Why I Don't Require My Music Students To Practice

"How much should they be practicing?"
Without fail, I get asked this question by parents of new students in private lessons EVERY SINGLE TIME!

For this question I honestly have no clear, straight answer. My answer for them is typically always "that depends". I'm not the type of teacher that "requires" my students to practice for X many days or X many hours. I know I know, all the music teachers reading this will most likely criticize me for this but I seriously swear by this method and when explaining it to parents I try to put it into a different perspective.

Think about it. What generally happens when children (or adults, I'm guilty of this too!) feel like they HAVE to do something? They no longer want to do it.

For example, if you tell your child they HAVE to clean their room, you will usually be faced with complaints, whines, and sometimes tears. But if you make it fun, play some music while you clean, turn organization into a game, provide an incentive or treat for if they complete it without whines and complaints and then you will change their mindset from HAVING to clean their room to WANTING to clean their room! Make it a positive experience, and also it is very important to help them with it! Lets face it asking a 5-7 year old to do something by themselves will not usually provide the best results.

For older students between about 8-12, at that time hopefully they have developed good practice habits so that they can practice on their own without a parent sitting in on the practice, but as their parent you may still need to motivate them and encourage them but not FORCE them to practice.

For students 13+, I expect my students to be completely independent in their practice and their self discipline about the amount of time/days to practice.

So how much should they practice? That depends on what your goals are. If your goal is to just have a 30 minute lesson each week and not have any time taken out of your daily life - that is okay! But you can not expect the same progress to come from your child who does not practice at all compared to a student who practices even just once per week. The most important thing is to not kill the fun of it! I've seen far too many students play instruments their whole life and then once their parents stop "forcing" them to play, they are so eager to quit. The enjoyment of playing music had been squandered years ago and they eagerly awaited the day their parents said they could quit.

Talk with your student and their parents about what their goals are. Treat each student as an individual and try not to hold them all to the same strict standard of practicing say 7 days a week, for 3 hours per day. I've had the pleasure of teaching a student who was homeschooled and his reward for getting his schoolwork done was to be able to practice piano as much as he wanted. On average, he would practice about 8 hours a day and he is a phenomenal player and composer beyond his years. I've also had the pleasure of teaching a student who loves music and playing piano, but absolutely hates the idea of lessons and practice and every week he would come back to lessons and tell me he did not practice at all. But he enjoyed his lessons with me because I did not require him to practice at home. I of course encouraged it and always hoped for it, but I understood that 30 minutes of a great lesson is better than 30 minutes of an unproductive lesson if he is grumpy about practicing and wanting to quit.

Setting a practice schedule works well for young students who need to know exactly what to do and how often to do it. For this type of student I always clearly write in their practice journal what to practice and how many times to practice each item.

Setting a goal is key for older students, find out which song they would really love to play. Work towards achieving that song, explain to them what they need to practice to acheive their goals and how to manage their practice time effectively.

Ask your students about their life, some students will not be involved in any other activities and may do best practicing 30 minutes a day every day. Others may be involved in a lot of activities and are simply not able to practice every day, instead it may be best for them to practice for 1 hour 3 or 4 days a week. High school students have even more responsibilities with extra curriculars, schoolwork, and social lives. For high school students it is imperative to set goals and help them figure out their schedule and priorities. I have several high school students involved in many sports, theatre, jobs etc. and they find time around their schedules. They are not able to practice for 1 hour every day, but they can maybe practice for 5 hours on the weekend.

Finally, ask yourself what is your goal as a teacher? If your goal is to turn every student you get into the next Mozart then this advice is probably not for you. If your goal as a teacher is to inspire students and pass on your love for music onto the next generation, then fuel their passion, encourage without forcing, and keep it fun!