What is the perfect amount of time for a beginner music student to practice? Clearly, the more practice a student does, the better they’ll get, but what is a reasonable practice for a beginner? In my many years of teaching, I’ve heard parents of young children tell me they set a timer for 30 minutes or more for their young child to practice. If there is a way to ensure a young student will hate to practice, I can’t think of any.
Is Time the Best Way to Calculate a Practice?
For students under the age of 7, I tell parents not to mention practicing at all but to ask their child(ren) to play or sing what they learned in the lesson. This way, it keeps the learning fun for the child. Plus, they haven’t learned the discipline or enough knowledge to practice for long periods.
Assignment-Focused not Time-Focused
For the older student, it’s better to be assignment-focused than time-focused. When a student is more focused on completing the assignments given, it will accomplish two things: it helps the student improve their assignments, and the practice will go by more quickly. When the student is focused on accomplishing the assignments, 20-30 minutes have passed before they know it.
Consistent Practice
Consistency is also an essential factor in practicing. It’s better to do short, consistent practices than one long practice weekly. Scheduling your practice times is a great way to remember to practice, just like the lessons are scheduled. Once it becomes routine, it will be easier to remember and be consistent.
How to Practice
How a student practices is also vital to their progress. Before you start practicing, it’s essential to be organized and decisive. For example, if a student knows the beginning four measures of a song but struggles with the following measures to the end of the song, it’s a waste of time to start at the beginning. If all a student does is spot-practice and repeat the weaker sections until it’s learned, I call that a productive practice. The next time the student plays that piece, they will most likely play the entire song without mistakes.
Three-Part Blog
This blog is a three-part series. Part two will review all the different practice methods, and part three will teach the student how to prepare for a performance.
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Kathi Kerr attended the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and has taught since 1985. She founded Melody Musicx Studios in 1989, hiring music instructors for all instruments and voice in the student’s home, instructor’s private studio, and online.