How much should students practice?
- You can reasonably expect students to practice on their instruments 60-90 minutes per day (with a lot of frequent breaks) in the first few weeks and 90-120 minutes per day (with frequent breaks) in subsequent weeks.
- It’s important to stress the need for students to take breaks to account for the physical demands of a new instrument as well as the mental fatigue of learning new concepts.
How do I know that my students are completing lessons?
- In addition to the small group sessions that you hold with your students, you can ask students to screen capture their My Path page and look for green progress bars and check marks.
What if a student is falling behind?
- If a student is falling behind, the lessons are either moving too quickly or they may be unable to physically perform a task (i.e., play the C chord).
- If a student cannot physically perform a task or is not keeping up with the rest of the class, encourage them to stay at their current level until they are comfortable moving on.
- It is important to keep kids motivated and playing actual songs can help with that. Refer to the LAUSD: Curriculum Aligned Songs & Riffs (at a glance) document to view all of the level-appropriate song & riff options across all genres. One or more of these “alternate songs” will also help students to review skills while making progress.
- Note that students should be encouraged to pause or rewind the lesson videos to review any of the material as many times as they wish.
What if a student needs a challenge?
- If a student has the experience or confidence to move on, encourage them to browse upcoming courses on their path until they find a skill or song course that presents a suitable challenge.
What if a student want to deep dive into a specific topic?
- The Collections page, located off of the Main Menu, offers a curated list of courses focused on popular topics. Some of these deep dive into topics like: Scales, 5 minute lessons, Sub-genres, Fingerpicking, etc.
- Remember that the Search function is always available to help find artists, skills and songs available on Fender Play.