End of Year Burn-Out: How to Practice Anyway

Summer Heat and Tired Fingers

We are sailing through the final weeks of the year and everyone is feeling it - the call of the sunshine, summer parties, end of year celebrations, plans for holidays and the tiredness that rolls over us all as we tidy up a busy school year. 

But it's not over yet and weekly piano lessons are still in full force. How do we keep up momentum for piano practice when our enthusiasm checked out during the May half-term?

Keep it Simple - Remember to Love it:

This is not just excellent advice for life in general - keep it simple when you are too tired to focus. Play pieces that are familiar and easy. Keep your hands warmed up but don't worry about conquering a difficult passage or technical pattern. 

Parents, we are feeling it too. Sometimes it's just easier to put the telly on instead of reminding an exhausted child to practice. Balance this out with short power practices. 5 minutes with a timer - challenge children to play without stopping, and then try to do this a few times a day.  Also relax and sit with your child at the piano. Ask them to play something for you. Suggest they make up a tune, you could do it together - it doesn't even need to sound good, if it end up as something funny that makes you all laugh consider it a successful practice session.

Keeping it relaxed right now, when everyone is hot and tired, is actually a really valuable lesson. Sometimes we work hard at music, but our big vision is always to be able to play for pleasure. We want to be able to love music and share it. Summer is a great time to put this into practice

I encourage everyone to try to be at the piano several times a week but don't feel bad if you have to be a bit unconventional while you're there. Every time we sit at the piano our relationship with music grows and this is a really beautiful process, even when we're feeling a little tired. 

Contact me for piano lessons HERE