How today’s parents can contribute to their child’s musical success
By Max Filkins/Family Piano
Waukegan, IL.- Every parent out there wants the best for their children. For most families, music is an essential part of life that they want their children to succeed in. Parents would love to send their children to fancy summer music camps or buy them the best instruments that can help fuel their musical growth but unfortunately this is not a realistic option for everyone. Fortunately, the many of the BEST ways parents can help their child grow musically are free-of-charge!
The single surest way to help your children to musically achieve is to create a positive musical environment in your home! Raise your children to value music highly by playing music regularly in your home. Both your personal favorite genres and many different genres as well! The more music a child is exposed to while growing up, the more likely they are to develop strong musical passions that will propel their future growth! Proudly show your child your favorite bands and see what they think. It’s important to be open to their own emerging musical tastes as well. Never try to “force” a child into liking a specific style of music – use encouragement and positivity to help them expand their musical tastes throughout their upbringing. Center family events around music whenever possible – take your children to see concerts, musicals, and bring as many family members and friends to their recitals to show support.
Once your child is old enough to begin lessons, make sure to find them a qualified teacher they can positively vibe with! A good music teacher should continue to build the child’s passion for music and offer them encouragement essential to make it through the early years of learning. Discuss with your child how they feel about their teacher and how lessons are going. Healthy lines of communication between the child, the teacher, and the parents makes all parties feel better about lessons. Progress comes at different stages for each child but the most important factor is whether your child enjoys the lessons and is encouraged to keep with it.
Practice is one of the most important parts of learning an instrument and it’s important to encourage it through positive means. Never make practicing a punishment for your child. Instead, help develop a reasonable practice routine for your child and offer rewards for them to stick with it. Well-placed words of encouragement go a far way. Make sure your child’s instrument is kept in good shape as the better the instrument sounds, the more confident and excited the child will be to continue playing.
Want your child to start off on the path to succeed musically? I’d recommend beginning with 30 minute weekly lessons with a qualified instructor who can help them realize their potential and build a positive relationship with music. At Family Piano, we can get you going today for only $99 a month. Just call in at 847-775-1988 and speak with Donna, our lesson coordinator! We’ll take it from there!