Every person has a different level of interest in different things. I love a clean house but detest dusting because it has to be done so often in Texas! I won’t even attempt to talk about exercise. . .

How does a teacher foster interest in students to engage in the type and length of practice that produces proficient results with some level of artistry? Each student is different and has an individual level of interest. Some prefer playing (and perhaps singing) the melody. Some prefer the rhythm of the piece. Some delight in efforts to compose.

It Can Be Tricky, But . . .

A creative teacher can tap into the individual interest and skill level of a student and lead him or her to evolve into a higher level of performance and understanding about producing music on the piano; music that goes beyond the technically correct and enters the realm of pleasing artistry.

It’s Worth It!

It’s been shown that the engaged process of learning to play piano improves academics in general and is beneficial in other areas like eye-hand coordination, developing sustained activity and concentration, and understanding mathematics. Solving nonmusical problems should come easier since the information travels more quickly and efficiently in a brain that’s had a years-sustained “brain workout” through piano practice. This is a benefit from learning to play any instrument, but especially with piano since it involves using both hands doing different and independent actions. Considering this, it’s certainly worth the extra effort for the teacher and the parents to maintain and, hopefully, elevate a student’s interest in the study of piano.

What Do You Do, Teacher, To Encourage Student Interest?

A perceptive and engaged teacher can tap into the individual interest of the student and encourage a higher, more intense performance level of interest. What to do, of course, varies with the student, and often takes some trial-and-error experiences. What works for one may not work with another student. In general, however, here are some ideas:

1. Energy Level: A tired student who is worn out from a day of school and is hungry will have far less interest in a piano lesson than if there has been a period of rest and rejuvenation. This sure sounds obvious, but is very often not addressed.
   
   
   
2. Doable Assignments: As covered previously, when the learning task is considered easy because it is immediately understood and requires little effort, the student experience will likely be felt as fun, personally rewarding, and more apt to produce interest to continue. This leads into number 3.
   
   
   
3. Instructional Design: Following the guidelines of Instructional Design, the Revolutionary Piano Method series was developed to introduce piano concepts and tasks in a logical sequence of small and manageable steps of progression for the student, without relying on rote memorization in order to be successful. The Instructional Design process really makes a difference in how a student thinks and performs when learning piano!
   
   
   
4. Introduce the Familiar: A song the student recognizes will generate more interest than one that is not familiar. However, although there are learning benefits from reading and playing a musical piece that is not known, the risk of stress and less interest is higher. To counter this, the piece may be approached in smaller sections; practiced hands separately; played as a duet with the teacher; listened to before playing attempts; and the rhythm studied first as patterns without note-playing.
   
   
   
5. Supplement the Interest: Genre songs added to the mainstream assignment can be useful in adding interest for the student. Topics could be western/cowboy; dinosaur; movie themes; dancing themes; pop classics; current popular music; holiday specials; music from an era (50s, 60s, 70s, etc.).
   
   
   
6. Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivators: Picture two students running a race. The intrinsically motivated student is thinking about how good it will feel to have accomplished the race doing his best. This could be like parent and teacher praise for a well-done performance or practice session. The extrinsically motivated student is thinking about the first-place award at the end. This could be daily or weekly stickers or a tangible reward at some point. I want to detail this area in the near future.

As a past student yourself or as a current teacher, can you add to these suggestions of how to increase student interest and performance levels? Send them in the Leave a Reply block below, and I’ll post them next week – and give you all the credit!

What Would the First Lesson for a Young Student Look Like?

What Would the First Lesson for a 6 to Teen Look Like (video)?

View sample pages of all the books for students
ages 6 to teen:

View sample pages of all the books for students
4 to 5 years old:

View sample pages of all the books for older
teens and adults:

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Leslie Young is the author/composer of the Revolutionary Piano Method. She co-founded a K-12th grade charter school in Texas and has been a piano teacher for about 40 years. She has had experience teaching a variety of students tackling piano for the first time or as returning students.

Leslie believes that “learning to play the piano is more about diligence and perseverance” – but would add that just as critical to success is the method that is used, the encouragement of critical thinking, and the instructional principles that promote immediate success.

She states: “In teaching piano to students of varying ages, what also varies is a commitment of time and the amount of dedication. Children of certain ages may do very well with a parent as teacher; others may need someone who is not family to instruct them. Some older children and adults prefer to make progress on their own, and this method is designed to act as a meticulous guide through new material. Some adults and teens insist on professional teachers, which also encourages continuity. Because these books are self-explanatory, a new or experienced professional teacher will have no trouble using the Revolutionary Piano Method with students. It is an easy way to learn piano.”