First real lesson...

[b3_john]

... not me, my boy Patrick! He's just tuned 9, and recently approached me wanting to learn how to play guitar (I thought he'd never ask!). In the past few weeks I've taught him how to tune up, the names of the strings, and some open chords. Very much the basics. And he got the 3/4 sized baby Taylor on his birthday. I had heard we had access to a very good guitar teacher who happens to be back home from the left coast, so I gave it a shot and tonight was the first lesson.

 

As it turns out, the guy is a "music teacher who teaches guitar" rather than a "guitar teacher". He encourages musical parents (wow is that what I've become?) to sit quietly behind to watch and learn so we can better reinforce what's being taught. Here's what was covered in the first lesson:

 

5 open chords (G, C, D, A, E) which weren't new to him.

Beginnings of I-IV-V concepts, very much new.

Chord notation (i.e. strings vertical), also not new to him.

Note names for the open strings, also not new to him, other note names which were new.

From this point it was all new:

Measures, time signatures, beats per measure, strumming, chord changes "in time" (this will be the tough part for a while).

Tab (i.e. strings horizontal) with chord notation at the top.

Music staff (Treble Clef, of course) including the notes.

Whole steps, half steps, leading up to...

C major scale, taught with tab. First only on the A string from the third fret to 15th (whole step, whole step, whole step, half step, etc.), then through the open strings. Then retaught with the music staff (including whole steps and half steps), then related back to tab. (Great question on where the missing half steps went on the staff!)

Circling back around to the I-IV-V.

 

Wow, it seemed like a lot but Patrick got through it pretty well. As I said, playing without stopping for chord changes will be the initial challenge, but I got some really good tips for helping this along without increasing the frustration level. I was most impressed that theory was everywhere vs. the baby-step approach I was taking. Kids are amazing at how well they can assimilate information if its structured in the right way. The best thing is how excited Patrick is.

 

I have a solid grasp of music theory but have never been a great teacher, after tonight I'm convinced getting a great music teacher was absolutely the right thing to do. I'm also really glad to have him start with guitar, I was afraid he would miss important fundamentals but nothing could be further from the truth. Great stuff!

 

John (the happiest Dad in Tornado Alley!)

[Guitar55]

It's a great feeling when your son starts to play guitar. David has been at it for about 18 months and he's doing great He just turned 12. He hasn't taken formal lessons, but I show him things and we talk guitar all the time. He has learned songs mostly from tab, but he knows what he's playing,undertsands keys and is starting to get the concept of modes. One really good thing is that he will learn something on guitar and then go play it on the piano. He also play bass and drums a bit.

[rw2003]

John... Sounds like your son is off to a great start - between you and his teacher, I'm sure he'll become a great player.

 

Thanks for taking the time to write up all the detail about the first lesson. I agree that it sounds very "aggressive" to cover that much in one sitting but it's good to know that he wasn't overwhelmed.

 

My son is a little young right now for formal lessons but I am very interested in learning what type of material is covered in these early/beginning lessons.

 

Please keep us posted on your son's progress and future lesson plans!

 

Thanks!

[Eric VB]

[...] I'm convinced getting a great music teacher was absolutely the right thing to do.

+a gazillion

[Eric VB]

[...] all the detail about the first lesson. I agree that it sounds very "aggressive" to cover that much in one sitting but it's good to know that he wasn't overwhelmed.

I'm not a certified teacher but I think giving this much information serves a couple of purposes.

 

First of all, it shows there's more to guitar playing than just trying to master those annoying chord changes! If that's all the lesson centered on I'm sure the practice sessions would be short and frustrating. I've seen more than one kid give up on a new experience just because they didn't catch on quickly, often declaring the whole thing to be "dumb" and stomping off.

 

Secondly, it's kind of like a story. The first chapter has been read and the main characters introduced. What's going to happen next? Surefire way to keep someone's interest. (And also why TV series can be so addicting!)

 

It's even better if the student doesn't entirely grasp everything. There's enough that can be readily understood so it's not too frustrating, but just enough grey area to invite questions for the next lesson.

 

I believe kids are "programmed" to be especially good "learners". It's amazing how much they can soak up just by their life experiences without being directly "taught". They're capable of learning quite complex things if they are presented in the proper format.

 

Finally there is expectation. Sometimes we dumb things down a little too much because we don't expect kids to be able to understand. I read somewhere (probably over on KC) that one music instructor taught his students absolute ("perfect") pitch. The kids felt they were expected to be able to identify pitches without a reference, so they did. They didn't realize that many adults could not do it.

 

[i've spent some time tutoring and training in one-on-one situations and I think it's fairly easy to judge when the "sponge" is saturated and it's time for the lesson to end. It's harder when there's a room full of people and some are nodding in agreement and others have puzzled looks on their faces. At least for me.]

[Eric VB]

[...] I'm convinced getting a great music teacher was absolutely the right thing to do.

+a gazillion