Core Value: We Ensure Quality to Preserve Integrity

Here at Let's Play Music, one of our core values is We Ensure Quality to Preserve Integrity.

I've been thinking about quality amid the holiday season. The flashy sales are all around, tempting me to buy all sorts of stuff at a super-discount price. But wait a minute, is this stuff really what I want? Maybe I should examine it a little more carefully first.

Do I really want this stuff?

Has your kiddo ever begged for something that looked tempting and pretty in its packaging, but it fell apart after she played with it a few times?  Perhaps that super-saver-discount deal was no deal at all.  We don't want to get bamboozled into buying junk.  We want to invest our time and money in quality items and experiences.  (Read our post on Smarter Spending to maximize happiness this season.) 

That applies to shopping for gifts and investing in your music classes!


Cheap Toys vs. Quality Toys

Broken already?

You're a pretty fantastic parent (I can tell because you're reading this blog), so I don't need to help you identify low-quality toys.  They are the ones that seem to pile up in the toy bin for "random items." They don't get played with after the initial burst of interest, and they fall apart easily. Before each birthday party, you secretly pray that there won't be a lot of these things showing up.

When you buy toys for your children, you'll be able to find quality items by considering:

• Does the toy have open-ended play possibilities? Open-ended toys get played with imaginatively as your child invents new scenarios.  Specialized toys leave less room for imagination and tend to becoming boring quickly.
• Is it durable and safe? Can it handle rough play? If it is going to get tossed out next week, why buy it in the first place? Well-made toys have better resale potential, too!
• Is the item a pleasure to look at and handle? 
• Does it match your child's interests? Quality toys can often be used by children of various ages, in various scenarios, and maintain interest for years.
• Consider buying fewer items, but get high-quality ones you really want.

Music toys can offer  creative play
if you teach your child to be inventive with music.

Don't forget to consider toys as an experience. A key point from our article on smart spending is to focus on experiences.  A toy that you plan to use as a launching point for spending with your child (musical instruments you'll play together, a craft you'll do together, etc.) will have special meaning.  Don't forget to follow through and spend the time together. 

If you'd like some musical gift ideas, check out our musical Gift-Giving Guide. Don't forget that enjoying these gifts with your child  is the best part of the gift.

Quality Experiences?

At Let's Play Music, we don't sell toys.  We deliver a high-quality musical education.  You're a savvy shopper and carefully choose how you spend your time and money on experiences for your family. Here are questions you'll want to ask about any program you enroll your child in:

• Does the program train the teachers? At LPM, our teachers attend training for each year of curriculum, where they learn the games and songs as well as philosophies and reasons behind the games. At training, new teachers demonstrate that they can accurately lead our activities and accurately explain the theory.
• Does the program have a certification process? After teachers are trained, how can you be sure they stay true to the vision? At LPM, teachers have videos of their classes reviewed regularly to achieve and maintain certification year after year.
• Do the teachers have a network of support? How do teachers get ideas and solve problems? At LPM, we have an extensive support network: each teacher has a training team of our executives backing her up, as well as a huge network of other LPM teachers in constant online communication for support. Most teachers attend our annual teacher meeting for further education and training.

• 

  Teachers from around the country came together for the 2015 LPM Symposium

• Do you agree with the program's values and philosophies? Whether it's soccer, karate, or music, find out what defines the program and sets it apart from your other options.  I love that the LPM philosophies are based on research about how and when children learn music best. Browse through our blog posts and our website to learn more about us.
• Consider pursuing fewer activities but choose ones that are high-quality and important to your child's development now. Give the activity enough focus and attention to really make it successful. The LPM curriculum gives your child a musical foundation (preparatory to any musical study) that will have a powerful and specific impact specifically during these formative years. Get the most from the program by attending 100%, doing homework, practicing, and making it an experience with your child! In our post on abundance, some families shared that they can't do it all right now, but their child does get to experience a lot over the years of childhood.

Wherever You Go

I appreciate that the Let's Play Music program is high-quality and consistent everywhere.  I had a student move mid-semester to another state.  Happily, he found a new LPM teacher, so after taking Yellow Lesson 4 with me was able to move across the country and take Yellow Lesson 5 from his new teacher without missing a beat.  

I've also had emergencies when I couldn't teach, and had another LPM teacher substitute for me.  She knows exactly what will be needed to teach Purple Lesson 12, to answer my students' theory questions, and to help them with the tricky parts of the song they're working on. She's been through training, been certified, and is up-to-date on the always-improving curriculum and teaching methods. 

As you go shopping this season, remember to look for quality in the objects you bring into your home, and quality in the programs you invest your time in.

-Gina Weibel, M.S.

