Throughout the following ideas, there is one basic theme; end the routine. Not the routine of practicing, but the routine of doing the same thing each and every day.

Praise Your Child
Praise your child. Instead of nagging them to practice, find some way to acknowledge and support their efforts. Praise them for good posture. Praise them for trying. Let them know how pleased you are about the progress they have made on a particular song. Praise is a wonderful and appreciated thing, and the reward for you and your child will be great.

Designing a Practice Schedule
Designing a practice schedule that is right for your child is an important part of your childs plan for success. Beginners do not need long practice periods to make progress. For elementary grade children 20 minutes per day is quite sufficient. Beginning trumpet or trombone players, for example, would be well served by a short practice period, as their muscles are easily fatigued. Some children may prefer to practice 10 minutes here and 10 minutes there. These short periods may be just what they need to keep things interesting. Practicing every day is ideal, though skipping a day here and there will not hurt anything. It may even help to keep your child fresh and excited about playing.

Find Great Music
Music that kids enjoy playing motivates them to go to their instrument to play it. Unfortunately, this simple equation is often overlooked by music instructors who choose to focus heavily on scales, exercises and theory, with little attention on what might interest the student. There are many wonderful graded method books full of Disney songs, popular songs and hymns for begininng and intermediate instrumentalists. Also available are book/CD play-along sets that give your child a chance to play along with a full orchestra, rock band or jazz combo, playing favorites from Disney, the movies, pop culture, and Broadway. Talk to your teacher to see what they recommend.

Let’s Practice!