Not too hard...Not too easy (Part II)

In my last blog, I talked about ways to decrease challenge when a child feels overwhelmed or doesn't want to try something that is too hard.

Today I'm writing about what to do when a child is feeling UNDERchallenged. You'll know this may be happening if your child:

• Plays recklessly fast or sloppily, without any attention to musicality or beauty
• Complains about playing the song AGAIN or gripes that it's too easy
• Acts distracted or fidgety (note that these behaviors also could mean the opposite: too much challenge--see my Oct 14 blog)
• Goofs off or acts silly

If you think your child needs more challenge, try saying "Hmm... You're pretty good at this, I wonder if you are ready for a challenge! Let's see if you can..." then propose one of the following challenges:

• Play the phrase (or measure) with no missed notes and no missed fingerings (only 100% accuracy is acceptable)
• Play "Earn Your Age" Game (If child is 7 years old, prepare 7 pennies or pieces of small candy or cereal. Every time the child plays a measure or line correctly, s/he earns one penny. If s/he misses a note, a penny is taken away. When you earn as many pennies as your age, you win!)
• Play with no missed notes or fingerings 3 times in-a-row
• No missed notes or fingerings 5 times-in-a-row
• Play with your eyes closed, no missed notes
• Play with beautiful phrasing and attention to every expressive marking, such as dynamics and articulations
• Play while counting out loud
• Try the "Question Challenge"

The Question Challenge is only a good idea when a child knows a song VERY well, but needs to continue to review it (eg, for an upcoming performance). The idea is to invite the child to play the song and then while playing, the parent asks the child very easy questions (What is your name? How many legs do you have? What color is the sky? What is 2 + 2?). The child should answer these questions while continuing to play the song. Have fun with this!

In all of this, keep the atmosphere light-hearted and fun--like playing a game. The trick is to find a level of difficulty that feels enticingly challenging to the child, but not overwhelming. Kids like being challenged. They enjoy it. I have observed that they even enjoy making honest mistakes and will freely laugh at their own "goof ups", so long as they have an environment where it is safe to make mistakes. Please don't misunderstand me: I am not suggesting ignoring mistakes or lowering standards of accuracy. In most of the challenges there IS a consequence for making a mistake (eg, losing a penny), however, one of the consequences is NOT being criticized or scolded or made to feel inferior. Making mistakes is simply part of the learning process, and can actually be a fun part of the game if you allow it to be. I have been surprised by how many times a child will smile or laugh when they lose their first penny in the "Earn Your Age" game. They love that someone is giving them a fun challenge to meet!