Are Your Piano Practice Incentives Fizzling? It’s Q&A Day!

I’ve noticed some teachers have <strong>piano practice incentive themes.  Do you encourage practice this way, or do you think steady improvement is enough to motivate students to continue practicing?  I’d like to hear what you think of incentive programs.

As I write today’s Piano Teaching Q&A on practice incentives, I’m about to begin a new exercise regimen… I’ve actually got the DVD paused on the TV and my tank top on.  I’ve been an avid runner for many years… but I’ve also been pregnant for almost the entire last year (was it really only 9 months?!)  Bathing suit season is looming, and while I’m back to running again, it’s time to kick it up a notch.  While I’d like to believe that I’m going to be able to completely commit to doing it every day, I’m realistic and I know that’s going to be difficult. Anything you’re supposed to do daily (just like we want our piano students to practice) is hard to completely commit to.

 

Piano practice is very much like exercise.  People yearn for the results, but results don’t come without hard work.  Daily hard work.  Without 1) a way to measure progress, 2) someone to keep you motivated and 3) a reward for a job well done, the daily quickly becomes every other day, and then twice a week and then…

Developing Intrinsic Motivation in Piano Students

I’ve always been a firm believer in encouraging intrinsic instead of external motivation;  I’m not big on handing out candy and bribing with stickers.  As a teacher, I hope that my students will practice because they want to.  If their material is enjoyable, their lessons are exciting and they feel supported by an enthusiastic teacher, I hope that practice is something that will come easily to them every day. But these are children, and intrinsic motivation is a fairly mature thought process that takes time to develop. Because of this, having periodic extrinsic motivation can be a good idea.

Alternatives To Practice Incentive Programs

At your studio, instead of having on-going, year-long practice incentives that risk fizzling and dragging, encourage practice by:

Measuring “piano practice progress” by regularly recording your students and making student CD’s, keeping an “anytime, anywhere” list of pieces they have perfected, making a big deal out of completing a method book and by regularly going back and reviewing old material to show them how much their skills have progressed (“Remember how this used to be difficult for you?!).  Keep new material at hand all of the time and don’t allow pieces to “go stale”.  There is always another piece that will teach the same concept if a student hasn’t quite “got it”.  Nothing kills practice faster than having the same old song to play every day for weeks on end.

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Holding your piano students accountable by creating performance opportunities more often than just at Christmas and at the end of the year.  Use video recording, social media, master classes, small recitals, festivals… anything that gets them practicing for an immediate reason that they can get excited about.

Rewarding practice in a thoughtful way.  It means so much more to a student to receive a special certificate in the mail (they never get mail!) than it does to grab a chocolate bar on their way out of the piano lesson.  Create special awards in your studio and bestow them upon your students regularly and in a genuine way.  Kids appreciate being appreciated.

Occasional Piano Practice Incentives Are Okay… In Fact, They’re GREAT!

Occasional studio-wide practice incentive events go a long way because they are occasional.  They’re a great way to change things up and keep that daily routine happening.  At our studio we introduce a themed practice incentive about every three months that lasts no longer than 3 weeks.

With this combination, you are creating good practice habits that will be long-term. Your students will be practicing for the love of the piano… not for the love of a lollipop… and that’s what we all hope to achieve at the end of the day.

Speaking of lollipops…bring on that DVD! 😉

Looking For More Great Piano Practice Ideas?

We love to blog about encouraging happy, effective piano practice. Check out these other posts:

Dear Piano Parents: There Are Four Times When I DON’T Want Your Child To Practice

The 5 Biggest Piano Practice Excuses… And How to Make Them Go Away

What Your Piano Parents Need To Know About Practice