Stop me if this sounds familiar. A new piano student walks in your door. They’ve had a few years of lessons and their parent told you they’re playing some pretty impressive intermediate repertoire. You’re excited to work with such a promising young student. They sit down on the bench…and the glass shatters. What are they…
Blog
VMT065: The Importance of Finding Your Tribe
Do you have a music teaching tribe? Do you feel connected to other like-minded teachers? Find out why this is important and how to find your tribe. Relevant Resources Battling Imposter Syndrome and Becoming a Confident Piano Teacher Taking Action Against Music Teacher Overwhelm Download the Transcript Are you a Vibrant Music Teaching member? Click…
My favourite podcasts for music teachers
Podcasts are a great way for piano teachers and other music educators to get in some professional development on-the-go. There are a growing number of podcasts for music teachers…so how do you know which ones are the best ones? I wanted to share my favourite podcasts for music teachers here because I’m pretty picky with…
VMT064: 5 Creative Music Lesson Openers
What’s the best way to start a lesson to get things off on the right foot? Creatively of course! When we allow our students to warmup with improvisation or a fun game, things run so much more smoothly for the whole lesson. Get 5 ideas for creative openers in this podcast episode. Relevant…
The Perfect First Lesson with an Adult Piano Student
Teaching an adult piano student has unique challenges. I know many piano teachers will avoid taking on adults because they’ve had bad experiences in the past with commitment or expectations. But teaching adults has great advantages too. If you can learn the skills needed to teach this demographic they can be a valuable part of…
VMT063: What Does It Mean to Creativise Your Teaching
What is this silly, made-up word “creativise” all about then? And why is it important? Tune in to find out more. Relevant Resources Free Challenge: 5 Days for 5 Ways to Creativise Your Piano Teaching Improvisation as a Tool for Music Teachers How to Reveal the Magic of Scales and Chords with Circle of Fifths…
Solve September Squirrelliness with this Piano Chord Game
Do your students ever seem a bit…distracted when they return in September? The long school days are back in their life after the summer break, and it can take a bit of time to adjust. This is a great time for some fun review with this piano chord game. Hide and Squirrel has two great…
VMT062: The Five Foundations of Successful Preschool Piano Teaching
This is the podcast version of a talk that I gave at NCKP in July 2019 titled ‘The Five Foundations of Successful Preschool Piano Teaching’. Listen to learn about the building blocks of teaching 3-5 year olds and how to do it effectively. Relevant Resources Why every preschool lesson should include improvisation First year goals…
VMT061: Studio Business Cleanse – Podcast Version
In the Studio Business Cleanse I’ll help you level-up your teaching and get re-focussed for a new year or term of teaching with 5 days of challenges and discussions. Day 1: Who you teach Day 2: Why you teach Day 3: Your superpower Day 4: Showing off Day 5: Sustainable systems Relevant Resources 5 Day…
VMT060: Studio Business Cleanse – Podcast Version
In the Studio Business Cleanse I’ll help you level-up your teaching and get re-focussed for a new year or term of teaching with 5 days of challenges and discussions. Day 1: Who you teach Day 2: Why you teach Day 3: Your superpower Day 4: Showing off Day 5: Sustainable systems Relevant Resources 5 Day…