Practice Tips:
Students...try some of these and see what works:
1. Find a quiet room to practice in without any distractions (no TV, computer, radio, etc)
2. Set small goals, like 20 minutes at a time.
3. Set a kitchen timer to go off when that time is up so that you don't keep staring at the clock.
4. Get an audience (parents, siblings, babysitters, stuffed animals)
5. Take a break an come back if something is frustrating, or if it's hard to focus.
6. Play something you enjoy! But also make sure you don't ONLY practice what you enjoy. You usually tend to enjoy what you can play.
7. Use a metronome!! It keeps a steady beat for you. Don't have a metronome? Don't have an app? Click HERE!
Parents can help too!:
1. Be an audience to your practicing musician -- listen and give feedback.
2. Set achievement goals/awards for your child, for example:
"If you practice 5 days/100 minutes this week, I will...make your favorite dinner on Friday"
3. Take your child to an orchestra or symphony concert, or rent a video of some of the great string players.
1. Find a quiet room to practice in without any distractions (no TV, computer, radio, etc)
2. Set small goals, like 20 minutes at a time.
3. Set a kitchen timer to go off when that time is up so that you don't keep staring at the clock.
4. Get an audience (parents, siblings, babysitters, stuffed animals)
5. Take a break an come back if something is frustrating, or if it's hard to focus.
6. Play something you enjoy! But also make sure you don't ONLY practice what you enjoy. You usually tend to enjoy what you can play.
7. Use a metronome!! It keeps a steady beat for you. Don't have a metronome? Don't have an app? Click HERE!
Parents can help too!:
1. Be an audience to your practicing musician -- listen and give feedback.
2. Set achievement goals/awards for your child, for example:
"If you practice 5 days/100 minutes this week, I will...make your favorite dinner on Friday"
3. Take your child to an orchestra or symphony concert, or rent a video of some of the great string players.
Practice Strategies:
SLO' MO' = Slow motion. Slow it down. Get it right.
- Play each section as slow as you can. Try for accuracy in getting every note exactly right. Speed it up a little bit at a time once you are awesome!
CHUNK IT! = Break down the music into small parts.
- Break each section down into 1 or 2 measures. Once you play these two measures right, add 1 more, and then 1 more....
PENCIL POWER! = Write it in!
- A pencil can save you hundreds of hours of frustration. Isn't there a pencil in your folder? Why not!?
FIVE TIMES BEATS THE GRIND! = Play each section through 5 times perfectly before going on.
- Play each section through five times without any mistakes. If you can't play it five times perfectly, go back and start at number one and try again...and again.
THINK IT, SEE IT, DO IT! = Practice without your instrument.
- Put your instrument in its case. Try tapping the rhythm on your lap (or coffee table at home).
FORGETTA'BOUT IT! = Go on to something you do well then come back to the challenging section.
- Having trouble? De-stress by going back to something you can play really well (Twinkle, Twinkle or Hot Cross Buns?) and once you feel good again, go back and hit the challenging sections.
IDOL AUDITION = Sing through, make the windows shatter!
- Maybe you're not the next Miley Cyrus or Justin Bieber, but singing the passage out loud as if no one is listening will make you better faster! Try to sing the note names.
SIMPLE THOUGHTS REALLY ARE SIMPLE! = Don't stress! Keep your wits about you. Go back to the basics.
- You are always trying to get away with doing less work anyway. Slow down your brain. Break everything down into its smallest part. Success comes quickly this way.
RECORD YOURSELF = Get a computer or CD player. Listen to what you really sound like.
- Listening to yourself on a recording is a great way to hear what is really coming out of your instrument.
- Play each section as slow as you can. Try for accuracy in getting every note exactly right. Speed it up a little bit at a time once you are awesome!
CHUNK IT! = Break down the music into small parts.
- Break each section down into 1 or 2 measures. Once you play these two measures right, add 1 more, and then 1 more....
PENCIL POWER! = Write it in!
- A pencil can save you hundreds of hours of frustration. Isn't there a pencil in your folder? Why not!?
FIVE TIMES BEATS THE GRIND! = Play each section through 5 times perfectly before going on.
- Play each section through five times without any mistakes. If you can't play it five times perfectly, go back and start at number one and try again...and again.
THINK IT, SEE IT, DO IT! = Practice without your instrument.
- Put your instrument in its case. Try tapping the rhythm on your lap (or coffee table at home).
FORGETTA'BOUT IT! = Go on to something you do well then come back to the challenging section.
- Having trouble? De-stress by going back to something you can play really well (Twinkle, Twinkle or Hot Cross Buns?) and once you feel good again, go back and hit the challenging sections.
IDOL AUDITION = Sing through, make the windows shatter!
- Maybe you're not the next Miley Cyrus or Justin Bieber, but singing the passage out loud as if no one is listening will make you better faster! Try to sing the note names.
SIMPLE THOUGHTS REALLY ARE SIMPLE! = Don't stress! Keep your wits about you. Go back to the basics.
- You are always trying to get away with doing less work anyway. Slow down your brain. Break everything down into its smallest part. Success comes quickly this way.
RECORD YOURSELF = Get a computer or CD player. Listen to what you really sound like.
- Listening to yourself on a recording is a great way to hear what is really coming out of your instrument.