Let's Play Music Teacher

Commitment and Consistent Effort at Every Level

So, you've been in classes for a month now, and the shiny newness of practicing is morphing into the actual habit of music practice. Another of our Let's Play Music Core Values is: We expect commitment and consistent effort at every level. 

How Do I Become a Master?

In a recent blog post, I wrote about helping students crystalize dreams for future musical study by taking them to all kinds of musical performances. They have a chance to hear different instruments and styles and discover what they want to do with music. Those performances are also a sneaky time to open this discussion I hope you'll have with your child: "How do you suppose those performers became master musicians?"

Students are relived when I tell them it's way easier than they think. Becoming proficient at an instrument is easy because, first, you don't have to be born naturally great. There's a load off your mind! I'll admit that there are some who learn things more quickly, but the vast majority of us find a new instrument to be a huge challenge.  No matter! Humans were designed to create music.  You can do this.  As long as your feet are pointed in the right direction, you're on track. Hooray! 

The Magic of One Little Stone

The second reason it's easy to become a master is because any progress is still progress.  I send my LPM students home each week with the confident message that they can accomplish the practice assignments by the end of the week. Parents and students are surprised when we learn Bounce and Roll in the 3rd year of class, and at first I ask them to learn only the first line!  That's so little, they say.  Yes, if every day you get marginally better at playing one line, or one tricky measure, or one drill, you're that much better.  After days and days, these little bits add up. Soon you know several songs.  Then you start learning more challenging songs.

Click here for video

Playing a tricky song (like this Debussy piece by 9-yo LPM grad, Truman) can seem as crazy as moving a mountain.  Here's an analogy for you to share with your child: If you wanted to move a huge pile of rocks from the front yard to... the piano room (no excavating tools allowed), it might seem impossible.  But if you take a small stone or two from the pile each day and carry it to the piano room, and repeated every day for three years, you will have moved that mountain!  

The Hard Part

If everyone started from zero and took increments of progress, everyone would eventually become a fantastic musician. What happens? Other things come along and we forget to save time to practice (or help the child practice).  Often moving single stones is too small for our commitment. The day-to-day progress is too boring, not to mention challenging. "Why should I sit and practice for 10 minutes? I'll hardly improve!? What fun is that?" 

The hard part of mastering any skill is consistency to keep at it, even when the progress is incremental.  It takes commitment and consistent effort at every level to master an instrument.  Looking down at the small stone (or listening to the simple song) might seem hardly worthwhile. And maybe boring. And possibly frustrating. "I'm working so hard, and I hardly seem better."

What we must cultivate is the ability to see past the small task asked of us today and recognize the greater whole it creates.  Perhaps the next time your child want to skip practice, remind her of the analogy of the stones- you may even want to keep a jar of stones in the piano room!  

"It seems like today you don't feel like you can do a boulder, but could you do a 5-minute pebble? It will really help the jar of stones fill up."  "Even if you only have 5-minutes, I bet you could help your fingers get better at playing the chords on this page...and the muscles will be that much stronger." 

I adore recitals (read our post) because they let us look at the hypothetical pile or jar of stones and bask in what has been accomplished! Recitals get students motivated and excited to move the next big pile.  These moments prove to the students that the cycle of effort and reward does work.

Body Building

I just realized that my stones analogy may have a little flaw.  If a student forgot to move one stone per day for several months (or years) he could decide to pull an all-nighter and do nothing but move stones until he was caught up on stone-moving.  Can we catch up on missed piano training?  

Well, we can make practices longer and more frequent, but because piano training involves muscle memory and creation of neural connections (read our post), the repetitive days and months of practicing cannot be replaced by cramming.  Long practice sessions usually lead to mental fatigue and limited learning, anyway.

Weight-lifters can't spend two straight days in the gym and expect to build muscles they haven't worked for months! Neither can pianists.  On the same note, just as a body builder takes a day or two off, pianists can do the same.  During your rest day, your brain assimilates your efforts and commits them to memory.

The take home message? If you have 5 or 10 minutes to practice, do it! If you find 5 or 10 minutes later in the day, practice again! It will be more beneficial  than waiting for a day when you have 40 undisturbed minutes.  Those teeny-tiny pebbles are going to be your key to success!

A Life Lesson

Consistent effort in music, school, and life

Let's Play Music is not just about making every child into a superstar (although that's pretty nice). We also believe in helping educate well-rounded humans.  Music lessons offer a perfect venue for teaching the value of consistent effort applied to long-term challenges. The discipline practiced and learned here can be applied to every pursuit your child chooses to embrace. Embrace this teaching opportunity.

A child who learns to reap rewards from her long-term efforts is, not surprisingly, a better student and worker.  Many recent research articles have delved into the benefits of music lessons and found the ways that the mental workouts achieved in music lessons strengthen areas of the brain and improve a variety of skills. 

Music students are better students, scoring higher on tests and getting higher grades in school.  Is it because the music made them smarter or because their music study helped them learn consistent effort? 

