Music Practice Time Tips for Beginners

If you dream to earn fame as a musician, you will probably have to give every bit of yourself in it. You will have to spend continuous hours practicing and perfect the art.

Although, professional musicians have dedicated practicing schedule, beginners can face certain difficulties in managing time. Because students have to complete school work and assignments, they will always find it hard to devote time to music practice sessions.

For that reason, we have listed some easy practice time tips for beginners suggested by music tutors in Singapore:

Spare an Hour Everyday For Practice

Try dedicating at least one hour daily from your routine for practice. Make sure that stick to this schedule. You could either devote an hour in the morning or evening.

In case, you skip the routine for a day, try to cover up with extra time in following sessions.

Warm Ups and Finger Exercises

To be a good musician, you need to warm up and exercise your fingers before every practice session. Preparing your fingers beforehand, will provide them flexibility and will make them run with no risks of injuries.

Exercising the fingers is even more important if your children are learning how to play string instruments.

Take Practice Sessions Seriously

Music course tutors in Singapore recommend dedicated practice session every day. You should also try to keep a record of your child’s learning.

Besides, it’s vitally that your kids should have open interactions with their music teachers to learn without stressing themselves.

You can set daily tasks for the kids, and reward them on completion.

Gradually Increase the Learning Time

As a beginner, it’s virtually impossible to spend hours practicing musical notes. Therefore, a beginner must start his practice, let’s say 20 minutes and then gradually add five minutes every week.

Just follow these tips and within no time you will observe significant improvement in the level of music skills. 

Tips To Help Your Child To Choose The Right Instrument

Picking a musical instrument for your child is not a small decision. A lot of factors will determine the decision making process. Money is one of the most important factors as good quality musical instruments don’t come cheap. The other primary factor would be the child himself and his level of interest in learning music.

Read on more to know about the points to keep in mind when selecting a musical instrument for your child –

1. Size of the Instrument

A child can get frustrated if he get tired holding the instrument or if it is a size too big for him. For example a small child will find to difficult to handle a violin or a saxophone at a young age. MusicTutors in Singapore suggest that he should instead start with a cornet or a piano.

2. Does The Personality Of The Child Matter?

Contrary to what parents might think, the personality of the child plays a major role in the selection of the instrument. For example an instrument that has a high pitch like a trumpet, will suit an extrovert child, whereas a flute or a trombone will suit a shy child more. If your child likes to do things independently, pick a French horn or a bassoon for him.

 3. Do Not Be Gender Biased While Selection

Listening to what the child wants to play is very important to make the right selection of the musical instrument. Do not try to force the child to choose an instrument based on a gender image that you might have. In this modern age girls can play drums and boys can play anything they please. The important thing is to be supportive and encouraging at every step of the way.

4. Sound of The Instrument

If your child does not like the sound of an instrument, you are trying to win a losing battle. Only when a child will like the sound of an instrument will he or she try to learn it. Let the sound be the first and foremost criterion for selection of the musical instrument.

Pre-Schools with Strong Focus on Arts Education Are Growing in Popularity Now

Arts education during pre-school years is one fun way to help your child learn and develop perceptual abilities and you probably know that.

Image Credits: education.asiaone

Art is an essential animated element of every kid’s infancy; it sets that perfect foundation for a young mind’s development. Tender minds have a sharper perception to learn new things and they develop an inclination towards arts education with time.

Unlike other preschool subjects, kids show greater proclivity for arts and crafts. However, one thing we parents don’t realize is how arts as basic pre-school leaning is inventively shaping you those young minds with better communication, problem solving and social skills.

Explaining the importance of arts in child’s education during the formative years and its popularly in preschools, we have a perfect illustration of preschool story about Patrina Lew and her 4 year old daughter Heather.

Even before Heather made it to this beautiful world, her mother Patrina Lew was busy planning a perfect pre-school life for her. And just about three months after Heather’s birth, Mrs. Lew had already registered her daughter’s name at Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts Kindergarten.

As an expecting mother, Mrs. Lew always wanted her daughter to be in a preschool that doesn’t completely focus on an “academic” environment. So, she chose Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts Kindergarten after receiving quite a few suggestions from her friends.      

Now after four years of preschool learning, Heather still loves practicing arts and has also developed incredible learning skills.

Like Mrs. Lew, there are several parent groups in Singapore who emphasize on arts as a basic preschool subject. Fortunately, preschools like Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts Kindergarten and Creative O Preschoolers Bay have emerged as perfect solutions for parents seeking to impart arts education to their little ones. 

Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts Kindergarten has always been a preferred option among the parents and some even register the name almost three years in advance. But, the pre-school only registers kids between the ages of 3 to 6. It has a scheduled daily art program and includes topics like dance, music, art and drama.

When The Creative O Preschoolers Bay started in 1998, they just had a handful of pupils but now they have more than 30 students on its waiting list.

Even principals of both the institutes explained how kids from their preschools have shown superior aptitude to learn new things at the school level. Besides, parents have responded with encouraging feedback's and are pleased with their children’s academic records.               

Top 5 Reasons to Play A Musical Instrument

There is no age to learn music and it is not rocket science. The thought of playing an instrument might scare a few of us and it is really not that difficult too. With the right guidance anybody can learn to play any instrument.

Let’s look at five top reasons, why learning to play a musical instrument is a good thing.

1. It’s A Great Stress Buster

Reports have shown that playing an instrument is a great way to beat stress. It helps in lowering the blood pressure and also slows the heart rate. When somebody gets into the routine of playing music daily, it is an activity he looks forward to.

2. It Makes You Smart

It is often seen that children who get a musical education are smarter than those who don’t. Their grades are also better in academics. It enhances the overall skill sets of the students and this why Music education in Singapore is being highly encouraged by the government. Students and parents can choose from a number of music courses in Singapore, depending upon the interests of the children.

3. It Improves the Social Life

Learning music definitely helps in connecting with the social world. Children who learn music have better developed social skills than those who don’t. They are able to relate to others more easily. They become better team members and can also develop their leadership skills.

4. It Helps In Building Your Confidence Level

Children who opt for music lessons have greater confidence than those who don’t. Once the effort and the ability to do something starts getting appreciated, it gets converted into a greater level of confidence.

5. It Teaches Children to Be Patient:

Music teachers have always shared the opinion that children learn to be patient by taking up music lessons. The effort that goes in daily, combined with the mistakes of learning, make them more patient and disciplined.

Tip on How Children Can Improve Reading Skills with Music

Every child is born with a special talent and it’s you the parents who have to recognize the spark and transform it into a flare.

But, more importantly, all parents must help their kids to maintain focus on the right things. Children will not always learn if you keep correcting them or forcing them, there are plenty of fun ways of helping them to improve their power of concentration.

Teaching them music from an early age can help them to develop reading skills. Music helps the young minds to comprehend their experiences, thoughts and feelings more meaningfully and give their mind a bend towards literature.

For that reason here we have tips on how children can improve reading skills with music. Read on.        

Familiarizing Kids with New Words through Music

Make music a part of your kid’s reading routine and you will notice a curiosity in his responses. Let him or her join music classes in Singapore if you don’t know how to teach them with music.

Try reading lyrics together with your children and then follow it up with the playing of music. This approach can be practiced jointly with music and reading.

Children enjoy learning with music; it does not burden their brain unlike other methodologies.

Helping Kids Read a Foreign Language in a Better Way

Reading plain text may at times sound boring activity to a kid, especially if it is learning a foreign language. However, if this learning is accompanied by music, it will help the young mind to mug up new words in a fun way.

If your child faces difficulty in reading a foreign language, music can be the perfect tutor for him.

Try introducing him with songs and lyrics in foreign language. This way, the kid will enjoy learning new language and easily memorize word, which he found difficult to master otherwise. It also helps improve their pronunciation of words and lets them learn the colloquial use of foreign languages.
 

Read Poems and Musicals

If you've visited a pre-school, you’ll know most of them teach children the use of language by singing to them poems and songs.

Reciting and performing poems together with music helps develop better reading skills and vocabulary.

With this practice, kids become familiar with rhythmic words and can differentiate with already familiar terms.  

Introduce Word Structure and Meanings

When you introduce a kid with new songs and lyrics, they will learn how to structure words more systematically.  

Explain the meaning and usage of new terms to them. This will enhance the reading and writing skills of your children.

During this practice, young readers will stay engaged with new words and terms that will be completely unfamiliar to him.

Also, listening to music arouses a curiosity in children to be able to write down their thoughts as well they do through musical lyrics, thus encouraging them to find out new words and create their own meaningful content. 

Music Education Starts Early With Parents as Key Partners

A parent is a teacher, a friend, a guide and a partner who escorts the child through various challenges of life. However, in the course of providing a better childhood, some parents fail to recognize the importance of music education in the early phase of life.

