A big welcome to new students and welcome back to returning students!

The first week of lessons has been exciting. It was great connecting with students

after their summer break and learning what adventures they had during that time.

Some of the older students surprised me with pieces that they had found and

learned own their. Their beautiful performances quite literally blew me away! They

did such a fine job. This is going to be an amazing year!

Welcome!

We’re Getting Crafty With Practice

Volume 5, Issue 1 September-October 2016

Carol’s Piano Studio

Inside this issue:

Make-up Lessons 2

Note Rush App 2

Welcome to New

Students

2

Keys to the City 3

And the Winner

is...

3

Wall of Fame 3

Studio Calendar 4

We’re getting all crafty about how we practice

with a fun craft project.

During the first week of lessons, students person-

alized their own practice clips and we learned

how to use them. The clip has many uses. It can

hold the page of your book open. The beads help

us remember how many times to thoughtfully

play each piece. The ‘Steps to Success” card out-

lines the practice goals, every step of the way, for

each piece we are learning.

Step one is to play the piece focusing on the correct notes. Step two is to play the

piece counting the rhythms out loud. Step three is to play the piece with a steady

beat using the metronome. Step four is to play the piece with dynamics and articula-

tions. Step five is to ‘perform’ the piece. Thoughtful practice with five purposeful

repetitions will produce excellent results. Please ask your student about their prac-

tice clip and encourage them to use it for each piece that they are assigned.

All elementary students made practice clips. The clip was offered to middle and high

school students to make at their discretion, and most accepted the offer. (Continued

on page 4.)

Page 2 Carol’s Piano Studio

We warmly welcome the following new students to the studio:

Daniel Hutchison, Patrick Hutchison, Kennedy Nelson, Anna Chapman,

Jacob Lee and Abby Lee.

We’re so glad you’re learning piano with us!

As always, parents, your referrals are greatly appreciated.

Welcome To New Students

Make-up Lessons … It’s all online and as easy as A B C!

Cancelling a lesson and scheduling a make-up is super easy! Just go to the studio web-

site, click on make-up lessons and follow the steps. Your information will be sent au-

tomatically to Carol with no need to directly email her. So simple and time saving!

Before you cancel a lesson, remember that siblings can swap with siblings or have an

hour lesson in the case of back to back lessons. You can also swap with a friend who

is currently enrolled as a student with Carol’s Piano Studio provided Carol knows of

and approves of the swap first.

Please remember, make-ups for missed lessons are not guaranteed and are strictly sub-

ject to availability (another student cancelling their lesson) and can be taken any time

during the regular teaching schedule until June 17, 2017.

Note Rush … A new note reading app

I’ve been using a new note reading app with students called Note Rush. Students

practice their note reading skills on the grand staff by playing on a real piano!

Note Rush times you as you play each note one by one, like a deck of flashcards. You

can choose your favorite theme and race to earn stars and beat your best time!

Note Rush helps students learn a strong association between notes on the page and

keys on your instrument by using your device's microphone to detect when you play

each note.

I will be using Note Rush in the studio to chart students’ note reading progress over

the coming weeks. You might like to consider getting the app for home use. At

$3.99 I consider it a real bargain.

What does guessing the number of M&M’s in a water

bottle have to do with piano or music? Absolutely

nothing! But, it has everything to do with building

community among the students. Everyone is eager to

win!

Drum roll ... This year’s winner is Parker Gustafson!!

Parker attends Pacific Middle School. In our studio, he

is famous for his amazing performance of

“Radioactive.”

And The Winner Is … PARKER GUSTAFSON!

There were

822 M&M’s

in the water

bottle.

Parker guessed

821!

Page 3 Volume 5, Issue 1

Wall of Fame

Keys To The City … A summer piano adventure

Wildly colorful pianos were popping up all over Vancouver during

August. Pianos were hand-painted by local artists and placed in public

areas and gathering spots for a 10-day celebration of music and art.

The pianos were available for anyone to play, from beginning players

to virtuosos.

Several students from Carol’s Piano Studio played for the public’s

enjoyment. McKenzi Pearson played at New Seasons, Hannah Toves

played at the Humane Society, and Ryan Price played at New Seasons

and at the Waterfront Trail near McMenamins. Ryan’s even received

tips from passersby for his performances!

Hannah and

Ryan participating

in Keys to

the City.

Congratulations!

These students

have moved up a

level in their piano

studies!

Frist row, left to

right:

Ruth Baciuc

McKenzi Pearson

Ella Stafford

Erin LeBouef

Bottom row, left

to right:

Ethan Chu

Kaden Lan

Noah Lawson

September 6 Lessons began

November 11 Veteran’s Day, studio open

November 23-27 Thanksgiving, studio closed

November 28 Lessons resume

December 5-9 Performance Classes

December 10 Christmas recital

December 12 Lessons continue

December 19-January 3 Christmas break, studio closed

To view the 2016-2017 Calendar, please check out the studio website.

Studio Calendar

(We’re Getting Crafty With Practice, continued. from page 1. The following is shared with

permission from Teach Piano Today.)

Piano lessons are unique from almost any other after-school activity because piano

practice sessions happen without an instructor or teacher. Soccer, baseball, dance,

and even art classes include practice time as part of the program. The nature of

these activities makes participating in practice sessions straightforward.

When it comes to piano lesson, there are no set practice times; it is up to parents

to help their children establish routines. While this requires a little extra effort up

front, teaching children the skills they need to structure and engage in independent

study will result in a wealth of benefits that extend beyond piano and into many

areas of their lives.

Here are Three Strategies for Effective Piano Practice to help your children

become independent and effective in their home piano practice.

1. Regular Routines Short, focused and regular visits to the piano help your children retain and under-

stand what they are learning. Setting a regular time of day when piano practice

happens “no matter what” will ensure daily practice routines are easy for your

children to maintain.

2. Friendly Practice Environments Placing your piano in an easy-to-access location increases the likelihood that your

children will practice more frequently as they go about their days. Find a balance

between shoving the piano in the basement vs. putting the piano in the center of

your most-used room. Your piano should be located in a comfortable area, close

to where the family is, but away from major distractions. Your children do not

want to be isolated during practice time, but they also do not want to compete

with your range hood and washing machine or television.

3. Practice Helpers Up until the age of 11, your children will need hands-on help with practice. And

even though you may not read music or play piano, your assistance is still very

much needed! Parental help can take the form of reading lesson notes, organizing

practice time, providing encouragement through difficult sections or situations and

seeking out answers for “I’m stuck on this” problems. Your help at home to en-

sure regular practice happens will make a substantial difference in your children’s

progress.

And now…

The Secrets

of

Piano

Practice …

Revealed