How long should my child practice?

A common question I get asked when parents are first starting their child in piano lessons is, how long should my child practice? It’s a great question to help you set your expectations. Aim too low, and your child may not progress quickly enough and lose motivation. Aim too high, and you risk burning them out.

A child’s capacity to sit at the piano will depend on three things:

• Their age - younger kids cannot sit at the piano as long as older kids

• The quality of their homework - it must be interesting to the child, relevant to their goals as a musician, and manageable to their skills and capabilities

• The source of their motivation - a positive and uplifting source of motivation is much more effective than a fear of failing or letting other people down

For today’s post, I’ll start with the first point because that’s usually what parents mean when they ask about practice. But stay tuned for other points on how to promote better quality of homework and a more positive source of motivation, because they are both so important.

So, assuming your child has quality homework to work on and a positive and uplifting source of motivation, here are my rough estimates on practice time by age:

• Children between the ages of 4-6 should be able to practice for 15-30 minutes at a time.

• Children between the ages of 7-11 should be able to practice for 30-45 minutes at a time.

• Children 12+ who are beginners at piano should be able to practice for 30-45 minutes at a time

• Children 12+ who are more advanced students (for example, studying for a Royal Conservatory of Music exam) should be able to practice for 45 minutes to an hour at a time.

If you have concerns that your child is not meeting these estimates for their age range, I would look at the other two factors in practice: the quality of the homework they’re supposed to work on and the source of their motivation. More on those topics soon!

I hope this was helpful! Setting expectations for practice early on in your lessons is a great way to establish routine and develop momentum. Are you happy with your practice plan?