Stay tuned for other articles encompassing all of the Let's Play Music Values.

-Gina Weibel, M.S.
Let's Play Music Teacher

Recital Time: We Celebrate Accomplishment

It's May, which means you've just participated in (or will soon experience) an end-of-year Let's Play Music recital.  Recitals are our biggest, shiniest way we share one of our fundamental values: We Celebrate Accomplishment and Aspire to Excellence.

Students of Nicci Lovell in Mesa, AZ perform classical music puppet show actions during a recital.

Why Perform?
How many adults have you met who wish they had persevered with music lessons instead of quitting early? Perhaps they needed more recitals! 'Too few performing opportunities' is among the TOP FACTORS that cause students to quit music lessons.  Let's take a closer look at your recital and why it's such a great teaching tool.  So, what does a student get from participating in a recital?

Motivation
Every student wishes to perform well in front of friends, family, and peers. For a first-year student, this may be the first time he gleans a deep understanding of the magic of serious practicing toward a goal.  Third-year students are definitely aware that a few weeks' of focus can result in an excellent show.  The upcoming show motivates students to add that bit of extra effort.  

"I'm definitely not going to miss any practices for the next 2 weeks, because I want to be really perfect for the SHOW!"  "I want to work extra hard on this piece, because it's going to be in the SHOW!"

First-year students of Heather Prusse in Gilbert, AZ had their bells songs mastered in time for the show.

Excellence
We aspire for excellence. At recital time, students have the opportunity and motivation to present their best selves.  They choose to write beautiful, challenging compositions and practice them to perfection.  Because our pass-off songs during the year are sometimes less-than-perfect (read our post on the learning process), recital gives an opportunity to strive for the VERY BEST. Once students know what that feels like, they raise the bar for in-class songs, too.

Discipline
Students will be asked to polish recital pieces beyond the level of perfection expected in class AND memorize them.  Will they rise to the exciting challenge, one that can only be met with steady, disciplined effort? Yes! Like the myriad of smaller challenges presented during Let's Play Music class, this one is intimidating at first, but definitely achievable.  "I know it is a big job to memorize this entire song, but I think if I add just a measure each day I'll be able to get it." "I don't want to skip practice today, because I know I need to learn at least one more line by tomorrow to be on target for learning this piece by showtime!"

Accomplishment
I love having recitals back-to-back or combined with several classes.  When a student sees the younger class perform, he can develop a sense of accomplishment and growth. "Last year I played that song, too. Now I can play so much better."  

Likewise, when watching an experienced student, he can set very realistic goals and aspire for the next year.  "I love that song that he wrote! I can't wait until I write my own song- It's going to be fantastic."  

In every case, students usually pull off their very best performances and even surprise themselves with how beautifully they perform.   "Grandma, did you hear me play the bells? I played perfectly!"   

Even when things go differently, students have an opportunity to evaluate themselves. "I missed a few notes on that song. I think I could have done better in the A section."

Performance Skills

Second-year students of Jodi Blackburn in Mesa, AZ 

It takes muster to get up on stage and perform! Some students are extremely nervous and anxious, but challenge themselves and go onstage nonetheless.  While it seems scary, the more a student performs, the more comfortable he becomes at it.  Recitals give students opportunities to build courage and confidence: traits that translate to public speaking and life events later on. 

"Last year I was pretty nervous to go on the stage, but this year it's not so bad. I know Mom is going to love hearing me play."



Mistakes
Recitals teach that mistakes are part of life.  Inevitably, a few stray notes will happen on stage.  Mistakes are common and we all make them.  Students learn that the mistakes are not the focus of the evening.  The important thing is getting up on stage and performing.  We focus on the accomplishment and not the mishaps that occur.

Celebration
The recital is a show, a performance, and a grand celebration.  I love to have pretty cakes and myriad treats at recitals, accompanied by awards and matching shirts and dressing up.  It is a special day and a big party complete with photos and flowers and lots of clapping.  After the marathon work students put in to produce their best work, a celebration is in order for a job well done.  We celebrate accomplishment!

First-year students celebrated with teacher, Tera Nelson in Rancho Cordova, CA

All Year Long
The Let's Play Music program is designed to celebrate accomplishment and aspire for excellence all year long.  Each time a student echoes Ed, sight-reads Edna's melody, or performs a pass-off song, a small opportunity arises to celebrate.  

"You really listened carefully…and you got it!"  "You played that song the best I've ever heard you play it!"  "Last week that was really tough for you, but you practiced and now you're doing it faster!"

Every activity in class has a purpose in music-teaching, every class takes students one step closer to excellence, and every time children participate in class activities they perform in a micro-recital among peers and parents.  

-Gina Weibel, MS
Let's Play Music Teacher