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Teaching technique

VMT066 My Biggest Technique Teaching Mistakes

VMT066: My Biggest Technique Teaching Mistakes

Poor technique habits can mean that your students don’t stick with music long-term. Have you made any of the technique teaching mistakes? Listen in to find out if you’re in the same boat as me. You may even get some inspiration to try things differently.   Relevant Resources Circle of Fifths Odyssey course Piano Powerbooster…

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Filed Under: Scales & Technique, Teaching technique, Vibrant Music Teaching Podcast Tagged With: circle of fifths, teaching mistakes, teaching technique

How to Teach Piano to Beginners with Games and Creativity

Let’s explore how to teach piano to beginners. Is it as simple as following a method book? Is there more to consider? Most beginner piano students arrive to us super enthusiastic to dive in to this world of music making. I believe we have a responsibility to teach piano to beginners in a way that…

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Filed Under: Composing & Improvising, Games & Activities, Lesson Plans, Music Theory, Music theory games, Piano improvisation, Practice & Performance, Scales & Technique, Teaching composing, Teaching technique Tagged With: beginner music theory, first lessons, lesson plans for piano teachers, music theory games, piano teaching curriculum, teach piano to beginners

CKQC023_ Beginner piano technique with zebra taps and lion paws Blog Post Template

CKQC023: Beginner piano technique with zebra taps and lion paws

The student in this video is very bright, and quick to catch on to new concepts, however she struggled in the beginning with technique. She naturally played with a lot of tension which we have been working to alleviate.  The Lion Paw exercise from Piano Safari is perfect for working on this issue. It…

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Filed Under: Colourful Keys Quick Clips, Scales & Technique, Teaching technique Tagged With: beginner piano technique, how to teach technique, non-legato, piano safari

CKQC009- Developing finger dexterity with piano preschoolers

CKQC009: Developing finger dexterity with piano preschoolers

I love the finger warmups included as part of the Wunderkeys program. These little rhymes and actions are so fun, and a fantastic way to develop finger dexterity. I work with a lot of 3-5 year old beginners. This is a very different thing from teaching older students in so many ways – and one of…

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Filed Under: Colourful Keys Quick Clips, Practice & Performance, Preschool piano teaching, Teaching technique Tagged With: colourful keys quick clip, finger exercises, fun preschool piano lessons, piano for preschoolers, piano technique

CKQC008- Employing a Cuddly Piano Technique Assistant

CKQC008: Employing a Cuddly Piano Technique Assistant

In this teaching clip, you’re going to meet Steve the Stickler. Steve is a miniature lobster beanie baby (I believe I got him in a McDonald’s happy meal way back in the day!) and he helps out in my studio with all things piano technique and posture. I was inspired by Tim Topham’s ladybug Linda…

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Filed Under: Colourful Keys Quick Clips, Group teaching, Practice & Performance, Teaching technique Tagged With: colourful keys quick clip, partner piano lessons, piano posture, piano technique, stuffed animals in the piano studio

The Secret of Motivation for Scales (and other “boring” tasks) in my Piano Studio

Do you struggle to keep up your students’ motivation for scales, technique or theory? Well, I’ve got a little secret to share with you, so lean in close. You need a challenge board. My challenge board is my magic pixie dust. It’s what keeps my students striving for better, even with the “boring” stuff that…

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Filed Under: Piano practice tips, Practice & Performance, Practice incentives, Scales & Technique, Teaching chords, Teaching scales, Teaching technique

CKQC004: Teaching piano by rote and pattern

This video is the fourth in the series: Colourful Keys Quick Clips. You can catch all the quick clips published so far by clicking here. This rote piece from Piano Safari is always a hit with students and makes a fantastic first recital piece too. My student absolutely FLYING through this, many students would just…

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Filed Under: Colourful Keys Quick Clips, Practice & Performance, Repertoire, Teaching technique Tagged With: colourful keys quick clip, pattern piano pieces, piano safari, piano teaching, rote piano teaching, teaching videos

CKQC003: Hand tapping as a rote teaching aid

This video is the third in the video series: Colourful Keys Quick Clips. You can catch all the quick clips published so far by clicking here. When you’re teaching pattern pieces you sometimes need to employ a rote teaching aid to help you on your way. Anything you can do to make the learning easier…

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Filed Under: Colourful Keys Quick Clips, Practice & Performance, Teaching technique Tagged With: colourful keys quick clip, piano teaching, preschool piano, rote teaching, teaching young piano students

CKQC001: Using a whale analogy to fix piano technique

Welcome to the first ever Colourful Keys Quick Clip. In these videos you’ll be getting a peek inside my teaching studio at my own teaching. I’ll be sharing these short excerpts from my lessons every Thursday, mostly centred around my rote teaching, improvisation and teaching with games. It’s not easy sharing your “live” teaching with…

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Filed Under: Colourful Keys Quick Clips, Piano practice tips, Practice & Performance, Scales & Technique, Teaching technique Tagged With: analogies, beginner piano teaching, colourful keys quick clip, fun piano technique, piano technique

Lessons learned from NCKP Part 5

Lessons Learned from NCKP 2017 Part 5: Beautiful Music

I know, I know. You went to a piano conference and you heard beautiful music? Isn’t that painfully expected? What I’m talking about here is not the music I heard, but the focus of each of the teachers. No matter what they were teaching – five finger pieces or Gershwin – they were each focussed on…

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Filed Under: Composing & Improvising, Piano improvisation, Piano teacher training, Practice & Performance, Teaching technique Tagged With: NCKP 2017, piano student musicality, piano teacher training, professional development, teaching technique

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About Nicola

Nicola Cantan is a piano teacher, author, blogger and creator of imaginative and engaging teaching resources. She loves getting piano students learning through laughter, and helping teachers to teach through games and off-bench activities, so that their students giggle their way through music theory and make faster progress.

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