Relationships

I have a question about accommodations. I have a 10 year old student with severe anxiety and perfectionism. She is unable to understand that she needs to practice songs even if she doesn’t like them. She is working on this skill, among others, with a…

• Last updated 11 months ago
• accommodations, adapting, adapting the curriculum, adapting to student's needs, ADHD, anxiety, anxious, anxious student, bullying, changing teaching order, dislikes Reading Rhythm, emotion, emotional, emotional limitations, emotional student, emotional students, emotions, encouraging practice, feeling rhythm, helping students feel rhythm, improving rhythm skills, lack of practice, managing emotion, masters of the rhythm, mental health, MORs, moving slowly, neurodivergence, neurodivergent, neurological issues, neurology, not practicing, not wanting to learn song, not wanting to learn songs, omitting pieces from the program, parents of special needs, patience with slow learners, perfection, perfectionism, poor practice, processing rhythm, processing rhythms, reading rhythm, relationship, relationships, rhythm difficulty, rhythmically challenged, RR, slow learner, slow pace, slow progress, special needs, student anxiety, student dislikes songs, teaching rhythm, teaching special needs, therapist, therapy, validate, validating, validation

So happy about a droplet of grace that came to my studio today. A mum came up with an idea about which I am so excited that I am instituting next week. An hour long zoom SM Parent Support Session . The structure she suggested…

• Last updated 1 year ago
• coaching parents, communicating with parents, communication with parents, dealing with parents, encouraging parents, involving parents in lessons, involving the parent, keeping coaches focused, life coach, life coaches, managing coaches, mutual coaching, parent, parent involvement, parent questions, parent struggles, parent support, parental involvement, parental participation, parents, parents only, relationship with coach, Robin Keehn, working with parents

I was just speaking with an adult student about how she is too afraid to play in front of anyone in case she makes a mistake, even her husband! She also mentioned that it is always her left hand that she can’t remember and has…

• Last updated 2 years ago
• afraid, anxiety, anxious, anxious student, emotion, emotional, emotional limitations, emotional student, emotional students, emotions, fear, fearful, feelings, managing emotion, music therapist, music therapy, Neil's Responses (YouTube Videos), performance, performance anxiety, performance expectations, performing in front of others, personal growth, playing in front of others, refusing to play, scared, student anxiety, student won't play, therapist, therapy, traumatic, traumatize, traumatized

I was just speaking with an adult student about how she is too afraid to play in front of anyone in case she makes a mistake, even her husband! She also mentioned that it is always her left hand that she can’t remember and has…

• Last updated 2 years ago
• active listening, advice, afraid, anxiety, anxious, anxious student, brave, bravery, coach, coaching, compassion, compassionate, courage, courageous, empathetic, empathize, empathy, encouragement, fear, fearful, friend, friends, friendship, listen, listening, mindfulness, music therapist, music therapy, offering advice, performance anxiety, performing in front of others, playing in front of others, scared, student advice, student anxiety, support, supportive, therapist, therapy, traumatic, traumatize, traumatized, validate, validating, validation

I have run three FIS’s over the past week, and have encountered a number of potential parents who use the phrase “we want to give it a go”. Now, I know this is a phrase we don’t like to hear necessarily – as “giving it…

• Last updated 3 years ago
• 4-song workshop, commit, commitment, commitment to lessons, give it a go, giving it a go, Long Term Relationship, long term relationships, long-term, long-term relationship conversation, LTR, LTR graph, relationship, relationship conversation, relationship graph, sample lessons, sampling lessons, sticking with piano long term, teaching workshops, trail before committing, trial lesson, trial period, try it out, trying it out, trying lessons, workshop, workshop SHMs, Workshops

Gosh, there are SO many things I want to comment on, but at this moment, I want to encourage all of you who might be on the fence about letting someone go from your studio to just do it! I realize we all have our…

• Last updated 3 years ago
• discontinuation, discontinuation notice, discontinuation policy, discontinuing, discontinuing lessons, ending lessons, ending lessons via email, final lesson, firing students, last lesson, letting students go

Siblings in a shared lesson with 2 others, just finishing Foundation One (12 lessons) Big brother learning faster than average, and faster than his sister. Mom says they are having trouble at home because they are playing the same material, he wants to go faster…

• Last updated 3 years ago
• 30 day notice, claiming territory, discontinuation, discontinuation notice, discontinuation policy, discontinuing, discontinuing lessons, Laurie Richards, lesson requirements, Long Term Relationship, long term relationships, long-term relationship conversation, LTR, no notice ending lessons, notice, quitting, quitting lessons, reclaiming territory, regaining lost territory ideas, request vs requirement, requirement, requirement based studio, requirement versus request, requirement-based, requirements, requirements in lessons, sticking with piano long term, students quitting, territory, want to quit

Thoughts on creating some kind of buddy system opportunities for adult private students who could use some extra support beyond their own playing the coaching the role for themselves? I do have more than one, so I could approach my own to pose this to…

• Last updated 4 years ago
• adult, adult afternoon soirees, adult cocktail party, adult lessons, adult student, adult students, adults, adults in groups, buddy system, coach, coach as student, coach responsibility, coaches, coaching, coaching adults, holding coaches accountable, importance of life coach, learning without a coach, life coach, life coach for adult, life coaches, mutual coaching, no coach at lessons, no coaches, no life coach, Practice Club, teaching adults, teaching students to coach, teaching without a coach

Lesson bombs with Neil – has anyone told your students ahead of time rather than having it be a surprise? Would that be OK to do? Or perhaps telling them there will be a surprise guest and to choose a short piece or a 20-second…

• Last updated 4 years ago
• benefits of group lessons, benefits of online lessons, comfort in teaching groups, distance lessons, FaceTime, Google Hangouts, groups, learning online, learning via webcam, lesson bomb, lesson bombs, managing groups, Neil Moore, online, online groups, online learning, online lessons, Skype, teaching groups, teaching online, using a webcam to teach, value of groups, videoconference software, Zoom

An idea that might be helpful, especially to those teachers in the southern hemisphere wanting to schedule a lesson bomb with Neil: I invited students to a Pop Up Piano Lesson. This was a time outside of anybody’s regular lesson time. I scheduled a lesson…

• Last updated 4 years ago
• benefits of group lessons, benefits of online lessons, comfort in teaching groups, distance lessons, FaceTime, Google Hangouts, groups, learning online, learning via webcam, lesson bomb, lesson bombs, managing groups, Neil Moore, online, online groups, online learning, online lessons, pop-up lesson, pop-up piano lesson, Skype, teaching groups, teaching online, using a webcam to teach, value of groups, videoconference software, Zoom