The Piano Sensei Way Clinton Pratt

How do you help parents motivate their children to practice? Is there such a thing as a parent who is too involved? Should parents sit in on lessons? Barbie Wong joins us to discuss how to educate and engage parents so their children will thrive in piano lessons! Lots of great tips and stories in this episode!
10 Ways to Inspire Kids to Make Music — Mini Guide https://barbiewong.com/inspire/
Website: https://barbiewong.com/teachers/
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/barbiewong
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/barbiewongmusic

Every Good Boy Deserves . . . ? We’re all familiar with these sayings, but maybe every good teacher should think about the usefulness of mnemonic devices for reading music. Samantha Coates is here to explain and demonstrate how these traditional teaching tools are confusing and a waste of time! 
Samantha Coates is an internationally regarded piano pedagogue and presenter. In addition to running an active teaching studio, she is the creator and publisher of BlitzBooks, the music education series that has brought laughter and creativity to music theory, sight reading, and piano repertoire. Samantha’s sense of humour and ability to connect with students through her books and online resources reflect her ongoing dedication to making all areas of music accessible, enjoyable and memorable. She is well known for her entertaining presenting style, and is regularly invited to speak at conferences around the world on a wide range of pedagogical topics. Samantha has never lost touch with what students want; she has been running her piano studio in Sydney for almost four decades and is passionate about helping students achieve the goal of a lifetime association with and love of music.
Here is the blog post and bonus video we talked about, showing Samantha playing the mnemonics game with teachers. It’s a hoot!
https://blitzbooks.com/every-good-boy-deserves-forgetting/
 
Creative Teaching Conference
The Piano Sensei Way
 

Amy Immerman, Founder of Cincinnati Music Academy (a school that she helped grow to 750 students), joins the show to discuss motivation! Is it our job to motivate students? How can we help spark motivation? How can parental involvement help? We both talk about our own practicing and motivation growing up. Amy describes some engaging practice games, a 100-Day Practice Challenge, how events keep students excited, and advice on vanquishing “energy vampires!”
Some great takeaways from the show:

Fast practice equals slow progress, slow practice equals fast progress. No practice equals no progress.
You don't practice until you get it right, practice until you don’t get it wrong.
Students do not fail. Teachers fail, parents fail, and society fails.

Amy Immerman is the Founder of Cincinnati Music Academy, a school that she helped grow to over 40 teachers and 750 students. She has given over 80 presentations at local, state and national conferences in 19 states and Canada. She served on the Board of Directors for MTNA, is a past Ohio Certified Teacher of the Year, and an MTNA Foundation Fellow. She has served on local and state boards for OhioMTA and has an MM in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from Ohio University.
Energy Bus by Jon Gordon: https://www.theenergybus.com/
E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber: https://www.michaelegerbercompanies.com/product/the-e-myth-revisited/
Creative Teaching Conference: https://creativeteachingconference.com/

Prompted by a lively discussion in the Facebook Group Piano Teacher Central, I decided to host a live debate on YouTube! This is the recording of our “debate” on counting. The teachers who joined me were Mike Langer, Brian Lotter, Jeff Millis, Val Muller, Harrison Richter, and Jordan Thomas. It was a very thought-provoking discussion where we discussed the meaning of “counting”; if and how it helps students learn rhythms; other ways to learn, know, and feel rhythms besides counting; and using words and syllables instead of just numbers. Below are some of my favorite quotes from the episode.
Jordan said, “They’re so worried about trying to figure out ‘am I saying the right syllable at the right time?’ that it impedes whether or not they’re able to even play the rhythm.”
Jeff said, “Counting works for helping students understand mentally … it’s not really a feeling thing or a musicality thing, it’s purely academic, it’s intellectual. It’s to help students understand where we are in this music, in this measure, in this piece.”
Mike said, “A metronome does not give you rhythm. It’s some sort of external thing. You have to feel rhythm. We have a heartbeat that beats at a regular interval and we can divide that in certain ways. We walk in a steady beat. So I think rhythm has to start internally.“
It’s The Piano Sensei Way, so of course one of my favorite quotes is my own! I said, “Can you know the rhythm, understand the rhythm, understand where you are in the measure, and feel it without counting? I think the answer is yes!”
I know this will stimulate your mind, enjoy!
Creative Teaching Conference: https://creativeteachingconference.com/

This is the second of a two-part interview. In the last episode, Jordan interviewed me about teacher pay, asking me about fair rates, negotiating, benefits, living wage, tuition rates, and teacher raises. In this second episode, Jordan asks me about other aspects of running a studio such as: What do you look for when hiring a teacher? Do you train teachers? If so, how? How much leeway do you give teachers for how they teach or what materials they want to use? How do you keep continuity if a student switches teachers in your studio? How do you prepare teachers for transfer students from outside your studio? If you don’t have an administrator, how do you manage everything and when is a good time to hire one? . . .
I’d love to hear from you if you have comments or questions!
Related episode: Part 1 w/ Jordan Thomas
Creative Teaching Conference: https://creativeteachingconference.com/

To shake things up, our guest, Jordan Thomas, interviews Clinton! It all started with Jordan’s FaceBook post in Piano Teacher Central about the feasibility of a multi-teacher studio business model as opposed to a solo studio. Jordan is a solo teacher and has been considering expanding, but has questions about how to make it work. I answered some of his questions in his FaceBook post, but we decided to discuss it on the podcast and share it with you! This first part is all about teacher pay. He asks me: How do you pay teachers fairly? How do you provide incentive for them to stay at your studio? What benefits should a teacher consider when working for a studio? Does your tuition have to be higher in order to properly pay teachers and run the business? If so, does that deter potential customers? How and when can teachers get raises? Do you negotiate pay if a teacher expects or asks for more? . . . 
Listen for Clinton’s answers and a fruitful discussion! Stay tuned for part 2 when Jordan asks me about other aspects of running a studio such as: What do you look for when hiring a teacher? Do you train teachers? If so, how? How much leeway do you give teachers for how they teach or what materials they want to use? How do you keep continuity if a student switches teachers in your studio? How do you prepare teachers for transfer students from outside your studio? If you don’t have an admin, how do you manage everything and when is a good time to hire one? . . .
Here's Part 2
Creative Teaching Conference: https://creativeteachingconference.com/