Now accepting new students

Hi everyone! 

Its been a while since I've posted here, 

but I had a new baby girl over the summer and

am now accepting new students.

Here is some basic information:

I teach students of any level 

from 5 and up.

$75 a month for 4 lessons and a group lesson every few weeks.

I have availability on Tuesday afternoons and most mornings.

Contact me for more information if you are interested:

bonnerebeccalewis@gmail.com

I am also available for tutoring/practice help

and any audition prep. 

Thanks!

polishing pieces

In my practice sheets, I have a section for 

a "polish piece." 

I wanted to go into more detail of what that means and what 

I consider a polished piece. 

A polished piece is:

musical: dynamics, phrasing, etc.

memorized

played correctly: notes, rhythms, etc. (duh!) 

I want my students to have a handful of solid pieces at all times. 

They have to be able to play a song memorized and to start at any 

point that I pick. :) 

I try to make it fun, but they can't pass off a song until 

it passes my "polished" standards. 

Occasionally I will have a student that is stuck on a piece for a very long time.

Not able to memorize it or play it very well.

This is frustrating for me and my student who wants to learn new things too.

Be patient with them, but I think there comes a time when 

it is OK to move on.

We often come back to old pieces in a few months with renewed perspective and 

then my once struggling student can play it!

For younger students, rewards and fun games tend to help with motivation.

Parents can help as well.

Good luck!

My Motto

Just my little practice motto.

I think I say this to my students EVERY lesson.

It doesn't count for a student to just play a piece correctly once.

They have to practice it perfectly over and over and over in order to have it 

perfect. 

What are your important sayings or mottos for your students?

my teaching style

I've been teaching private violin lessons for about 5 years now, 

and I think that I've officially figured out what works for me as a teacher.

A few years ago, a violin teacher at BYU taught me that the best way to teach a student is 

for them to teach themselves. 

I don't mean that they should be sent home with all new material to learn all on their own, 

but that the student should use their own problem solving skills to fix 

whatever they might be playing incorrectly.

How I do this is by asking my students questions.

Instead of just telling them what they played wrong,

I ask them to look closely at the music and to tell me what was played

incorrectly.

Then they have to play it right! 

Its not a perfect science, but I have found a great deal of success with

this method of teaching.

My students fix mistakes almost instantly if they find the mistakes themselves.

Teachers, try it out and see if it works for you!

There is usually a bit more "silence" during lessons when my students are thinking.

But I think it is SO good for them to teach themselves.

Good luck!

Let me know what you think!

practice sheets

I use practice sheets every week with my students.

They are meant to help them remember what to practice when they get home, 

but, let's be honest, they are also for me.

As a teacher, when I have a full studio, 

if I don't make notes of what all my students are doing, I will forget. 

All of my students have a "practice binder" that they bring to their lesson each week.

Inside we keep a monthly calendar, usually 2 months at a time, 

my policy manual, their practice sheets, and any other worksheets I throw their way.

I think its great to keep everything in one place.

Organization is important in teaching any students, and I have found that this system 

is working wonderfully for me.

Here are the practice sheets that I use:

I will go into more details in another post about how I use these

and what I expect from each of my students.

As usual, if you would like the full PDF file of this, 

just send me an email at rebeccalewisviolin@gmail.com

I'd love to share! 

I am willing to take my logo off as well. It will just be $5 for the file 

without the logo. Then you can have it and print as many as you want. 

Thanks for visiting! 

Keep checking back for more great ideas for teachers and students.

Beethoven Worksheet

Here's my Beethoven worksheet. 

I try to give my students a composer worksheet every other week, 

and other worksheets on the off weeks. 

Here is the Beethoven one.

Click to see it full-screen or to print. 

As always, if you would like the original PDF file sent to you directly, 

email me at rebeccalewisviolin@gmail.com

I also have other worksheets available to you.

Email me if you are interested in my practice sheets, rhythm worksheets, 

and other theory worksheets.

Good luck and thanks for visiting!