Just Say No to Mnemonics

Mnemonic devices may seem helpful, but they can create extra steps that slow learning and limit deeper understanding. Directly recognizing patterns and relationships helps students read music more confidently and experience its true beauty.

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🎨 Having Young Children Draw, Paint, and Color the Letters of the [Music] Alphabet: Immersing Themselves, Letter by Letter

Encourage young children to draw, paint, and color each letter of the music alphabet. This hands-on, creative approach builds fine motor skills, sparks imagination, and helps children connect with letters in a joyful, meaningful, and lasting way — nurturing both musical understanding and a love for learning.

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Teaching Strategies for Small Group Music Lessons with Students at Different Levels

Small group lessons often include students at different levels — and that’s a wonderful opportunity. This issue explores how teachers can turn mixed levels into a powerful learning advantage. With thoughtful planning and a positive mindset, small group lessons can become dynamic, supportive, and joyful experiences where students learn and grow together.

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Encouraging Improvising

Improvisation is a natural part of every student’s musical journey. By creating a supportive and open environment, teachers can help build confidence, nurture creativity, and allow students the freedom to explore and express themselves through music.

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Guest Teacher Lessons: Follow the Student

As a guest or substitute teacher, continue the student’s current goals and methods, supporting their regular teacher. Focus on their ongoing work, avoid conflicting techniques, and nurture their confidence—especially before performances.

Whenever possible, follow the curriculum and complete all materials, including reading and written work.

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Sound Before Sight, Show Before Tell

Sound before sight, show before tell—when students experience the music first, learning becomes natural, meaningful, and lasting.

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Teachers Working and Learning Alongside Students

Grow together in every lesson! Explore, create, and learn side by side with your students—your curiosity inspires theirs.

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Musical Ladder—Built Right Into Your Lesson

Musical Ladder works best when it’s part of your lesson time—keeping students engaged, informed, and excited about their progress.

👇 See inside for simple, time-saving tips

No Metronomes (especially for Beginners)
For beginners, rhythm is best learned through feeling, movement, and play rather than a metronome.

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Improvising 101: Many teachers and students feel unsure about improvising, but here are some suggestions to help break the ice.

Reframe: Every musician has already improvised in daily practice—recovering from mistakes counts!

Improv Beginners: A list of simple, basic ways to start improvising, for both yourself and your students.

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Get Students Singing Right from the Start
Singing is a powerful way to kickstart music learning. It helps students understand rhythm, pitch, and musicality — no matter the instrument!

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Helping Students Gain Real Confidence

We help students grow as confident musicians—and confident people—by listening to them, inviting their voices, and encouraging ownership of their learning and goals.

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Helping Students Track Assignments & PracticePlans: How to Help Parents

This issue highlights thoughtful, practical ways teachers can:

• Keep parents informed about their child’s progress while nurturing students’ independence and responsibility

• Clearly communicate our studio’s teaching philosophy

You’re not on your own—we’re a team, supporting both learning and confidence every step of the way.

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Helping Students Track Assignments & Practice Plans: Our Studio Way

• Page Tabs

• Stickers

• Pencil-in Notes

We don’t ask students if they practiced, but we guide and practice with them during lessons—teaching them how to practice effectively and providing notes and reminders for home.

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For Piano Teachers:
The Presto! Piano Magic YouTube Playlists – “Prestissima Videos”

These videos cover every lesson and piece, providing a valuable resource for teaching, lesson demonstrations, and student practice. They can also be used as supplemental material or special assignments—perfect for students who watch at home or those who miss a lesson.

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🎵Building a True Repertoire of Music

Not just “passing pieces”
Our goal is for students to learn, memorize, and keep a growing repertoire of music that stays with them.

⭐ Stickers & Prize Tickets
Stickers are awarded when pieces are memorized, not when they are simply completed. Memorization matters—and we celebrate it!

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Main Theme: The Power of Slow

• Slow Down Teaching, Slow Down Playing

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Releasing Tension
Our studio values healthy, tension-free teaching and music-making, a topic we’ll explore again and again. Check out 2 helpful videos inside.

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Whole Rests & Half Rests

Here’s a fun way to teach the difference between whole rests and half rests.
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Moveable Do Solfege

Our studio standard is to teach Moveable Do solfege. We do not normally teach Fixed Do solfege. (There may be rare exceptions, but this would occur only with my prior approval.)

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