Because we can all use just a little bit of help.
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Teaching Tips January 29, 2027
Offer a few real choices without spending the whole lesson scrolling through music.
For Schools January 15, 2027
Use the notes you already have instead of reconstructing a semester from memory.
Teaching Tips January 1, 2027
Counting rests, finding entrances, and recovering a place need practice too.
Teaching Tips December 18, 2026
A student with five notes can still decide how a phrase should sound.
Teaching Tips December 4, 2026
The notes are learned, but the piece stays on the stand for months. Agree on what finished means.
Teaching Tips November 20, 2026
Translate the lesson into something a parent can understand and help with this week.
Teaching Tips November 6, 2026
With only a few days left, choose carefully what you ask the student to change.
Teaching Tips October 23, 2026 · Added October 30
The passage works with your help. Give the student a chance to try the whole process without the prompts.
Teaching Tips October 9, 2026 · Added October 30
Find out what works before changing the way a transfer student plays.
Teaching Tips September 25, 2026 · Added October 30
A quick look at last week's notes can save the first five minutes of this week's lesson.
Teaching Tips September 11, 2026 · Added October 30
The click is going, but the student is doing their own thing. Start with something easier to line up.
Teaching Tips August 28, 2026 · Added October 30
One passage needs work. The whole piece feels impossible. How to tell which problem you've got.
Teaching Tips August 14, 2026
Prepared pieces are going well. Unfamiliar music is another story. Here's where to start.
Teaching Tips July 31, 2026
The parent who keeps asking for updates may never have been told what to listen for.
Teaching Tips July 17, 2026
Calling someone a natural leaves a lot unexplained. Look at the work and the circumstances behind the playing.
Teaching Tips July 3, 2026
Ask what they want to play and when they can practice. Build the lessons from there.
Teaching Tips June 19, 2026
Hear them out before offering a new piece or a shorter lesson. Sometimes the right answer is a break.
Teaching Tips June 5, 2026
You heard six things to fix. Which one will help the next attempt?
Teaching Tips May 22, 2026
There's a lot to fit into half an hour. Leave time for something they can take home.
Teaching Tips May 8, 2026
A missed sung note isn't much to go on. Find out which part is difficult before accepting the label.
Business April 24, 2026
Work out your cancellation terms before the next awkward text arrives.
Teaching Tips April 10, 2026
They can read the notes. Can they hear the phrase? A few ways to connect the two.
For Schools March 27, 2026
The student shouldn't have to translate between two teachers. A few useful messages can save a lot of confusion.
Teaching Tips March 13, 2026
You hear progress. The parent doesn't. Start by finding out what they were hoping to hear.
Teaching Tips February 27, 2026
A tight grip is worth asking about. It doesn't tell you the whole story.
Teaching Tips February 13, 2026
Next week, the same passage falls apart in the same place. What should the student do differently at home?
Teaching Tips January 30, 2026
When counting it again isn't helping, try a gesture, a tap, or a minute away from the instrument.
Teaching Tips January 16, 2026
Give the next repetition a job. A few ways to make scale work worth paying attention to.
For Schools January 2, 2026
Schools need to know how lessons are going. Teachers need reporting expectations they can actually meet.