Let’s first consider factors, because those are the easy part (believe it or not, a lot of parents ONLY at those), then later we will move to considering people:

• Do we as a family have time for it? An adult must commit to drive a child to lessons at regular times week after week, every week. Some teachers prefer to work with kids one-on-one, then you have your 30 minutes to check your emails or get some work done while waiting outside. Other teachers have no preference as to who brings kids to lessons, then you can have a babysitter build it into her schedule.

We at the HMMS require for parents to be completely involved and not only show up on time but bring notepads, recording equipment, sit through every lesson, and catch every detail of it along with writing down all assignments for younger kids. Why? Because we know very well that for many years music will be the hardest thing your child is learning. No comparison to any of the school subjects no matter how advanced they are. And your child will need much more than a push at home “time to do your piano assignment!”

What kind of help and support will  your child need at home? There is now way to list those things because it will change from lesson to lesson and especially form year to year. And yes, eventually your child will be able to practice more and more on his own, but even his practicing on his own will not decrease the amount of YOUR involvement and time YOU will need to dedicate to his music study. It will just graduate from a simple sitting next to her while she is learning the piece to doing a zillion of other things. How can you find out what is needed now, this week? By coming and staying during the lessons and being invested and involved. We at the HMMS have watched this approach allow kids to flourish and the parents to build a unique and strong bond with their children over the years through music study.