Active Music-Making with Your Baby Part I: Interaction Through Song By Sarah Fassmann Sarah Fassmann is a mom of two, cellist, a piano teacher, an early childhood music teacher, and a new Suzuki violin parent. She loves hiking, canoeing, singing, and playing the piano without any children crying. If you have a young baby or […]
inspiration
5 Things I’m Loving This Week– March 18, 2016
This week was the week of our big move, and we are finally getting settled in our new place (which happens to be my parents’ basement.) I am so excited to be here, though I am sad to leave my beautiful studio in my old house. We’ll be back in a couple years after Bruce […]
How to Practice Violin with Your Three Year Old…Like a Boss
Guest Post by Alison Porter. If you’re a new Suzuki parent like me, you might have found that practicing daily with your 3-yr-old can be a challenge somedays. Okay most days. So I’ve put together a handy list of some of the best tricks I’ve got up my sleeve for practicing violin with a 3-yr-old. […]
Five Things I’m Loving This Week–March 11, 2016
This week, I wrote my first-ever guest post. I would love for you to check it out. It’s called, “The Top Seven Things Your Suzuki Teacher Wishes You Knew,” it’s published over on the Lovenotes Suzuki Parent Blog. Check it out, and let me know what you think about it in the comments there. I’d […]
5 Things I’m Loving This Week–March 4, 2016
Remember last week, when I said the boys were sick? Well, now I’m sick. Super stuffy nose. I’m a mess, but I really don’t want to cancel students. I always feel like they get so derailed if we skip a week of lessons! What do you do when you have a cold? Skype lessons? I’d […]
Nurtured By Love: A Study Guide for Teachers and Parents
February’s book club pick was the quintessential Suzuki “manual,” Nurtured by Love by Shinichi Suzuki. I’ve read this book a few times now, and each time I am struck by the wisdom and love that this great man had for children, and for all people. I feel truly honored to carry on his great work, […]
Five Great Music Apps For Helping Kids Practice
I love my iPhone and iPad, a little too much you could say. I’m a wee bit addicted, and I just love keeping track of everything in my life on my phone. I track my steps, my food, my goals, my journal, my finances, my to do list, everything on my phone, even my practicing. […]
How to Help Your Children Develop a Love for Music
When we put children in music lessons, oftentimes, one of our main goals is to help our children develop a love of music. Maybe your child expressed an interest in the piano or violin, and were excited to begin lessons, but they soon realized, “Hey, this is work!” How do we develop their love of music […]
5 Things I’m Loving This Week–February 19, 2016
This week has been a wee bit sad. M (2.5 year old) has had a fever and was quite sick, so I had to cancel quite a few lessons. On the bright side I got lots of cuddle time with my toddler, who normally is not all that cuddly! G (11 months) is perfecting his […]
Why Do You Want Your Child to Continue Violin Lessons?
I recently wrote a blog post for violin teachers about their “essential question.” The “essential question” is in essence the real reason for their music teaching. Their core values. It occurred to me that parents need to address this question for themselves as well. If you truly want to improve your child’s music lesson experience […]