Skipping Summer Practice? Try Running a Marathon With No Training!

School’s out for the summer and with it your child’s regular school music classes have come to an end for the term. Time to let them kick back, right? Well while the summer months are a great time for your kids to catch up on some much needed rest and relaxation, if your young musician is serious about their instrument, taking a three month break with no summer practice is sure to set your child’s progress back. After all, you wouldn’t suddenly show up to run a marathon with no training, would you?

Why Is Practice Important?

As with any skill, the purpose of practice is to improve! For some, they hope that improvement will one day lead to mastery. Let’s say that you decide you’re going to run that marathon come September. You’d get up every morning, bright and early to take your run. Maybe increasing the distance each day, improving your habits, so that you’d be ready to do your best. Right? Being a musician is no different! By practicing regularly, musicians are able to maintain muscle memory, maintain and improve their technique, and explore new music or playing methodologies. 

Beat the Summer Slump

Summer Learning Loss. Summer Brain Drain. The Summer Slump. No matter how you refer to it, the idea that students lose some of their academic skills during summer vacation is a very real phenomenon. In fact, a survey by the National Summer Learning Association (NSLA) confirms that teachers spend a significant amount of time re-teaching course material due to summer learning loss. 

More than half of music students stop playing their instrument entirely during the summer months, resulting in that 2+ month learning loss when they get back to school. However, this doesn’t mean your child needs to spend the whole summer deep into a rigorous practice routine. Easily help them stay on track by setting goals and keeping a practice log. Make it fun by holding mini-concerts, being an encouraging support system throughout the summer. To learn more check out 5 Practice Tips for Your Summer Music Lessons.

Lessons with Music & Arts

Does your student need a little extra help with their summer practice? Taking music lessons with Music & Arts will give them the structure and motivation they need to keep up with their  instrument during the summer months. Working one-on-one with a trained music educator gives students of every age and musical interest the tools they need to thrive any time of the year. So whether they want to learn an instrument for the first time or develop the musical skills they already have, lessons with Music & Arts will help.