With the new school year beginning in whatever form that takes for you (whether in-person, online, at home, or a mix of them all), many parents may be tempted to let music lessons fall by the wayside. Schedules get crowded with homework and other activities, and if your kids already have music class in school, then there’s no need for lessons too, right?
Although taking in-school music classes provides your kids with great opportunities to grow as musicians, (you can read about our love for music education classes here), we at Vibe believe that private lessons can vastly improve your child’s in-class experience. Here are just 3 of the amazing benefits of private music lessons that will help them thrive in the classroom.
Individualized Attention
No matter how dedicated your child’s music teacher is, they will never be able to give your child 100% of their attention all the time (and that’s ok!). But this lack of constant attention can lead to students developing bad habits in their playing. I have noticed this issue with many of my students who, despite having great music teachers, developed bad habits that inhibited their playing. These subtle problems like an improper breathing technique, poor posture, or an incorrect hold of the instrument can be difficult to spot from the director’s perspective, but a private lessons teacher will notice them right away.
2. Specialized Expertise
Although your child’s classroom teacher will have studied all the instruments and voice to a certain degree, they will naturally have more experience with some instruments and less with others. Their training enables them to give students a basic understanding of how to play any instrument, but they may not know all the intimate details of your child’s instrument. This knowledge gap can lead to frustration for your student if the teacher is not as familiar with their instrument, which is why having a private lessons teacher is essential. A private lessons teacher will be able to answer your student’s instrument-specific questions, guide them through the proper techniques, and teach them the fundamental skills needed to give them an excellent foundation on their instrument.
3. Customized Curriculum
Another advantage of studying with a private lessons teacher is its customizability. In a music classroom, each student will be at a different level of proficiency, so while one child may be bored and in need of more of a challenge, another may be struggling to keep up. Because the teacher needs to care for the class as a whole, these disparities will often continue (despite a teacher’s best efforts to support students who need extra help). This is where a private lessons instructor can step in and vastly improve a child’s experience. If a student is struggling, the instructor can slow things down and focus on specific areas of need, or if the student is bored, the instructor can provide more interesting and challenging material. A private instructor also has the bonus of being able to cater to your student’s specific musical interests to keep them excited and engaged in their learning
When combined, these 3 benefits of private music instruction help students thrive in the classroom. By equipping students with specialized knowledge and expertise, private lessons help them gain a solid foundation on their instruments and give them the confidence to succeed amongst their musical peers.
To take advantage of these amazing benefits, sign up for lessons with one of our instructors today!
- Jordan Koehlinger, Music Instructor at Vibe Music Academy
