Playing the Guitar is One of Life’s Joys

My daughter’s first attempt at learning the guitar didn’t work out.  She lost interest very quickly.  This saddened me because there is something about guitars that inspire.  When I really got into playing, I could feel the guitar take over and all was as it should be.

My daughter’s quick loss of interest in playing the guitar bothered me.  Why had she lost interest?  What would get her to feel the joy playing the guitar can bring?

She lost interest because the teacher focused first on learning the notes.  At home alone in her room, practice became a tedious time of learning scales and reading the notes.

It became a burning desire in me to at least get her to feel how amazing playing the guitar could be.  Whether she pursued this as something she would continue was then her choice.

Location, Person, Practice

I decided a place that embraced what a guitar was about, an inspiring teacher, and a practice routine that engaged my kid was needed.  Happily, I found this!  Dusty Strings is the most awesome place for stringed instruments.  It is the kind of place where a person spends hours checking out all the instruments, books, and accessories.

Engage Through Personal Interest

The first thing the guitar teacher did was listen to the songs on her iPod.  She started my daughter on three chords that she could use to play some of the songs.  The first week, my daughter came home and played about two hours a night until the next lesson.  As the weeks progressed, her teacher had her write and play her own songs.  My daughter stayed highly engaged.  Recently, her teacher started her reading music and going into more depth on musical theory.  The other day my daughter asked me if we could look for more material that covered musical theory.  The better my daughter gets at playing, the more she plays.  A part of her identity now includes her guitar playing.  She is looking for a wrist band that would hold picks in case she is around a guitar she could play.

Reading is One of Life’s Joys

Learning to read and learning to play the guitar have striking similarities.  However the ramifications of a child falling behind in reading are far greater.

As I talk to parents and teachers about the challenge they face making sure their children don’t suffer from a low self-esteem because they are at a low (or non-existent) reading level, I am struck by what the true problem is.  It is the lack of engaging reading material for early (and struggling) readers to practice at home, or during times in school when the kid is not engaged with a teacher because the teacher is working with a small group that does not include them.  The practice material kids have available to interact with doesn’t interest them enough to want to practice.

How to Maximize Engaging 1:1 Reading Times

“Pardon me sir, how do I get to Carnegie Hall?” He replies, “Practice, practice, practice.”  According to Dr. John Bransford, kids spend only 18.4% of their time in school.  And during some of this time, a teacher is not able to give engaging 1:1 interactive reading time to a kid because they have many students to interact with at a time.  Kids must practice, practice both in school when the teacher cannot provide 1:1 instruction AND at home.  Yet reading practice most likely will not happen without a caring adult making it engaging.  In today’s world, parents spend 22 hours less per week than they did with their children 30 years ago.  That means there are allot more hours when kids do not have a caring adult making engaging them in ways that get them to read.  Most importantly to comprehend the sentences they read.

The kids on the left are playing ItzaBitza (TM) during class time.    Like playing simple chords isn’t learning to play the guitar, drawing with Living Ink (TM) and watching the silly things that happen with their drawings isn’t reading.  But all of a sudden their Sketchy needs something and they can’t figure out what it is without reading.  Or a star challenge can’t be won without reading.  Next thing you know, these kids are asking for books and reading sentences you thought were not possible!

There is no way we can provide that cherished 1:1 time all the time.  We need new ways to engage our children in reading practice when we can’t give them individualized attention.