If one of the ways you have invested in your children is by encouraging them to build music as a lifelong skill, you should give yourself a hand! You know how amazing it is when you see a colleague or friend just sit down at the piano or guitar and play so freely. But schedules get busy, students don’t practice as much and school seems to send more and more homework.
So you might have thought, “We just need a break from some activities this summer and scheduling…I’ll make them practice after their day camps.” If you’re thinking of piano as one of the activities that you’ll take a break from, here are three reasons why you should not only reconsider but have more even more lessons this summer.
1. I hear at least once a week, “I wish my mother wouldn’t have let me quit piano when I was younger,” or “I never had the opportunity to take music lessons when I was a kid.” These regrets and disappointments might be why you have made private lessons a priority in your child’s life and so don’t lose sight of that now. 90% of students who take breaks in the summer never return to the piano. That is just too risky if you ask me. Quitting starts with breaks and finishes with remorse.
2. The piano still plays in the summer and so can you. During this warm season, you can practice more and cover more ground with your teacher. If your child doesn’t have homework from school, they will have more mental energy, retain more musical concepts and be able to see real progress. If you aren’t traveling a ton this summer, consider schedule more lessons to move your child to the next level in their music.
3. Students who take time off lessons practice significantly less or not at all. Unfortunately, if you go this length of time without interacting with your instrument, you will not move forward and back track quite a bit. When the school year starts back up, you’ll really just be relearning and catching up and that’s not fun for anyone.
It may be very true that your child needs a small break, (teachers enjoy breaks too--imagine that?!). However, taking a step back doesn’t have to mean dropping it altogether. Flexible packages are available so you can pick the amount of lessons that are right for your family. If you will be out for several months, consider online lessons to keep your child motivated and moving forward towards their musical goals.
Happy practicing!
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