Tag: piano lessons

Studio Business

Why Piano Teachers Should Charge a Flat Monthly Fee for Lessons (And How to Calculate It)

Joy Morin

When I relocated my piano studio after grad school, a colleague gave me advice that shaped my entire business model: charge via a flat monthly fee. At first, I wasn’t sure how it would work. But after hearing out my colleague and implementing it, I found it improved multiple aspects of my studio I hadn’t expected one change to address.

That same system has served me well for years, and I’ve watched other teachers adopt it with similar results. If you’ve been curious about flat monthly fees but weren’t sure where to start, this guide is for you.

In this article, I’ll make the case for flat monthly fees, explain how the system works, and show you exactly how to calculate your rate. You’ll also find answers to common questions that may arise.

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Practicing

NEW: Musician’s Practice Planner

Joy Morin

Hi there! Here is a quick blog post to tell you about a project I’ve been creating and testing for over three years: an assignment notebook I call the Musician’s Practice Planner. I’m pleased to announce it is now available for order in hardcopy!

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Studio Business

Freebie: Lesson Attendance Sheet Updated for 2024-25

Joy Morin

I just updated one of the studio business forms from my Printables page for the 2023-24 school year.  It is called the Lesson Attendance & Payment Sheet PDF.  Even though I don’t personally use this sheet myself anymore (I now charge a monthly flat tuition rate), every year I receive requests from teachers asking if I would please update it for the upcoming school year. And I’m happy to do so! 

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Announcements

Announcing: Keys at Play, Book 1: 88 Progressive Pieces for Pianists of All Ages

Joy Morin

Hello friends,

I have an announcement to share today — one that’s been a long time coming. I won’t beat around the bush. I wrote a book! It’s called Keys at Play, Book 1: 88 Progressive Pieces for Pianists of All Ages. And it’s available for order now, across the world, in hardcopy form.

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Games

Playing my Trick-or-Treat Rhythm Game with my 3-Year-Old

Joy Morin

As promised in my last post, today I’m sharing a recent short video of my daughter, Aria, and I playing my Trick-or-Treat rhythm game. In fact, we took this video clip earlier today!

I’ve been playing this game with Aria daily for the past two weeks or so. I don’t ask Aria to read the rhythms on the cards, as I might with my older students. She’s three-and-a-half years of age, and my priorities are on developing her ear and musical understanding of that which she hears (i.e., audiation).

So, instead we use a variation of the game where the teacher reads and performs the rhythm pattern, and the student echoes it back. This is a valuable activity not just for young students, but for any student especially as they encounter new rhythm elements. (Read more about how I use this game with my students here.)

Anyway, please enjoy this short video and my time-stamped notes below. I hope you get some new ideas or inspiration from watching our interaction!

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Games

Trick-or-Treat! Rhythm Game – Newly Revised

Joy Morin

It’s that time of year! I have a recurring event in my calendar that reminds me at the end of September each year to get out my Trick-or-Treat Rhythm Game for my piano students. I use this game at the start of almost every lesson I teach throughout the month of October.

This game has been a classic in my studio since I created it back in 2018. I made it available for purchase in my shop a year later in 2019.

Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve been working on making some revisions to the game and am pleased to announce the new version now available. I’ve smoothed out the progression of difficulty a bit and created 5 levels of cards instead of 4, but the game is essentially the same. In this post, I’ll tell you a bit more about it plus share some insights into how rhythm is taught from a Music Learning Theory perspective.

(PS: If you purchased the game in the past, you are eligible to receive an updated PDF at no cost. In fact, past purchasers of the game will receive an email from me later today containing a download link to the revised version. If you don’t see it, please contact me here and let me know!)

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Studio Business

Freebie: Lesson Attendance Sheet Updated for 2023-24

Joy Morin

I just updated one of the studio business forms from my Printables page for the 2023-24 school year.  It is called the Lesson Attendance & Payment Sheet PDF.  Even though I don’t personally use this sheet myself anymore (I now charge a monthly flat tuition rate), every year I receive requests from teachers asking if I would please update it for the upcoming school year. And I’m happy to do so! 

Continue reading “Freebie: Lesson Attendance Sheet Updated for 2023-24” →
Studio Business

5 Steps for Successful Interview Lessons with Music Students

Joy Morin

Interview lesson, meet-and-greet, intro lesson, trial lesson, consultation—whatever you choose to call them, introductory sessions are a great way to jumpstart your potentials students’ success in music lessons. This article presents five steps to help you make the most of your interview lessons with new music students.

Step 1: Define Your Goals for the Interview Lesson

Before conducting an interview lesson, it is important to determine your goals for an interview lesson. For many music teachers, these sessions are useful for setting expectations for their music studio and determining if a student-teacher fit is possible. They allow you to build rapport, communicate your expectations for practice, behavior, payments and other studio policies and procedures, and assess the student’s goals, needs and level of interest.

Additionally, an interview lesson can also be an opportunity to:

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Announcements

Save the Date: 2023 Piano Teacher Retreat

Joy Morin

Hello, piano teacher friends!

After a three-year hiatus (due to the pandemic and having babies!), my piano teacher retreats are back! I’m excited to invite you to attend a retreat for piano teachers taking place at my home this summer.

Piano Teacher Retreat is a three-day getaway for piano teachers to connect, recharge, share, and learn from each another. During this unique experience, you will have opportunity to contribute and benefit from collective wisdom during group discussions, interactive activities, as well as relaxing downtime. You’ll leave you feeling inspired and connected, with newly formed friendships and fresh ideas for your teaching.

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Games

How to Organize Your Games for Piano Lessons

Joy Morin

Do you have a collection of games, flashcards, and props to use during piano lessons with your students? Are they organized so you can find things when you need them?

As you probably know, your teaching resources are only as helpful as your organizational system. When things are out-of-place or impossible to find (we’ve all been there!), those items unfortunately cannot do you — or your student — any good.

The key is to have a system in place where you always know where to find and put things. As the saying goes: “A place for everything, and everything in its place.” Your system needs to make sense to you, and it may be as unique as you are.

In this post, I’ll describe my method for organizing my teaching games/materials and share how you can set up a similar system if you desire. I hope you’ll gain some tips or ideas for how you can organize your favorite piano teaching resources to be readily at your fingertips!

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Teaching Piano

Just added: Grand Staff Reference Sheet – Naming Space Notes

Joy Morin

Hi there! In this blog post, I’ll briefly discuss both the usefulness and shortcomings of mnemonic devices (such as “FACE” and “All Cows Eat Grass”) when it comes to music reading and then share with you a new FREE printable, pictured above.

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Composition

Roundup: Composition/Improvisation Resources for Piano Teachers

Joy Morin

In today’s post, I’d like to round up a few of my favorite resources (both free and paid) on my blog relating to composition and improvisation.

Composition and improvisation are skills I love integrating into my teaching. When students show an interest in creating their own pieces, I always foster this and coach them through the process of formulating and notating their compositions. To help expose all of my students to composition, I offer a composition-themed summer camp at least every-other-year. I use improvisation, in simple but natural ways, in my teaching too — although I’d like to get better at doing more!

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In this blog post, there are three main sections: (1) First, I will first round up my free printables related to composition and improvisation. (2) Then, I’ll list some blog post links to some articles that discuss how to integrate improvisation and composition into your teaching. (3) Finally, I will tell you about two paid resources from my shop you might find useful for teaching composition and improvisation to your piano students.

I hope you’ll discover — or rediscover — some fun resources you can use in your teaching!

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