DIY Piano Lessons.

My neighbors gave us a few John Thompson Beginning piano books. These are the same books my aunt used when she taught me 38 years ago and my 6yrold son is enjoying them. We also get things from the library occasionally.

For us, the key to happiness is keeping things light. Colin "warms up" and then we fool around together with the books, making up songs, practicing scales, finding notes, and/or reading music. We have a keyboard with lots of different voices which he LOVES. He practices 10-20 minutes a day (weekdays) and if he does (and homework is done) he'll get a bit of video game time later. At this point, I'm not aiming for skills, I'm hoping to get him comfy, have a routine of practice & have him like the piano so we can start a "real" teacher this summer. So far, so good.

He and his 9 yearold sis (guitar) love the video game reward system. Also, for every 10 minutes they practice, they earn time towards a "Colin" or "Audra" day - they get to plan the family's day, including menu. Fun stuff!

My mom taught me piano; she started me when I was 11 or so (I don't remember the exact age), with a beginner's piano book. She could read notes, so that helped. Once I got the basic concepts, I just took off on my own, and I play pretty well, though I would have been better with more discipline in certain areas (like scales).

One lady who could read music but didn't play the piano also taught her kids. You can read about it on this page: http://www.raisinggodlytomatoes.com/family-homeschooling.asp (just search for the word "piano").

What I'm going to do with my kids is get a couple of good beginner books (more than one, so that they can have variety at the same level), and just start with the first song and work through the books, introducing theory and scales at the appropriate places. Once they have exhausted my ability to teach them, I'll give them the option of taking lessons or of picking another instrument to learn, if we can afford it at that point.

Since you have three kids and they are all going to be learning, you might see if there is a teacher that could come out and teach them in your home. Especially if they have friends that want to learn also, then the teacher could get several students with one trip and make it worth while.

Also, I don't think there is any adult who had the chance to learn and didn't take it that doesn't regret it now. My mom didn't want to force my brother to learn an instrument, and he told her now as an adult that he wishes she had made him learn to play something. He taught himself guitar on his own recently, but he's not very good yet. One family I know told their kids they had to practice, just like they have to do their chores and homework, and that if the wanted to quit, they could decide when they were 18. Well, by that age they loved music and wouldn't quit for the world.

Hope that gives you some good ideas.

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Find the most advanced piano teacher in your area and ask if he/she has an older teen student who would be qualified to teach your children. There are some amazing high school pianists out there and the teacher will know if one of his students would be a good teacher. You will pay less and still get the benefit of the older teacher's methods and technique passed down thru his/her student.

If cost is an issue, arrange for an hour group lesson for yourself and 3 children. You will probably get the concepts more quickly than your kids at first and can help them during the week when they practice. If one or more of you have a special interest in playing you can move on to private lessons in the future. Most of all, have fun and enjoy yor new piano!

I started teaching at the age of 17, so if you find a young teacher, go for it!! I found the Bastien series to be wonderful for kids (and adults too.) If you have any musical background, you should be able to teach them yourself, at least until they get more advanced and/or show an interest in advancing. Piano doesn't connect with all kids, but it's a great way to introduce them to music.

You don't mention where you live.....

Go to a music store, preferably alone or with a mature child.

Look through the many 'first piano' books for young beginners. Opt for one with a play along CD. Which means you'll need to place a CD player close by the piano.

I have played and taught on and off for most of my life. I am not fond of the John Thompson beginner books, especially for creative youngsters. I prefer the Faber or Bastien series.

After purchasing what you like, make a big production at home with the kids about the beautiful piano books you have brought home for them. Then set up some type of reward system for them when they spend time at the keyboard. Nothing will stick unless they commit to a weekly schedule.

I personally don't know of any self-taught pianist this way. I would highly recommend you find a college age musician from a university (not a JC) who can come over a few times in the beginning to teach basics of posture and reading. This get them started down a path of enjoying music and not being frustrated by trying to teach themselves.

Also, NPR and PBS, go on-line, usually have a rather nice keyboard series available through their sites. Also, Costco and the library will have piano course, CD sets. You just have to carve time out of your schedule and commit.

