Local couple and founders of Dogs and Birds Piasno Method, Elza and Chris Lusher, share their tips on encouraging your children to continue with their music practice over the summer.

Even children who love playing music can lose momentum over the summer break. Here, Elza Lusher, piano teacher and co-founder of Dogs and Birds, shares some tips to help parents encourage and motivate their children.

1. Ask their teacher to play an array of pieces of them before choosing something to practise. This not only means that they can choose a piece, or pieces, that they like, but it also gives them a sense of control. This means they are more likely to want to do it! Make sure there's lots of choice of both pieces and musical styles to choose from.

2. Agree on rewards to motivate them. Rather than use food or money, think about enriching options such as allowing a sleepover, a day trip together, or, for older children, some freedom.

placeholder image — Learning Owl's Eyes with Dogs and Birds

3. If there are set pieces for up and coming exams, it can be quite difficult to practise these on your own, as any mistakes on notes, fingering or technique, and it will be harder to correct them later on. However, what you can do is choose some easier pieces, a level or two lower, and learn sight reading these fun pieces. This will help boost confidence a great deal.

4. Chat to them about what they enjoy about music and the instrument that they play. Who do they admire, what styles of music do they like, and what can they see themselves doing with the skill? Even if it's something as tactical as passing exams to get into the school they want, when you know, you can work with them towards their goals.

5. Routine and structure can be really helpful for some children, even though they might relish the freedom of the summer break. Going to lessons every other week, and practising 20 minutes a day in the morning, is equivalent to working for an hour when they tired (during the school term). Progress can be faster and more satisfying in these morning hours.

Dogs and Birds are based at the Medway Centre, Bakewell, and have lessons for children as young as 3 over the summer period and beyond.

Contact them at [email protected], or call on 07775562175 to find out more.