One thing Dr. Suzuki says is, "You only need to practice on the days you eat." It's a funny joke, but a key component of learning. Taking "days off" from a skill built on repetition not only slows you down, but it makes the neurons and synapses not gel. Is it hard to get a young child with lots of interests to practice everyday? Well, yes and no. We certainly practice every day, but do we do everything every day? Nope. My kid doesn't always have the stamina or attention span to go through her entire lesson assignment every day, so we do at least some of the exercises each day, and the ones we didn't get to yesterday, we start with the next day. So, yes we practice every day. But no, we don't practice everything every day. That's how to maintain your sanity with a young child who doesn't want to do something. Maybe that day she doesn't have the patience to attempt something she doesn't yet possess the dexterity to accomplish, maybe she wants to mull it over a bit, maybe you need to figure out ways to scaffold the skill until she can build it up to what the teacher is aiming for. Notice where they are, and keep it fun, and stop before it gets frustrating. Set the expectation that they don't have to do it today, we can try it again tomorrow. Remove the pressure, set the expectation that we can always try again later, and you might just see your child attempting it on their own in the corner of the playroom.
So far, I have found that the consistent exposure is what will make it eventually gel together. I still show her the skill daily, and whether she does it with me or not isn't the point. I'm getting my practice in, and building my technique. That was our goal from the beginning - to get her early exposure to playing with proper technique, and to grow her love of music. It's like with Baby Sign Language and "sign approximation" - we absolutely accept and celebrate the micro moments she can get it close enough. Something she couldn't do 3 weeks ago, she can now, with daily diligent exposure and attempts. We also build an environment for success. I post pictures up around the house at her eye level and when she passes that spot, she stops and does the thing. We also put her Suzuki listening CD on a Creative Tonie so she can listen to the music anytime she wants, and it gives her autonomy to do certain parts of her practicing on her own.
So far, I have found that the consistent exposure is what will make it eventually gel together. I still show her the skill daily, and whether she does it with me or not isn't the point. I'm getting my practice in, and building my technique. That was our goal from the beginning - to get her early exposure to playing with proper technique, and to grow her love of music. It's like with Baby Sign Language and "sign approximation" - we absolutely accept and celebrate the micro moments she can get it close enough. Something she couldn't do 3 weeks ago, she can now, with daily diligent exposure and attempts. We also build an environment for success. I post pictures up around the house at her eye level and when she passes that spot, she stops and does the thing. We also put her Suzuki listening CD on a Creative Tonie so she can listen to the music anytime she wants, and it gives her autonomy to do certain parts of her practicing on her own.
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