March 10, 2026: Tuesday Upbeat
Teachers: Happy Tuesday!
Guest Teacher Lessons - Follow the Student (and Their Teacher)
When you are teaching students as a guest teacher, or substitute, be sure to follow the student. Mostly, help the student work on things they are working on, be supportive of their regular ongoing teacher and their regular teacher’s teaching strategies, and especially avoid introducing contrary ideas or conflicting techniques.
It can be useful to teach new things, to a modest degree, but be careful not to confuse, disrupt, or overwhelm. Help the student with their goals, and their teacher’s goals, and avoid introducing new goals (it’s not the appropriate time and setting). Especially if a student is preparing for an upcoming performance, do not introduce anything – even something that might seem simple to us teachers – that could derail or set back their preparation, or introduce anxiety or lower their confidence. Build them up and increase their confidence before a performance!
Sticking to the Curriculum
Generally, it’s best to stick to the curriculum, follow the sequencing, and complete everything (including the written work).
Sometimes, it can be helpful to deviate, but this should be relatively rare and have a real purpose. A purpose that truly benefits the student, and isn’t just laziness, impatience, or lack of understanding.
Sometimes it’s okay to skip a piece, perhaps because the student really dislikes it. For example, I had a student cry when they read the lyrics of Wayfaring Stranger and did not want to learn it. It was a valid decision to skip this piece for them. But don’t skip pieces for trivial reasons. Each piece has a purpose.
Sometimes it’s okay to set a piece aside and come back to it later. Or temporarily skip ahead and then return back to where they were. But pay attention to why things are sequenced the way they are, and compensate for that as appropriate.
Sometimes it’s okay to insert supplemental material (this is actually recommended, especially if it is music the student is asking for). Work with the student to simplify as needed. I often arrange supplemental music in a way that is slightly below their current level, so that it is easy for them to learn, and so they can enjoy the fruits of their labor more quickly in these cases.
We ask that teachers do not decide to skip things for their own reasons, and do not skip over the reading and writing materials. These are super important and helpful to students, even to the very young students. The reading material can be modified as needed to account for their ages and abilities.
If you are ever unsure why something is sequenced the way it is, please ask!
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Have a magical Tuesday, a musical week, and enjoy happy, healthy and tension-free teaching and learning with your students.
Thank you,
Dennis Frayne
"Dr. Dennis"
Laguna Niguel School of Music
Dennis Frayne Music Studios
30110 Crown Valley Pkwy, Suites 105/107/108
Laguna Niguel, CA 92677
(949) 844-9051 (office cell)
(949) 468-8040 (personal cell)
Lake Forest School of Music
Baker Ranch, CA 92630
(949) 402-7210
www.dennisfraynemusicstudios.com
www.lagunaniguelschoolofmusic.com
www.lakeforestschoolofmusic.com
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