Lessons in university January 14, 2018 No CommentI taught guitar in university for ten years. Since there were playing exams at the end of every term, I devised a curriculum that I could test. This involved the students learning chords, arpeggios, scales, etc. and being able to use this material playing pieces and improvising. By the middle of the term, students knew pretty well everything they needed for the exam. All they needed to do was work on it to bring it up to a high standard. Students came in each week to check with me that everything was going ok. Except for one guy who would reliably miss lessons just before the exam. One term he missed five in a row. My obvious concern was that he would fail the exam. This caused me quite a bit of stress; I really want my students to do well. He came into the exam and totally nailed it. Other students who reliably showed up for lessons didn’t do as well. One of them failed. What was going on? Well, two things. First of all, this guy practiced. He came to lessons until he was sure that he had all the information he needed, and then he just worked on it. And he worked on it a lot if the exam results are any indication. The second reason was more compelling, at least for me: my lessons weren’t interesting enough to show up for. I was basically drilling students on what they needed to know, and giving feedback. But there was no creative work. I wasn’t discussing ideas, having them write their own exercises, or expand on the material I gave them. None of it was theirs. It was just me saying “Do this,” and then standing in judgement. For some students, drilling is what they need. In a university environment with timelines and tests and grading, the drilling/feedback model makes sense. Some students just want to get the mark and get out. But music is about expressing yourself and making things, whether you’re improvising or writing pieces. It isn’t hard to make that part of every lesson. All you have to do is ask, “How would you do this?” Get them to think. Get them to make things. For some people, it takes longer to buy into this; thinking is harder than just doing what you’re told. But once it kicks in, students come to lessons more engaged and energized. They know that they have responsibility for what they’re learning, and they know that i’m going to give them support and encouragement for the work (or is it play?) they’re doing. Teaching and LearningShare : Tweet
Achieving success December 21, 2017 No CommentTo achieve success on the guitar, you need to work on it. I’ve developed strategies over the years to help students pick up the guitar and practice. It’s not always easy. Getting the guitar in your hands Just picking up the guitar can be hard. Anything that isn’t a habit takes a little more effort, but having a few strategies makes it easier. The following have proven useful for many of my students. 1. Create alerts on your phone for each day of the week. When the alert goes off, you have five minutes to pick up the guitar. 2. Before going to bed, check your schedule for the next day, and write down when you will practice. As a reminder, put that wherever you eat breakfast. 3. Pick up the guitar with the intent of practicing for only five minutes. Students often don’t pick the guitar up because they don’t think they have enough time. But five minutes isn’t long, and once you have the guitar in your hands, you’re usually there for more than five minutes. Especially if you’re trying to get better at something. 4. Use the pomodori technique. This was developed as a way to deal with procrastination. Simply get a timer, set it for however long you want to practice, and then stop as soon as it goes off. This motivates students by removing open-endedness. If you know when you’re going to stop, you tend to be more focused in your practicing, and you’re more likely to actually practice. 5. Have your guitar on a guitar stand, and have the music you’re working on that week on your music stand. Picking up the guitar is easier if you don’t have to prepare to do it. Make sure that you can just walk in your room, pick up your guitar, and start playing. 6. Attach to habit. Practice immediately after something you’re already in the habit of doing. For example, if there’s a show you watch every day at the same time, practice for 15 minutes once it’s done. Or practice right after you play your favorite game. 7. Have the end result uppermost in your mind. For example, if you’re practicing a difficult move between two chords, keep in mind that they’re part of your favorite song. When you’re working on details, it can be difficult to see the big picture. Success, Teaching and LearningShare : Tweet
Why teach? December 13, 2017 No CommentPoet William Butler Yeats said the following: “Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.” I love this, because It implies the discovery-making process for the student, the excitement of encountering new things. For the teacher, it implies a focus on discovering the interests of the student, and using those interests to establish a relationship in which the student feels valued and heard. Why teach? There are many reasons to teach, but for me, it comes down to one thing: the opportunity to have a positive impact on someone’s life. Having that gives me a sense of purpose. Having a positive impact means helping students: build confidence nurture a sense of self-worth love learning be able to deal with failure become satisfied, well-rounded people As for me, I get to spend time with interesting people have a positive impact on the lives of others learn more about myself and the needs of others grow and to stretch as a teacher and musician become a better communicator find the key to each student’s growth Doing this is a privilege. In order to do it well, I strive to bring these qualities to do the work: kindness patience clarity empathy and as the following quote implies, an open mind “Take risks. Try new things. Encourage creativity. Learn from your students. Expect a lot. But always allow for the unexpected. Don’t be afraid to give your students control, because you will often be surprised at the direction their hearts, thoughts, and dreams will take them… and you.” Angie Miller, English and Language Arts teacher. Teaching and LearningShare : Tweet
