How much should my child practice their musical instrument? This is one of the questions that we get most often from parents and it really depends on how old the student is.
For Younger Children:
For children ages four to seven, shorter practice sessions work best. With younger children, the focus with their practice should be on the quality and not necessarily the quantity. Often, what works better than a set time limit is using the repetition method. Instead of asking your child to practice for ten or fifteen minutes, ask them to play their song five times.
Tip: Make tracking repetitions fun. Get two small bowls and fill one with five marbles. Every time your little musician plays their song, they can move one marble to the other bowl. Not only does it help young children conceptualize what they need to do to complete their practice, they will get an extra sense of accomplishment when all of the marbles are moved over to the second bowl.
For Children Eight to Twelve years old:
Once children reach this age, they are capable of focusing for a longer period of time and should make the transition from repetition to a set time limit. We recommend setting up a regular practice schedule and trying to get between 75 and 100 minutes of practice each week. We have found that students who consistently practice about 100 minutes a week do very well.
It is often best to do four 25 minute sessions or five 20 minute sessions if your schedule permits it. While 100 minutes is ideal, students can still make progress practicing 50-60 minutes per week, however they tend to move a bit slower than those who consistently hit the 75-100 minute mark.
Tip: Set up some kind of reward system for every time your child hits their practicing goal for the week. Reward systems are a great way to encourage students to develop good practice habits. Eventually, students won’t need them and will learn to practice on their own without any outside motivation, however developing this kind of intrinsic motivation takes time.
For Teenagers:
Teenagers can continue to do very well practicing their musical instrument about 100 minutes each week. Advanced music students playing very complicated songs may need additional time. For the serious student, we recommend 45 minutes per day.
If you are interested in getting started with music lessons or have questions about how to make practicing easier for your child feel free to contact us at 740-913-1718.