6 Questions to Ask if Students are Leaving Your Piano Studio (#2)

#2 Are you doing the same thing week-after-week?

You might be the type of person who loves routines, but this can spell disaster for piano students.

I learned this the hard way.

About 5 or 6 years ago, I taught a high school boy who played the piano beautifully, but gradually I saw him lose interest. I spent months changing up his songs, but eventually he stopped taking lessons.

Shortly after that, I read The Dynamic Studio by Philip Johnson and realized what I was doing wrong. I was working to change one aspect of this student's lessons. I should have tried more. (Visit this post to read more about how this book was life-changing for me.)

​How I wish I could go back and do things differently! 

The good news is that I've changed my teaching style and so can you. Best of all? You’ll benefit as much as your students!

Take it from me. I’m a HUGE fan of routines, but when I determined to jazz up my lessons each week, I had a lot more fun teaching!

This doesn’t have to be a big deal. Here are some simple ideas:

• Try a new app. You could also use one that students haven't played in a while.
• Have a Duet Day. If I have a student who hasn’t practiced, sometimes I'll do this instead of nagging. It’s a great low-stress way to get them back into playing.
• Read a picture book. I used to feel guilty about "reading" during piano lessons, but there are SO many great picture books about music! (That parents likely are NOT reading with their kids!)

​The Bear and The Piano is the latest book that I’ve added to my collection, It’s a great book that focuses on performance and friendship. I love it and so do my students!

Personally - I think it's much better than the book I bought last summer - If You Ever Want to Take a Piano to the Beach, Don't! This is an "okay" book that will get some laughs, it's just not my top pick.

• ​​Play a game. Confession - I avoided playing games during private lessons for YEARS because I thought it would take up too much time. Turns out that I was wrong! 

​
There are lots of games that only take about 5 minutes, are educational, and fun! Teach Piano Today has several listed here.
​
Here’s one that my kids like. It’s from Joy Morin at Color in my Piano. 

And of course, there's the game I created - The Shepherd's Adventure! You can read more about it here.

• ​Have a Composer Day. An educational twist is fun! Watch some videos and look up fun facts before learning a song from that artist.
• Let your student trade places with you for the day. Yes - THEY get to be the teacher!
• ​Start a club. Or a lot of clubs! In The Dynamic Studio, Philip Johnston writes about the advantages of adding clubs to your studio. ​

You could have a performance club, technology club, composing club. Get creative and see what works for YOUR kids! 

If you’re losing students - definitely take this question to heart and challenge yourself to change things up. This could be the very thing that stops the revolving your in your studio!

​It will likely help bring you more students as well!

.....to be continued next week!

Read Question #1 here.
​

​(Note: The links in this post are affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.)