Another thought, have your kids ask friends at school if they play the piano, then invite those kids over for a playdate to play at the piano. Kids are great at teaching each other as well. And it only costs you a snack.

There are probably lots of free piano playing instructions. Go to http://www.easypiano.com/ and try them or also go online to find more. My search was piano lessons made easy or free piano lessons made easy. If I had this when I was being taught I could probably play a lot better than I can now. It is worth a try. Also, this gives you instructions and it is free.

N.

Do you have any musical background at all? Most of the books have some explanation, but it helps if you know a bit, too.

Speaking to self-taught, that's exactly what I did when I was a teen. My parents owned a baby grand that nobody played, and I used my babysitting money to buy the Thompson series. It's not the best series (Piano Adventures is the one my daughter is using, and is much better), but it worked enough that I learned to play with both hands, and even learned to arch my fingers, etc. Last year, though, at 38, I signed my daughter up for piano, and signed up with a different instructor for myself. In a year of lessons, I managed to work through all the theory books at a rapid pace, and now I have the methods down much more (transposing, etc.). I took over my daughter's piano lessons, and I even teach my son and a neighbor now.

It isn't easy, though. I would do everything you can to make sure the experience is fun and engaging (not drudgery). As your kids progress, you are likely to get to a point when the theory is beyond you, when you'll need to pay for lessons if your child remains motivated.

I wish you luck! I hope my children continue with their lessons for a while, and get better than I am. I'll certainly pay for lessons again if they really start to take off with them. I do a reward system for lessons, too--it goes into their monthly allowance.

Do you play?
I use the John Thompson's books. I also have David Carr Glover and John W Schaum/s THey all have theory books for kids to write the notes and learn key signatures too. Our piano teacher recommends Guild Musicianship Book from Barrage Music CO. I haven't gotten that one yet. I think it is mostly scales chords, and arpeggios.
I don't use vidoes, but if you don't play that might be the way to go.

It's so interesting how everyone has different opinions about lesson books! I used the Glover books as a child (and liked them, but they haven't been updated in 30 years), and now I teach primarily with the Faber Piano Adventure books. I like Faber because they have interesting songs, delve into the artistry of making music, and encourage students to get familiar playing in a variety of positions/keys on the piano. I'm not a fan of Bastien (I think the songs stays too long in one position, which sometimes teaches kids to play by finger number rather than reading the notes), and Schaum seems to move a bit quickly for all but the quickest students. The Thompson series also moves rather quickly, and is rather old-fashioned looking and sounding (the wording of the text is pretty funny at times!), but has great music.

One useful tool is musical flashcards for piano. You and your kids can use them to learn the notes. There are also online musical games that can help with this.

I also recommend either finding a good video or getting just a few lessons (either for yourself, or one child as suggested) so as to avoid problems with poor finger/hand/wrist position, and other technique problems. It's often harder to unlearn bad technique than to learn the right way the first time around. (I have a few students who came to me from other teachers who didn't correct technique issues, and those problems persist for a long time.) You didn't say how old your kids are, but if you do choose to send one to lessons, but 8-10 is a great age for most kids to start, especially if they may be teaching their siblings.

One last thought: I usually don't encourage parents to provide extrinsic rewards for practicing... I find that they don't tend to encourage a long term love of playing music. The best reward is the satisfaction and enjoyment that comes from being able to play music and have fun doing it. I especially discourage my students' parents from rewarding with video games because I find that the kids who play the most video games seem to do the poorest in their music study (my theory is that they come to depend on or prefer outside feedback, rather than learning how to assess their own performance.)

Most lesson books you can get are self-explanatory. I like John Thompson's easiest piano course, it is part 1, 2, and 3, not by grade. It's old and you may have to search online for them. In case you don't have ANY piano knowledge, try lessons for one and when they get home, have them teach the others. Then you will "weed out" the ones who are really interested. Most piano teachers will work with you on times, and cost. once a week or twice a month. I'm getting my piano out of storage next month and I'm doing the same thing with my 5 kiddos!