Music education in Singapore or elsewhere is one essential element of human learning that contributes (indirectly) to success and skills of an individual. As significant as basic schooling of a young child, music education must begin at an early age. Emphasizing on the fact, parents too have an important role to play in this early phase of child’s upbringing. Music classes alone aren't going to do the trick.

Besides sending a child to music schools or tutors in Singapore, parents must mold themselves as companions who appreciate and nurture learning skills of their young lad. A parent as a partner in education becomes the support and encouragement for the child; encouragement received at a tender age will guide him for rest of the life.

A supportive response from parents can help develop positive approach to life and also help kids exhibit their skills in a superior manner.

Finance Music Education: Shell out Some Money to Buy an Instrument

For your young lad, musical instrument is similar to a new book or a toy that he will use, explore and learn with the time.

When you don’t buy outdated clothes, books or toys for your child, why prefer an old-fashioned musical instrument. Get something new. Get something that excites your kid.

Buy a good instrument that encourages your child to practice every day.

Schedule Appropriate Timings for Practice

As it is the case with studies, you need to spare good amount of time for the child to practice music. If possible, try dedicating a specific practice place in your house and encourage the child to sit and practice there every day. If possible, make sure to spend some time with him at that very place every day.  

Create and Support Opportunities

To develop the musical talent in your child as his lifelong skills, create right opportunities for him. For instance, let the child perform at a public gathering and revel his musical works in case he has been attending musicclasses in Singapore for some time. If possible, send your child to musical camps or live performances to experience the thrill of musical culture.

Never discourage the young lad for his performance; be encouraging, just as a real friend would do.

Motivate and Engage Yourself in His Learning Skills

A parent should often participate as mentor to his child’s musical education. Be suggestive and researching for his works so that he learns what’s good for his musical growth. Engage him in musical conversation and try discovering his perspectives.        

Top 5 Ways to Enhance Learning

Kids are not capable of deciphering ways to enhance learning and get good grades all by themselves. They always look up to their teachers and parents for guidance. 

Image Credits: associationsnow

If you’re also worried about the academic efficiency of your kids, here’s a list of ways that will help them gain better grip on learning concepts and improve concentration. Take a look:

1.    Implement Mnemonic Strategies

Mnemonic strategies are systematic procedures used for enhancing memory. Mnemonic is nothing, but a way of converting difficult and unfamiliar concepts into simpler or manageable versions.

To develop effective mnemonic strategies, tutors offering private tuition's in Singapore need to find innovative ways to relate new information to the information students already have locked in their memory. This will help in establishing firm connection, which the brain will retain for a lifetime.

2.    Designing Interesting Games  For Classroom Use

To provide enhanced learning experience to students, teachers can adapt a variety of interesting games. Such games can be inspired from popular brain tickling television shows such as Family Feud, Jeopardy, etc.

For instance, social studies teacher can use the game of Jeopardy by designing questions under various categories such as Culture, Current Events, Rights & Responsibilities and Geography. They may increase the level of difficulty with each category and offer lucrative awards for every correct answer to each student.   

3.    Encourage Creativity and Curiosity

Curiosity is a very crucial aspect of overall learning process. Children with high curiosity levels are often encouraged to learn from the questions that gain their attention and arouse an interest. Such students tend to be self-motivated and perform exceptionally well in school.

Creativity is closely related to curiosity and should be nurtured well. To accomplish this, private tuitions in Singapore should provide free time to students to help them learn and study subjects that interest them. 

4.    Integrate Technology

We are living in a tech-centric world, where most kids are already accustomed with the use of computers and numerous other gadgets. They are the early adopters, who are prepared in advance to use technology in schools as a part of their curriculum.

Purchasing a tablet PC or laptop for your child for educational purposes and fostering them to become proficient in its use can positively affect their current and future grades. 

5.    Keep Learning New Things

One sure shot way to become a more efficient learner is to simply keep learning new things. According to a research, children who learn how to juggle were seen with higher levels of grey matter in the occipital lobes. This part of the brain is associated with visual memory. However, when the kids stopped practicing newly acquired skills, their grey matter gradually vanished.

Suppose the kids are learning a new language at school, it becomes very important for parents and teachers to ensure the child starts to frequently use the language. If not practiced regularly, the child will soon lose grip on the language.

This concept is based on a simple yet effective “use it or lose it” formula.