How do you deal with kids who do not practice? Week after week, they sit at the instrument shoulders slumped and no results to show. Even if they are in summer vacation with nothing else to do, they didn’t touch the keys or the drums all week long.
I know that in those situation some teacher shame the student, making him/her feel bad. It seems to be a common practice among my colleagues. So common in fact, that a lot of adults who used to take lessons when they were young are still traumatized twenty or thirty years later. They were yelled at, humiliated. It wasn’t fun at all.
I don’t do that. I don’t yell, I don’t shame. Not my style. Besides, there are plenty of other tools to use. Tools that come from understanding and respecting the student. My job is not just to give some data about the drums or the piano, my job is also about figuring out the student as a human being. Everybody is different. There are a lot of reasons why a student didn’t practice. Most of them are not based on a lack of interest or disdain for music.
In general, I approach the lack of readiness by asking why they didn’t get to the instrument. The answers come in varied form. Some volunteer important information immediately, some stay mute for a long time before uttering a short sentence. I need to be paying attention not just to the words they use but also their attitude, the tone of voice, the expression on their face. Everything count, everything tells a story.
Some kids were busy enjoying the beach, the company of their friends at the park, they show a beautiful tan, a healthy glow, they’ve even grown a few inches during the summer vacation. For those I tell them to do their practice in the morning. They wake up, eat, shower, whatever is customary to them and then jump on their drums or their keyboard for fifteen to twenty minutes. This way they can go about their day without having to worry about music. I tell the parents that they can help set that up by supervising the first few days.
Some of my older kids, the ones in high school, are working for the first time They discover the long hours at the job, the fatigue at the end of the day. They want to practice but their new reality is a bit overwhelming. I advise them to try to put their hands on the keyboard in the evening, once they’ve come home. I don’t tell them to practice. I tell them to play. Just play. They can do whatever they want. They can improvise or try to imitate their favorite song. As long as they play, as long as they use the instrument a bit every day, that’s what count. The goal here is to have music as a soothing device, one that will help ease the dull pain of a long day’s work. The piano or the drums becomes their best friend, the one that soothes and comfort.
So there, I just gave you a few pointers on how I approach the lack of practice from my students. I always emphasize the positive. It helps them see music in a bright light and it helps me stay connected to my students. I can’t ask for more.
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