How a Student Can Best Develop a Practice Schedule

Staff Writer - February 8th, 2010 4:33 PM PST

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Many children begin music lessons because they have seen a musician on television, and have determined that they want to be like that person. Unfortunately for parents, this may mean that their child aspires to be the drummer for their very own loud, garage band! Whether their child’s goal is to play at Carnegie Hall or to perform at the elementary school talent show next semester, one thing is certain: the only way that anyone can master their musical instrument is through consistent, daily practice.

Like developing a tennis swing or rolling a bowling ball without it landing in the gutter, one learns to play a musical instrument through the development of muscle memory. Muscle memory helps us in all physical activity. When babies begin to learn to walk, they have not yet developed muscle memory for walking. This results in lots of false starts, missteps, and falls. Eventually, as the child repeats the attempts to walk, her muscles “remember” what they need to do, and she becomes a proficient walker. After some time, she walks without even thinking about it, and with no missteps or falls. This is the result of muscle memory. Repetition and frequent practice with a musical instrument result in similar muscle memory. One challenge to achieving repetition and frequent practice is scheduling and structuring practice time.

Children today lead busy lives. Parents remember a time when they (as children) would go to school, come home, play outside, eat dinner, do homework, and go to bed. Today’s children have after-school programs, soccer practice, little league baseball, gymnastics, and private music lessons. With the busy lives children lead, they often need adults to help them schedule and structure their practice time.

Schedule a Time

The first challenge is scheduling practice time. Any child who goes to school all day, then goes to a scout meeting after school, then straight to a soccer match, before arriving home at 6:30 is going to be exhausted, and unlikely to want to practice for their upcoming piano lesson. One solution might be to schedule a practice time before they leave for school each day. Even 15 minutes of efficient practice time before school, if carefully structured, may be more effective than a half-hour or more of practice time in the evening after a full, tiring day.  If this is not feasible, then a set practice time each day is also an effective solution. Most children like to have some input in such decisions, so allowing them to set their practice time is often motivating to them.

Practice Structure

Once a practice time is set, children may need assistance with structuring their practice time. Children really do need structure, and developing a specific plan to their practice time is akin to goal-setting (which will help them in any number of ways in other settings as they grow older).

For younger children, it is best to help them structure their practice time in small increments. A child in the early elementary grades might have a 10-minute practice time, while a child in upper elementary school might practice 20 or 30 minutes. For young children, sit with them and develop a written plan for what their practice session should look like. Be mindful that most young children would rather play things a certain number of times rather than for a given amount of time. Consider this example for piano:

 Sample Practice Schedule for Younger Children

1. Pick out a new piece and try to play the first line 2 times. (Sight reading)

2. Play the key of C scale 3 times with your right hand, then 3 times with your left hand. Then play the key of C scale 2 times with hands together.

3. Play your new piece for the week. Play it with your right hand 1 time. Play it with your left hand 1 time. Play it with both hands together 2 times.

An older child might structure their practice time in terms of minutes rather than the number of repetitions. They might divide their session in order to address different skills, such as sight reading and exercises or scale. A practice session for this child might look like this:

Sample Practice Schedule for Older Children

1. Sight reading new material (5 minutes)

2. Play old pieces in the key of D (or whatever key of the week they choose) (10 minutes)

3. Exercises and scales (5 minutes)

4. Play new pieces (15 minutes)

Daily practice is important, and although children may not always be 100% excited about this consistent repetition, it is the only way that they will become proficient musicians. To encourage motivation, partner with them to help plan their practice sessions, and allow them to “mark off” what they complete from their list. This feeds their sense of accomplishment, which, along with your positive feedback and support, will result in a strong, well-rounded musician and student.

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