How can I get my child to practice the piano more? 3 things to consider.

As a piano instructor, the most common question I get is this: How can I get my child to practice more? It might seem that your student’s personal motivation and self-discipline might be the only factors, and addressing those two things will inspire endless hours of self-directed piano practice. Offering reward-based and consequence-based outcomes are common tactics for persuading our children to practice more. But, did you know, there are also practical factors to consider that might lead to seeing your student at the piano practicing more?

1. Consider the placement of your piano in your home. Pianos are often placed in the most visible and highest-traffic areas of the home, like the living room or near an entry way. This is well-intentioned: a beautiful instrument in more visible areas allows it to be appreciated. Your piano is also one of your largest pieces of furniture so there aren’t many options for it to fit in your space, right? But, an unintended consequence is this: while students are in the beginning stages of learning a piece, struggling through practice session after practice session in such a visible manner can be intimidating, embarrassing, and unmotivating. Higher traffic areas can have the most distractions as well. If possible, find a more secluded or private area in your home - like a den, a separate room, or even a finished basement - where uninterrupted practice can occur. If your piano is in the one and only spot in your home that it can fit, don’t worry! A digital piano equipped with headphones makes a great practice instrument. Although they don’t have the unmistakable “touch” of an acoustic piano, technology has come a long way and they’re pretty close - and more affordable. This allows your child the confidence to make mistakes as they learn music in the privacy of their own headphones. If a digital piano isn’t an option, and your piano needs to stay in the busiest part of your home, try intentionally giving your child more space and privacy as they practice, and then check in with them towards the end of their practice time to have them play some of what they’ve learned for you. Most of the your child’s time at the piano is practice time, not performance time - a 5-minute piece often takes dozens of hours to master - so consider your piano placement if you want to see your child at the piano more.

2. Consider finding more opportunities for your child to share their music (“perform”). What would sports practices look like if there were no games to prepare for? I imagine that the level of engagement, intentionality, and purpose would like a lot different from both the players and the coaches. Playing the piano is similar: if you know you are going to share your music (or “perform”), then your practice time is going to look a bit different. Most piano studios have an end-of-year recital, which is great, but not frequent enough to develop the confidence and courage to consistently practice. If your student is in band or choir at school, have them consider playing for their teacher - or even the class - once a semester. Consider group-class piano lessons where there is the opportunity to not only share your music with your classmates on a weekly basis, you also get added benefit of listening to your fellow pianists each week - learning from them, encouraging them, and being inspired by them. Consider connecting with a local assisted living home and share the gift of music with those who are unable to go to a live concert anymore. The more opportunities your child has on their calendar to share their music, the more frequent and intentional their piano practice will be.

3. Consider shorter practice sessions. Yes, I know… the whole point of this article is to get your child to practice more, and I just suggested shorter practice sessions. But what seems backwards can actually be more effective and sustainable. A 45-minute block of time for anything nowadays - much less a daily practice session at the piano - seems like a really big commitment, doesn’t it? An expectation like this in piano practicing typically leads to “binge” practice sessions, where your child might not practice the first 5 days after a lesson, but then crams in a 75-minute one the night before their the next lesson. Instead, consider shorter practice session expectations. Much shorter. Like 6-minutes. Yes, SIX minutes. In the 1st minute, choose a small section of music your child needs to work on (typically 4-8 measures) and commit to working on ONLY that section of music for the next 5 minutes. In Minutes 2-5, focus on increasing their ACCURACY of notes, their EVENNESS of your tempo, and their CONFIDENCE as they play. In the 6th minute, REVIEW that small section by playing through it. Ideally, your child would do a series of these 6-minute practice sessions, depending on their age and level, which can be worked out with your piano teacher. But any age, any level, and just about any schedule can use this practice tool to increase the frequency of practice time, frequency of the sense of accomplishment, and frequency of taking the next step towards becoming a pianist for a lifetime!

What suggestions do you have? Or what questions would you like answered? Comment below!