So you want to perform: A game plan

If you're learning piano because you would like to perform one day, here's the game plan I would use to help get you on your way.

If you’re a visual learner, you may prefer to watch the video above. If you prefer to read, here’s a summary of my game plan.

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Teachers, Authentic motivation, Student empowerment Sarah Cashmore Teachers, Authentic motivation, Student empowerment Sarah Cashmore

Build your student’s confidence authentically with a gradual release of responsibility

Today I’d like to share a teaching approach that is fundamental to how I lead online piano lessons. It’s an approach that I learned in teacher education and became fundamental to my method once I started teaching teacher education and I saw how powerful it truly is for both children and adults.

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How can we help our piano students overcome perfectionism?

Perfectionism is a motivation killer, and it can be hard to encourage students who struggle with it.

Signs of perfectionism may include: - Unwillingness to practice  - Reluctance to play in front of you - Getting very upset if they make a mistake - Starting the whole piece over again if they make a mistake - Playing more slowly than they need to - Reluctance to sign up for recitals or exams

Here are my best tips on creating a teaching environment that can help a student overcome perfectionism.

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Teachers, Authentic motivation Sarah Cashmore Teachers, Authentic motivation Sarah Cashmore

Piano lessons often get the feedback loop backwards

It’s really common for piano teachers to use rewards (like stickers, points, and earning game time) to build positive feelings after a student has achieved something on the piano. Generally the hope is that the positive feedback loop teaches that good feelings are associated with piano lessons.

But notice the direction of those good feelings. When the good feelings follow the reward, lessons start with hard work and good feelings follow. I think this is backwards. In my experience, if piano lessons start with good feelings, the hard work naturally follows without any need for external motivators.

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Kids, Adults, Teachers Sarah Cashmore Kids, Adults, Teachers Sarah Cashmore

Welcome to my new site!

Hello, and thank you for visiting my website! I’m so excited to finally share this business that means so much to me. I created a short video to tell you a little more about myself and what I hope to accomplish through Piano with Sarah. I hope it helps put a face to a name!

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