In our second teacher chat, Mallory Byers and Dawn Ivers and I discuss preschool music with all its advantages and fun challenges.
Mallory Byers
Mallory is a teacher in California who travels to her students' homes. About a third of her students are age six and under. She started lessons with her own father at the age of four.
Dawn Ivers
Dawn's first student was a three-year-old preschooler. She recently moved her home and studio to Kansas. In establishing her studio in her new hometown, she has branded herself as someone who teaches preschool lessons.
How can parents know when their preschooler is ready for formal piano lessons?
Mallory – If they’re interested and able to take directions. They don’t have to be counting or reading yet; that’s part of what I teach and help students develop.
Dawn – I often allow parents to bring their children in for a trial period of lessons. At this age, it is sometimes difficult for parents or children to know if they will be interested in piano unless they give it a try.
What curriculum do you use with your preschoolers?
Mallory – I use Wunderkeys, which is designed for students ages 3-5. It includes elements on the bench at the piano but it also offers lots of off the bench activities. The books are easy to follow and that helps parents when they reinforce concepts between lessons.
Dawn – I also use Wunderkeys. In fact, Mallory is the one who introduced me to the books. In addition to what Mallory said, they also have helpful parent packets that let the parents know what the learning goals are for each activity and each stage in the books. Some of the activities don’t look like traditional piano lessons.
Shelly – I enjoy My First Piano Adventures for preschoolers in piano lessons. For my preschool classes at the daycare center, I use First Steps in Music, which incorporates lots of movement and aural activities using traditional folk music as well as classical tunes.
What are some advantages to starting at such a young age?
Mallory – I’ve noticed my younger students develop a much stronger sense of rhythm. Hearing and moving to the music sets up a solid foundation for the pulse of the music.
My goal for younger students is for them to have a strong sense of rhythm and beat, get acquainted with the patterns on the piano with the black and white keys, to be able to track left to right on the page. I want to give them a head start for when they get older and begin more traditional piano lessons.
Dawn – One of the things I’ve noticed is a sense of confidence earlier on. They get performance experience before they have anything telling them they should be nervous about performing.
My goal is to teach my young students contrasts like high/low, long/short. I teach aural skills early as well as math skills. All these concepts will help them when they start learning larger pieces of music.
What should parents expect from lessons at this age?
Mallory – Lessons for a preschooler will look much different than they will for a high school student or even an elementary student. Elementary students spend most of their lesson time at the piano playing their music. Preschoolers spend a lot of time away from the piano working on concepts that will help them when they do get to the piano.
There is less of that home practice expectation for preschoolers than what will be needed for older students.
Dawn – I plan a lot of different activities that teach similar concepts. If one activity doesn’t seem to be connecting with the student, I will move to another one.
Unlike older students who are studying for piano exams, you cannot drill concepts with preschoolers. You need to find a different way or use a different activity that teaches the same thing.
One thing for parents to take away from this chat -
Mallory – Don’t be afraid that your preschooler doesn’t have the attention span for lessons. Teachers who work with preschoolers, will not expect them to sit at the piano for an entire lesson; we will have lots of activities to keep them engaged.
Dawn – Preschoolers learn through play. Let them have fun in lessons and at home during practice.
Shelly – Communicate with our teacher to make sure you are both on the same page. Be a good advocate for your young student. If it is possible to stay in the lesson, what fun it would be to share this time with your child and make beautiful musical memories.
Connect with Mallory and Dawn
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Thanks for listening!
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