Music Breakvation

Why you should avoid taking a “Summer Vacation” from Music this year…

Warm weather is finally here, and while we love the longer days and warmer weather, this is often a challenging time for music students trying to balance lessons with the arrival of Spring sports, rehearsals for end-of-year performances at school, or just a very serious case of spring fever.  (We get it, we promise. It’s beautiful out there!)

When faced with a busy schedule that suddenly includes athletic try-outs, practices, and games, it can be tempting to let your student “take a break” from music lessons until life (somewhat) normalizes again. It doesn’t help that spring fever is followed immediately by summer break, which can be an equally busy time for families and students.

But wait! Before you put lessons on hold to accommodate for Spring extracurriculars, or give in to your student’s pleas to let them take the summer off, it’s important to know exactly what you lose when you “take a break…”

• Progress: It only takes a month of lost lessons for students to experience a skill regression, which makes returning to lessons frustrating and discouraging.

• Motivation: Once you’ve taught your student that music lessons are only important when it’s convenient, it’s hard to convince them to believe otherwise. How you prioritize music sets the tone for your student, so remember to treat lessons as a necessity, not an option.

• Rewards: With the frustration or re-learning lost skills and a lack of motivation, students lose the most important part of the learning process: Joy. Joy in figuring out a new song, a joyful sense of pride in accomplishing a difficult task, and the exciting opportunity to share their talents with friends and family.

We all want the very best for our kids— it’s why we sign them up for music lessons, find the instruments they need, and work hard to find them the best learning environment possible. Don’t let the temptation of a busy spring schedules or summer vacation take away some of the best gifts you can offer your child: a chance to make progress, learn how to stay motivated even when it’s tough, and find joy in sharing their accomplishments with others.

We also believe that students succeed when they find the right teacher for their personality and their individual circumstances. We’re here to help you and your student make music an integral part of their life, and that includes helping you find a teacher that works with your schedule.

Our summer term is only nine weeks long this year, and our super flexible make-up policy makes it easy for students to stay on track. And as an added incentive, we’re able to guarantee students who stay enrolled during the summer their same time slot for fall term. Make sure to check out our team page for information on teachers and schedules, because we’re always ready to help families make more than just musicians, no matter what.