Piano Teaching

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How to Transition to Teaching Lessons Online (Due to COVID-19)

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How to Transition to Teaching Lessons Online (Due to COVID-19)

We’re living in unprecedented times.

With the recent worldwide outbreak of COVID-19, more and more schools and studios are choosing to close and transition to remote learning.

Maybe you’re like me in thinking that some subjects lend themselves well to being taught online: history, language, math. But music? How do you teaching piano to a 1st grader online? How do you teach choir or band? How do you teach group lessons?

This week, numerous music educators have put together resources, kits, and teaching guides to help others transition to online learning, learn about tools that are available, and get ideas. There are Facebook groups and webinars, blog posts and Google Docs summarizing all the music-related tech tools that are offering special discounts right now.

Here in Rochester, NY, schools are closed and moving online until further notice.

As such, I’m transitioning my studio to online learning. Today, I want to share what that looks like, including:

  • The notes I’m sending home to parents

  • Three models for online education I’m offering to all my students (K-10th grade)

  • Steps I’m taking to plan and prepare for this change

  • Resources and printables I’m pulling together for the next few weeks

  • Tools I’m using on the tech side of things

  • My best recommendations for studio teachers in this situation

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Five Teaching & Learning Myths to Debunk This Year

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Five Teaching & Learning Myths to Debunk This Year

You know those things you’ve heard that seem true? I mean, they sound plausible. Plus, if enough people say it, it must be true, right?

Before long, we find ourselves buying into the hype, retelling the story, believing something we’ve heard without stopping to ask questions.

This is how myths begin.

Sometimes, there’s simply a lack of information—nothing to disprove this theory or that idea. Other times, they sound good on paper but are only surface-level with no substance to back them up.

Whatever the case may be, we’ve all encountered myths (big and small) in various parts of our lives.

But have you ever stopped to think about myths related to teaching and learning? What stories are being told out there that affect our work and how we approach things? What’s being shared as fact when there isn’t research to back it up?

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Do We Really Teach How We Were Taught? Three Things You Should Know

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Do We Really Teach How We Were Taught? Three Things You Should Know

Do you ever think back to the teachers you had growing up?

Maybe a private music teacher or a choir director or your high school English teacher or a professor you had in college.

What do you remember about them? What was your learning experience like? What approaches did you observe? What do you find yourself incorporating into your own teaching?

There’s an age-old adage that says we teach how we were taught.

This isn’t the full story, of course: we all have unique backgrounds and a variety of experiences that inform the people we are today and the teachers we are becoming.

10 Ways to Help Your Child Practice

10 Ways to Help Your Child Practice

This is a letter to all the parents and guardians and babysitters and older siblings and neighbors and friends who support young musicians: those who encourage the pursuit of music, tote children and books and accessories back and forth to lessons each week, and help with practicing at home.

Dear parents + guardians:

Thank you for supporting your child’s musical pursuits. You play a crucial role in your child’s success in learning to play an instrument. Even if you don't play the piano yourself, your support and guidance at home during the week is extremely important to their music-learning process. 

How to Create a Repertoire Plan Using the RCM Piano Syllabus

How to Create a Repertoire Plan Using the RCM Piano Syllabus

A few summers ago, I attended the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy (NCKP) for the first time (read my recaps here, here, and here). 

In addition to a wealth of new teaching ideas, I learned about new methods and curriculum materials, some of which I’ve been using in my teaching ever since. 

Perhaps the most influential and valuable resource I discovered at NCKP was the Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM—Canadian division) and Music Development Program (MDP - US division).

Founded with a commitment to developing strong musicianship skills from the very beginning, the program includes level-by-level guides to repertoire, technique, and musicianship skills (plus supplemental materials for music history and theory) for a variety of different instruments.

An Inside Look at My Superhero-Themed Studio Incentive Program

An Inside Look at My Superhero-Themed Studio Incentive Program

Every year, I plan and create a 6-8 week incentive program for my piano studio. Mostly, this is for my beginning and elementary students (through 5th grade), though my middle schoolers (6th-8th grade) have been known to join in!

I’ve been doing this for a few years now, and I’ve found, while it's a great way to mix up our weekly lesson routine and give my students something fun to look forward to each week, it’s also a helpful way for me to assess their musicianship skills, take time to recognize their musical growth, and really tailor my instruction to each student.

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Celebrate Valentine's Day with These Fun, Creative Music Games

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Celebrate Valentine's Day with These Fun, Creative Music Games

Valentine’s Day is right around the corner!

Now, I know what some of you are probably thinking: Valentine’s Day isn’t a real holiday! Why should we “celebrate” this in our lessons and rehearsals?

I’m inclined to agree that Valentine’s Day is basically a Hallmark holiday, but at this point in the year, I’ll take pretty much any excuse to mix up my regular teaching routine and introduce something a little whimsical and fun (especially when gummy candy is involved!).

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Let's Get Back to the Basics: A Free 5-Day Workshop for Church Musicians & Music Educators

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Let's Get Back to the Basics: A Free 5-Day Workshop for Church Musicians & Music Educators

It’s the first week of the New Year and let me guess:

You’re looking back at 2018 and feeling a little worn out. You feel scattered. Your teaching approach feels haphazard and reactionary, and you wish you’d been a little more consistent these past few months.

You want 2019 to be different, but you’re not sure where to start.

You want to be the best teacher you can be, but taking on the task of improving your teaching skills is daunting. You’re not sure what to change or do differently.

Can you relate to that?

Three Things I'm Doing Differently in My Piano Studio This Year

Three Things I'm Doing Differently in My Piano Studio This Year

It's been a while since I've written anything about private teaching here. This is a big part of what I do during the week, even though I don't talk about it much here, and I know many of you teach privately, as well, in addition to the other things you do. 

I teach private lessons four days a week at a private school as part of their extracurricular and after-school programming. At the beginning of this year, I shared eight ways to continue developing your teaching skills this year.

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9 Time-Saving Tools and Tactics for Busy Music Teachers and Directors

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9 Time-Saving Tools and Tactics for Busy Music Teachers and Directors

One thing I hear over and over from church musicians and music educators (well, everyone, really) is that there never seems to be enough time to get it all done.

Time to teach
Time to rehearse
Time to write
Time to practice
Time to be with family
Time to be a good friend
Time to read
Time to exercise
Time to learn

Follow along with my creative work and daily adventures: @ashleydanyew

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