Children’s lessons – Guitar and Ukulele
My Approach
I have been teaching Children from as young as six, since i started teaching nearly 10 years ago. I am a Registry of Guitar Tutors approved tutor and I have been CRB checked.
For all children, I like to teach a mixture of familiar songs and melodies along with material from the London College of Music grades. This ensures a degree of flexibility whilst maintaining a solid foundation and structure in guitar education.
Guitar or Ukulele
Children can choose between ukulele and guitar, and both can be tailored to the child’s age and level. I find that for very young children the ukulele offers an excellent starting point, however. The ukulele is much smaller than the guitar making it easier for small hands to hold. It only has 4 strings rather than 6. The strings are Nylon and so not as harsh on the beginner’s fingers. The other advantage is that for a small outlay (£40-100) the child can have a quality instrument. A guitar of similar quality would be between (£200-£250). Then as the child progresses they can either move to the guitar, as the skills learnt are completely transferable, or continue with the ukulele.
Guitar and Ukulele grades
London College of Music grades are available in Acoustic, Classical, Electric and Rock guitar (these last two will require an electric rather than an acoustic guitar). Grades are also available on the Ukulele. The grades are suitable for all ages and offer a thourough grounding in all aspects of playing the guitar/uke. There are 10 grades in total (grades 1-8 plus two pre-grade levels). Marks are divided into pass, merit and distinction, distinction being the highest. All my students have acheived distinctions for every exam taken. From Grade 6 onwards exam marks can also be converted into UCAS points. This can be a great way to give your child the edge as they get older and want to apply to go to university.
Familiar songs and melodies
From the outset I include familiar songs and melodies. Once the student has the basics then they are encouraged to choose pieces themselves that they personally like and enjoy. I find students are more motivated to practice if they are learning a song they really enjoy. This is increasingly important as the child gets older.
Lesson location and length
Lessons can be either 40 mins or 1 hour. Younger children benefit from a shorter half-hour lesson, or an hours lesson broken up with lots of games and breaks.
Lessons, for the time being, are available online and can be a nice way to break the day up for your child.
Parental involvement.
The importance of Parental involvement from the very begining of a child’s instrumental lessons can not be underestimated. This could mean anything from the parent having a lesson at the same time as a child, to the monitoring and encouragement of the child’s practice time. Lessons can be a great thing to do with your child.