Parents’ Page December 4, 2017 No CommentParents need to know that they are leaving their child in a safe and nurturing environment. For this reason, I have an open-door policy. Parents are welcome to remain in the room for the entire lesson if they like. My teaching approach In order to provide motivation and to create a sense of fun in the lessons, I take a student-directed teaching approach. For my purposes, this simply means following my student’s interests. A simple example is allowing them to choose their favourite song to work on instead of one that I choose. The things that get used when learning a song – chords, strumming, rhythmic control, groove, tempo – can be taught using any song. Allowing a simple choice like this increases student autonomy and motivation. I understand a child’s need for a variety of stimuli when learning music. That’s why I use many different activities aside from actually playing the guitar. iPad music apps, recording, playing keyboard synth, singing, writing song lyrics, standing up and moving around while playing are all options, depending on the child. Buying a guitar The following suggestions reflect my present knowledge in terms of the amount of product available; they are intended to give you a starting point for talking with someone at your local music store. The Acoustic Music Shop, Avenue Guitar, and Long and Mcquade – all on Whyte Avenue between 99 Street and 109 Street – are good places to check out. It’s important to buy a guitar that fits you. Not doing so can result in all sorts of physical problems. Strumming arm positioning A guitar that’s too large will push the shoulder of your strumming/picking arm up. This will eventually lead to neck and shoulder problems, which can lead to tendinitis. This is mainly a concern with acoustic guitars since their bodies are typically wider and deeper than electrics. Fretting hand positioning The neck should be short enough to fret the first string, first fret without having to reach too far. Take a look at some YouTube videos of people playing the guitar to get an idea of what looks natural. Finding a good guitar for children is difficult. Small guitars are sometimes made poorly and can easily go out of tune. But don’t give in to the temptation to buy a full-size guitar with the rationalization that your child will grow into it. Your child will enjoy a guitar that’s comfortable more than one with good intonation and tone. 3⁄4 size guitars If you’re looking for an electric guitar, the Squier Mini-Strat is a great choice for students around 8-12 years old. If you’re looking for an acoustic, the Baby Taylor, while a bit pricy – $329 US – is a good choice. 1⁄2 size guitars These instruments should only be used for small children, age 4 – 7. It’s really difficult to find a decent one. The 30” First Act Discovery guitar is probably your best bet. Why guitar lessons? There are a lot of resources on the web about getting your child into music lessons. This one gives you some good reasons for doing it. Here’s another from Mike Levitsky and his student, Andrew Griswold, at drumsandguitar.com. And one more from Terry Stefan at GuitarSignal.com. I encourage you to do your own research, as well. Perhaps the best type of research is to take advantage of a free lesson. Parent pageShare : Tweet
Free Introductory Lesson December 4, 2017 1 CommentThe free introductory lesson takes about 20 minutes, and achieves a number of things. You can check out my teaching space. There are many things that contribute to your learning. Feeling comfortable in the teaching space is one of them. You can get a sense of how I teach. I use a student-directed approach. We can talk about what you want to achieve, whether it’s to learn a particular genre, improve your technique, or prepare for an audition. Just so you know, a decision to study elsewhere is never taken personally by me. It’s important to me that you find the right teacher. Free intro lessonShare : Tweet
Student-directed learning December 4, 2017 1 CommentA lot has been written about student-directed teaching. For my purposes, it means taking my student s interests into account. This is essential. It’s difficult to get people to practice if they’re working on things they aren’t interested in. Guitar skills There are two broad categories of skills that a guitar player works on: rhythm playing and soloing. Everything you can learn on the guitar (outside of avant-garde techniques) falls under one of these two categories. So instead of teaching chord technique using a song that I provide, why not use a song that the student provides? I can teach the same techniques regardless. The student is more likely to practice, and less likely to get frustrated. Of course, I may need to provide supplemental exercises to improve technique, but these are given with the overall goal of learning something they want to learn. This is inherently motivating. Autonomy Along with creating motivated, interested students, this approach creates autonomy. Since the student is encouraged to pick material they want to learn, they are able to ultimately take responsibility for their own learning. They not only begin to look for material they like; they look for material that may be more like work, but which they know will make them better. Doing research like this means that they are able to find material on their own. The ultimate goal With the student-directed approach, the ultimate goal is that the student will be able to teach themselves. They will be motivated, interested, independent, and informed. And they won’t need to pay for years of guitar lessons. student-directed teaching, Teaching and LearningShare : Tweet
