What Is the Best Age for a Child to Start Guitar Lessons? The best age for a child to start guitar lessons is around age 5, provided the program is specifically designed for young children and parents are actively involved. That answer surprises many families. Some...
Returning from vacation can be discouraging for young guitar students. A child picks up the guitar after a week or two away and suddenly says: “I forgot everything.” Fortunately, that’s almost never true. What has changed isn’t your...
As a new school year begins, many parents ask the same question: “Will another activity overload my child?” It’s a fair concern. Children need time for homework, family, friends, and rest. The wrong extracurricular activity can add unnecessary...
Soundtrack to Fluency In a world where technological distractions seem to be the norm, nurturing a child’s literacy skills can be quite a challenge. However, there is a melodious ally that can make this task not only enjoyable, but also a whole lot more...
Choosing a guitar teacher for your child is very different from choosing one for yourself. An adult may simply want to learn a favorite song or develop a new hobby. A child is still developing physically, cognitively, socially, and emotionally. Those differences...
When the Harry Potter books began to appear I had no interest in them. However, I had never seen such a phenomenon of mass interest in reading among kids. The fever reminded me of when Elvis hit the scene back in the 50’s and the Beatles in the 60’s. But...
POKEMAN GO PRACTICE By Kevin Taylor Many Childbloom parents have discovered that having time to practice during the summer doesn’t guarantee practice. There is nothing inherently motivating about having a lot of time on your hands. Hands just have more time to be...
6 FABLES OF PRACTICE By Kevin Taylor As many of you parents know, the issue of home practice is a thorny one. Taming the music monster is not easy in this day and age of recreational screen time, social media and the distractions of the 21st century. Since I’ve been...
Several weeks ago I had a young student in a class of four whose head really looked like it was going to explode. I had set an assignment for the class to learn a new tune. They all did it – except for this one 8 year old student. Now he wasn’t a slacker....
IDEAS FOR THE SUMMER Music has the ability to accompany all aspects of our lives. Not only have I performed music for christenings, brisses, weddings, anniversaries, bar mitzvahs, governmental gatherings, private dinners, and various and sundry celebrations, I have...
THE GROWTH OF INTROSPECTION by Kevin Taylor Jean Piaget, the Swiss “father of child-development theory”, once wrote a book largely based upon the answers he received from one question he asked children. This book explored, not only how a child perceives – and...
