Ever since, the daddy who is the musically-inclined parent of us two, has taken over the responsibility of coaching the boy and ensuring he makes reasonable progress.
I am clueless to his actual progress and simply can't pinpoint enough technical details to illustrate what and how much he has really learnt. Nothing makes much sense to me, not that I am that motivated to find out, in the first place.
I know there is progress, because E told me so, and I can see that he is now using more advanced books. But that is all that I can say. So it isn't very exciting really.
To be frank, Marcus has way too many "projects" and "conquests" that interest him, and they are all very time-consuming. He would also much rather read another book from cover-to-cover, than play a piano piece.
E is also way too relaxed, in my opinion, to enforce much discipline. As a result, the boy probably clocks less than 30 minutes of practice a week, and up to an hour max on a slightly better week. So he lacks regular piano practices and it takes much persuasion (or even coercion sometimes) before he would drag his feet anywhere near the keyboard. Not a good sign, is it?
Early this year, we briefly discussed our plans for his piano lessons. I toyed with the idea of him dropping the lessons given the signs of dwindling interest. But E insisted it will only get better in future. After all, our main objective is not for him to collect certificates (not at this age anyway) but on his acquisition of some music training, while cultivating his appreciation for the instrument.
Granted, I have read/heard of numerous young kids who were made to spend crazy amount of time learning the instrument because of their parents' insistence and growing up regretting the waste of their precious childhood time. But there are also those who grew up grateful for their parents' persistence, when they discover a true love for the instrument later.
It helps that we are not in any hurry to register Marcus for any piano exams in the near future, despite it being an accessible goal, as I have been told on several occasions by his piano teacher.
If I had to choose between him
(1) spending a solid 100 hours perfecting techniques just to acquire some certificates to frame my walls, or
(2) channeling those energy to his unstructured play time or reading or anything else that he is super passionate about,
I would choose the latter in a heartbeat.
As long as he has a strong foundation and makes good progress, he can always take the exams later and perhaps skipping some levels too.
Oddly, Marcus refuses to give up his lessons too. But then again, he isn't aware there is such a thing called EXAMS! Haha!
So the decision (for now) - the boy will continue his lessons, with the condition that the daddy commits more time and effort in coaching. And we will reassess next year, depending on his school workload.
8 comments:
Not sure besides music lessons do u all also try to expose him to the music world? U can try buying him video cds, bring him to some SSO organised outdoor concerts or even SSO Babies prom! May be able to create more interest in him? Just a suggestion :) BTW, like your blog!
Thanks O Tulip Mama, for the great suggestions.
He does listen to different music at home, though we are not the kind of family who has music in the background all day long. Maybe I should change that.
But we have never taken the boys to outdoor concerts or the SSO babies prom. Must make an effort for this. :>
Hi, Marcus is really a brilliant child. He is good in many things.
When it comes to piano, the same goes for Nicole as well. She drags her feet to the piano. At best, she can do 15mins per session and only 3 to 4 sessions in a week. This really slows her down significantly. When it comes to "exam period", she would do just a little more, perhaps 20min per session, 4 times a week for a consecutive period of 2 weeks. Sigh!
Kids do display similar traits heh :( cheers
I agree with your philosophy of not being exams-driven with regards to enrichment classes. I sometimes lament why performance-based enrichment classes like music and dance are so exams and certificate driven in Singapore! We do not coerce Big Bee to practise her piano everyday, although I notice that she does head towards the piano to practise daily since she is in primary school - as a way to destress, and maybe a way to escape the stresses of school work!
I was one of those who took music lessons because my mom wanted me to. While I did not hate it, neither did I have any passion for it. I disliked the exams but I have to say it was quite enjoyable at times, especially when you learnt to play your favourite song. Now looking back, I must say I am glad my mom made me go through all those lessons back then. It gave me some musical training and it opened the world of classical music to me.
Yes, expose your boys to concerts, not necessarily classical. There are some pretty good outdoor concerts at Esplanade for free. I wanted to bring Sarah to this year's Babies Prom but tickets were snapped up as soon as sales opened.
hi contentedmom, "Hi-5"! yah, think Nicole and Marcus are similar in this aspect. Haha. But wow! If Nicole can just practise for a little bit more to cope with her piano exams, then she must be gifted in this area. :>
Linette, oh yah, tell me about it! So good to know we are like-minded here.
I know of some kids who practise an hour a day or maybe more for months just to be able to take grade 1. At age 6, a child I know is now trying to skip to grade 3. But must practise every day for hours in order to pass. The whole process creates so much stress for everyone in the family. Which makes me question the real intention behind it. Especially since our kids can take the exams later.
If foundation is strong and the child has made good progress, then i suppose the child will be able to ace it anyway.
Another certificate that parents here are so crazy over - the bronze or silver or whatever for swimming???? What the hell is that? I know they are not medals, so what are they?
I have been asked so many times by parents if my boys are taking swimming tests, or if I am going to let them get a bronze?? before Primary One etc etc.... I didn't even know what they are!
Anyone knows?
Lucky you, Leng Leng. I can understand what you mean. I hope the same for my boys. The more important part of it all is to gain the music training, so that they will appreciate music better in later years.
Please call me next time when you are taking Sarah for such concerts. I'm sure Marcus will enjoy going with friends, especially since they are already getting along well in class! :>
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