WAYS TO KEEP YOUR CHILD ENGAGED AND PRACTICING
Sometimes, a student’s passion for music can begin to wane. This is a normal part of any creative or athletic pursuit, but it’s one young musician can find extremely difficult to overcome. In fact, Eric addressed this issue directly in Chapter 20 of his book “More than music” because it’s something we see in the industry very often. Thankfully, we’ve found three steps parents can take to keep their music students from throwing in the towel too early.
USE THE MUSICAL LADDER
At MnSOM, we use the Musical Ladder system to measure and reward our students’ progress. This cycle of tests and rewards is about more than just designating where your child is in their music education; it’s about getting them excited for where they’re going next. By providing those three-month milestones, the MusicalLadder gives kids a concrete goal to reach toward. Make hitting those goals a special occasion in your family! Having their hard work and dedication celebrated can do wonders to keep music engaging and fun for your student!
GO TO RECITALS
Where student-athletes have a game day, music students have recitals. Having your child perform in one of these events is not just a great chance to show friends and family how much they’ve learned; it’s a chance for them to bring all the skills they’ve acquired together into a single performance. Not attending recitals is akin to going to baseball practice every week but never actually playing the game — these events excite and motivate students to continuously improve! If playing in front of crowds makes your child nervous, that’s no problem! Check out our Page2 article on mini recitals!
STAY INVESTED
One of the best ways to keep your child interested in music is to stay interested in yourself. That doesn’t mean being a musician or sitting in on 100% of their lessons, but it does mean at least checking in with their teacher, listening to them practice from time to time, and talking to them about the pieces they are working on. That support can make a world of difference in helping a child stay passionate about music.
