managing expectations

Hi Teachers, here is a conversation I had with a few Simply Music Teachers about: parent participation in class, setting up the expectations & agreements, how to help a child when his/her parents are not in attendance (but a grandparent is), do teens need a…

• Last updated 6 months ago
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In response to some questions I have read, here are my replies. “…I’m assuming that I should do a brief description of the program at the beginning to introduce Simply Music..not sure how long, how much?…” I think it’s valuable to talk about SM, at…

• Last updated 3 years ago
• afraid, anxiety, anxious, anxious student, casual performance, casual recital, concert expectations, concerts, events, expectation, expectations, fear, Gordon Harvey, handling mistakes, informal performance, informal recital, keep going through mistakes, managing expectations, mistakes, nerves, nervous, nervousness, open stage, perfection, performance, performance anxiety, performance expectations, performing, performing in front of others, piano event, piano events, piano party, playing through mistakes, recital, recital expectations, recital introductions, recital preparation, recital program, recital programs, recital venues, recitals, stage fright, student anxiety

I have a class of 5 middle-schoolers who love music, and are trying to do every musical activity available to them. They are in Level 3. A couple of them are in the school band (actually an orchestra), and a couple of them are joining…

• Last updated 3 years ago
• expectation, expectations, high school, high school jazz band, managing expectations, middle school, outside materials, outside music, outside pieces, outside reading pieces, outside sheet music, parent expectation, parental expectations, pieces outside the program, playing-based, playing-based arrangements, playing-based strategies, playing-based tools, public school, public schools, reading expectations, reading outside Simply Music, school, school band, school jazz band, school music, school orchestra, songs outside the repertoire, talking about expectations, teaching outside music

Reading Notes – I have a couple of students currently, one senior and one middle school age, who seem to struggle with grasping the intervallic note reading process. Sometimes I wonder if it would be easier for certain students to learn note reading the old-fashioned…

• Last updated 4 years ago
• bass, bass F, clef symbols, clefs, expectation, expectations, identifying notes on keyboard, identifying notes on piano, identifying notes on staff, identifying written notes, interval streams, intervallic, intervallic reading, intervals, introducing reading notes, Laurie Richards, learning note names, location points, managing expectations, naming notes, note names, note naming, note reading, notes, Placing Intervals, reading expectations, reading notes, RN, RN streams, staff, streams, talking about expectations, teaching streams, transcribing, transcribing notes, transcribing Reading Notes, treble, treble G

A parent asked me tonight “when will my daughter be able to hear a song, and just know how to play it with all the chords and in the right key?” I was unsure how to answer this, so of course I told the truth,…

• Last updated 4 years ago
• Accompaniment‏, chord, chord structure, chord theory, chords, communication, different facets of musicianship, ear training, expectation, expectations, FIS, four goals, free introductory session, goals, Gordon Harvey, Laurie Richards, managing expectations, matching pitch, musicianship, parent expectation, parental expectations, perfect pitch, pitch, play-by-ear, playing by ear, playing by ear method, playing chords, relative pitch, SM goals, standard of musicianship, talking about expectations

I’ve lost a few students recently (starting Level 3) because the parents are taking them to a traditional teacher to learn to read notes, even though the kids were doing well and I told them that we were moving toward note reading soon. They compared…

• Last updated 6 years ago
• arrangements, core conversations, Laurie Richards, managing expectations, reading, repertoire, Robin Keehn, when to introduce reading

I am seeing a pattern of students growing restless in Level 4 and at the beginning of the reading process. This is usually around two years into lessons, and seems to coincide with students entering middle school. I feel sad to see them give up…

• Last updated 7 years ago
• eye of the needle, F3, F4, FL3, FL4, Foundation 3, Foundation 4, Laurie Richards, Level 3, managing expectations, reading, reading notes, reading rhythm, students losing interest, valleys

One of my adult students is in a valley (or plateau) because even though she can do Alma Mater Blues very well super slowly, she is impatient with herself and she said “I will NEVER be able to play it as quickly as Neil Moore…

• Last updated 7 years ago
• Alma Mater Blues, certificates, certificates for each level, F1, foundation 1, level 1, managing expectations, tempo

I’d like to hear people’s strategies for stretching out the teaching of Foundation songs starting in about Level 4 beyond the obvious tactic of taking 2-5 or so weeks to learn the entire songs. I’m accustomed to teaching songs at this level and beyond over…

• Last updated 7 years ago
• F4, Foundation 4, Laurie Richards, managing expectations, pacing, playlist review, streams, Teacher Workshop Series, TWS