My Ongoing Learning Journey 2020

Ongoing learning and development is a key part of any job, and mine is no different. There are many ways I participate in the piano teaching and Kodály world, to ensure that I keep up to date and develop as a teacher and musician. As well as being involved in online discussions, training sessions and webinars, I also attend conferences and seminars, one of which is Music Expo, which happens annually in the Spring. This year it was early March, about two weeks before we went into lockdown!  It's a great opportunity to exchange ideas face to face, as well as attend seminars and workshops and explore the latest resource offerings.

Music Expo 2020

This year’s Music Expo started, as always, with a warm up session. This time it was run by Gareth Malone – a hero of mine for many years! He very quickly got us all on our feet playing silly games, with actions, and of course, lots of singing – this was really targeted at the classroom teachers in amongst us, but was great fun, and got everyone going first thing. I was lucky enough to meet him later in the day, and am delighted to report that he’s just as nice in person as he appears on the TV! 😊

Also during the day, I attended sessions on:-

• Performance Anxiety , run by a husband and wife who happen to be a sports psychologist and musician/teacher and came together in this crossover area! This contained lots of practical tips which will be as helpful for me as for my students! (See resources, later)

• The Holistic Piano Teacher. This reminded us, as teachers, to start with the music and how it makes you feel, together with the importance of using singing and rhythm work as an intrinsic part of everything we do. Stephen Marquiss, who gave this talk, is someone I first met 7 years ago, at my first ever Music Expo, and with whom I’ve been exchanging ideas ever since, so it was great to catch up properly with him. His philosophy is very much grounded in the same Kodály approach that I use.

• ‘Gifted and Talented are Dangerous Words’. This session was run by Samantha Coates, who is the author of Blitzbooks, the books I use for theory and sight reading. Always an excellent speaker, this time she was talking about how using these words sets up expectations, but that in reality what is needed is Opportunity, Environment and Support and that ‘hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard’! Samantha explained why piano playing is like bike riding https://blitzbooks.com/why-piano-playing-is-like-bike-riding/  - do check out the link to her blog post on the subject – it’s well worth a read!

I also spent time looking round the exhibition and invested in some new resources;-

• A booklet to go with the performance anxiety course, which has flowcharts to follow with actions to combat common scenarios – something I’m sure I will use over and over again!

• ‘The Mindful Pianist’ by Mark Tanner (concert musician and ABRSM consultant and examiner) – my latest bedtime reading!

• ‘How to Play Jazz Piano’ by Pam Wedgwood – an excellent piano tutor book for pianists at around grade 2-3 standard, with lots of quizzes and improvising as well as some lovely pieces, that I plan to dip in and out of with students as appropriate.

• I have a stack of free music and teaching magazines, which I’m working my way through too 😊

• Also I got a free egg shaker - love a freebee! 😊 This will be put to good use in lessons!

There is always a real buzz about this event, lots of chatter, catching up with old friends and meeting new ones, sharing of ideas, learning from each other. This is just as important as the organised sessions, and I was delighted to have the chance to talk properly to Stephen (The Holistic Piano Teacher) face to face over a coffee for a change. It was great to talk to Samantha Coates again too – she is doing amazing things in her native Australia (as well as her ongoing work with BlitzBooks). Plus other friends and colleagues from around the country- everyone has ideas to offer, and we all learn from each other!

Other development opportunities that I’ve been participating in this year have been:-

• Become a Better Music Teacher – a 6 week online course from ABRSM exam board. This focussed on developing musicianship in students rather than just teaching to pass exams.

• 7-point checklist to find out if your pupils are ready to start grade 1 – Webinar with The Curious Piano Teachers. This was a good opportunity to validate the teaching approach that I have developed and ensure I am aligned with best practise.

• Motivation – Webinar with The Curious Piano Teachers  (something I keep coming back to – see my blogposts on motivation and practise)

• 7 inspiring ideas for using rhythm flashcards in piano - Webinar with The Curious Piano Teachers (See my blogpost on French Rhythm Names)

Plus I also belong to around 5, vibrant facebook groups which between them discuss all aspects of musicianship and piano teaching. Recent topics being discussed have included things as diverse as people asking for ideas to help with specific learning objectives, finding resources that will help with a particular rhythm, what to do as a teacher if you think a child might have specific needs, courses and development opportunities, and sharing successes. 

There are so many other things I could include in this post - particularly around the abrupt and massive learning involved in moving to online lessons via zoom in March. This was yet another example of how the online community of instrumental teachers out there managed to share information and experience to help each other so effectively! In particular, The Curious Piano Teachers, based in the UK, and Teach Music Online, a facebook group based in the US were my saviours, together with all my wonderful piano families who helped make the move online possible, so we were able to continue with lessons! Thank you so much to all of you! As I write this, I am now teaching face to face once more, but with the knowledge that online works, and we can switch back online if we need to, either for a few weeks if anyone needs to self isolate, or longer term should that become necessary.

I feel very privileged to be teaching piano in such a connected time, when we can share knowledge and learn from each other so easily, as I imagine it could have been a lonely profession in times gone by!