, but that they really do take ownership of the music itself, learn how to learn it, and desire complete freedom at the keyboard to pursue whatever they wish.

Take Ownership

Week after week, month after month, students are given their theory assignments.  I believe in slowly introducing new concepts, moving on as they are understood and demonstrated, reviewing whenever we can as we apply things we know to the songs we work on.  One of my oldest students is struggling from week to week, month after month, to understand and retain what we have learned.  He has had three teachers before me, so I attribute some of that to the difficulty, as he hasn't really had the chance to solidify what he's learned long enough with any one teacher.  But he is 15 years old, and certainly knows the difference between what he does and does not know.  If I assign him a Bflat scale to practice, he knows if he can start the scale out correctly or not, and knows how to figure out some way to remember.  But he isn't doing this.  He doesn't go home and study out the concept, ready to learn the next one.  He can play the scale, but only if I prod him to the starting key.  He knows the I-IV-V chords, but only if I remind him to count the first, fourth, and fifth notes.  It is time to take ownership of what you are being taught.  Do you know it or not?  If not, it is time take the initiative and do what it takes to get these things down.  I told him today I simply cannot take him further if he doesn't learn what he's been taught.  We will be stuck in the same cycle for another year.... (this is his third year of studying for level III syllabus).   I am tempted to doubt my own ability to teach, but I feel like this time I really have given everything I can, and I've presented things as many different ways as I can without causing anymore confusion.  It's simply gotten to the point that if the student isn't taking ownership of his ability, my teaching becomes useless.  I was a bit hard on him today, I am particularly close to this student and his family, and I really do care about his progress.  He's a great student, he has a wonderful attitude and does enjoy the lessons.  He just has to start putting forth the effort that's required on his part! 

A "New" Tool

I feel like I'm stepping out of the stone age, with everyone talking about the latest app they've downloaded, music labs they've set up, etc.  I'm excited about finally upgrading my Finale from the free version (which is great for students) to Print Music.  I enjoy arranging hymns (not that I'm any good at it), and the latest one I did had some time signature changes, so I downloaded the trail version.  I was hooked as soon I started entering my music.  There are more dynamic options, playback options (the Romantic style worked on this song), adding chords, 8va markings, as well as being able to change time & key signatures (now I'll have to work on modulating).  I even set up a coda!  There are tons of features I've yet to discover.  One of them I'm interested in is being able to extract snippets to create worksheets.  Also it includes a lite scanner.  I tried it on my first arrangement printed from my free Finale, but it left out most of the bar lines and was just kind of funky.  Otherwise, I know what I'll be doing in the next few weeks when exams, concerts, and recitals die down!

Another Note to Self

Giving candy after a lesson is good.  Holiday clearance sales are good.  Holiday candy on clearance sale is very good. 

Note to Self: Amazon Saves Money

I haven't used Amazon much lately as the shopping cart didn't work with my browser.  I recently downloaded Firefox, and it's working again.  Not only have I enjoyed receiving free shipping (it's not hard to rack up $25 minimum orders), I also have discovered their 4-for-3 offer on qualifying books (also not hard to do).  I usually purchase books to peruse, keep a supply of beginning books on hand, or plan ahead for what my students will be needing.  It definitely adds up, so every way to save helps.  I also try to take advantage of 40% off discounts directly from publishers.  I charge the student regular price, but what I save goes right into keeping a repertoire library available for duets, special solos, etc.  My library is stocked pretty well, but can a piano teacher ever resist the urge to buy one more new collection....?!

Spontaneity

Some days I feel like I teach on "autopilot," going very methodically from one task to the next.  Other days, for what ever reason - whether the student just isn't responsive to the routine, or perhaps I'm more relaxed and paying closer attention to the student's direction - I take things as they come.  I enjoy lessons when something inspires me to get out the flashcards, a sight reading book, or do some improvising.  This week a student came for his second lesson, a very bright young man who enjoys playing the piano.  We spent several minutes being "chattering squirrels," I would play a pattern, he would copy it.   Then we switched, he played a pattern for me to copy, making each one harder and harder!  I don't expect every lesson to end up this way, but I hope to be on the look out for those opportunities with each student.