Appreciation Leads to Progress

Having been welcomed into SAMA so pleasantly made quite the impression on me. Though the changes have been new, many of the experiences I’ve been through before many times and have learned many things from them. As a young person myself, I highly relate to many of my students and regularly converse with them as equals. This provides me with valuable feedback into their daily routines and feelings on music and practicing. Many things, I’d like to note as being important to the success of my students. Going through weekly lessons, many pupils appear to me to be lacking motivation and this affects their progress. However, encouraging these students to bring their own music or books to learn is always a way to get them back into the “groove” of practice. Another important thing to note is parent participation. I’ve noticed a significant increase in motivation and practice time with my students whose parents not only sit in during the lesson but take an active role in encouraging and assisting their kids with their lessons and practice. It truly doesn’t take much energy to remind your child to practice daily or to speak encouraging words about their progress, as my parents did when I was young which greatly improved my motivation. If there is anything I’ve learned when it comes to children and parents, is that it doesn’t matter how many extra-curricular activities your child is in. What matters is the level of attention and motivation the child gives to each activity, and that is highly dependent on how you teach your child to appreciate such things.

As a final note, it doesn’t matter if a student is 5 or 50, progress lies deeply rooted in personality: how one understands and appreciates valuable things such as musical talent and how he/she handles the opportunities they are granted. Continue doing great things, students of SAMA!

– Catalina Garcia, Piano Instructor