Practicing With Your Child

Hey Parents,
Please remember that you are choosing to give the gift of music to your child. There may be extra patience involved on your part when practicing with your child; so, please try to set an appropriate time for yourself and your young musician. That means a quality time slot where you both are alert, are not hungry, and in a good mood.

FUN HINTS FOR PRACTICING WITH YOUR CHILD

• Play some music of your choice on your CD player before starting your practice session. Music is infectious and it usually puts the young musician in the mood to practice
• After putting some music on your CD player, try dancing with your young musician to enjoy lightening up as well as feeling the beat
• “Bookend” your practice session with something that feels good to both of you which perhaps could be enjoying a little snack, reading a favorite book, snuggling with a stuffed animal, playing a game, etc.
• If one or both of you start to get frustrated or angry, gracefully end the practice session by saying something like, “Oh, I see that it is time to take a break from playing for now. Good work on that tricky fingering and we’ll try it again later.” A hug and a smile would be in order.



Sharing Other Art Forms With Your Child

Painting by Monet

 

If you’d like to share some other art experiences with your children, consider going to your local museums a bit more often, check out what’s showing at your children’s theater, and see if there are any age appropriate dance concerts in your area. So many arts-type companies and troupes cater to the younger crowd these days. Your local paper should have a list of these activities.

 





Live music is wonderful!

Remember to check your Sunday paper arts section for age appropriate concerts for your children. There are many reasonably priced and free concerts listed every week. Concerts are artistically stimulating as well as being a family bonding time.