How to: Frugal Homeschool Music Lessons

*disclaimer- I am not being paid or receiving any product or services from the companies in this post. They are companies/products that I actually use and enjoy.

I am not a musician. It seems kind of funny that I can’t play an instrument considering my dad is a fantastic musician. It was very important to me to give my children the opportunity to learn to play an instrument but as a family with five children it was looking to be very expensive. It wasn’t terribly expensive with only two children but this would be the first year to have four children playing. Considering first the expense of the lessons themselves, I started to weigh my options. My father doesn’t live close enough to teach the children, and I honestly have zero talent or aptitude for music so getting lessons for free was not an option. I didn’t really know anyone with whom I could barter (with)  or beg to teach my children to play.  I starting calling around music stores and studios and the average price for lessons was $20-$25 per lesson. That would be $100 per week (only 4 are old enough for lessons at this time) or roughly $400 a month not to mention the fuel costs so this was certainly not a good option for us.  Finally I found the Mobile Music Academy.  They come to our home and give instruction and because of the number of children taking lessons in one location we get a discounted price of less than $17 a lesson. Our instructor has a masters in violin, is very professional, she is great with the kids and they have clicked with her from the first lesson. We invited another homeschooling family to join us on our music day and they too take advantage of the discount. The lessons being taught in our home also works out for us very well because the children take turns having their lesson and they can continue their homeschool work without interruption and the toddler can still nap. I would definitely recommend Mobile Music Academy to anyone in the Nashville area. If you aren’t in the Nashville area, I would recommend calling a few different places and interview them first and even ask for a free lesson to see if your children like the instructor. Don’t forget to ask for a group discount if you have multiple children or could co-op with another family!

Then there is the expense of the instruments  to consider. When we began this year we already had two violins that we could use for our two younger children wanting to study violin. I had bought a 1/2 size Suzuki brand kit online about three years ago brand new for about $290 the best I can remember. It seems like it was not holding up well and we have had trouble keeping it in tune until we had some repairs done at Williams Fine Violins in Nashville. While getting the repair done and speaking to the staff there we decided to but our next violin from them because they were so knowledgeable and patient in giving us non-musicians good advice and guidance.  The other violin we picked up was a 1/4 size that was actually made at Williams Fine Violins and cost about $675. We have been completely happy with it and it has survived a beginning 6 year old daughter and now our 5 year old son handling it (along with the plucking of our 2 year old) without incident. I know that you can find less expensive violins online and even in stores but I was a little weary after our first experience. I think a good instrument is a great investment especially when it is being passed from child to child. In music equipment a lot of times you can recoup all of your money when you decide to sell, many fine instruments tend to hold their value. If you did not have the money or the inclination to invest immediately you can also rent them from music stores, find them in a pawn shop (especially here in Nashville), or even borrow one from a friend whose child may have lost interest or outgrown the instrument.  And I am sure once you find a good instructor they could also give you good advice on buying good instruments not to mention that they often get discounts at the music stores.

Two of our older children wanted to study the piano and we had one of those electric keyboards for them to use. I started to think a lot about the sound of a real piano and how much I would enjoy those sounds filling our home . I started to think about investing in an upright piano. I mentioned it to my husband and he thought it was a great idea and we started doing our research. We went into the local Yamaha piano dealer in Nashville and quickly realized we would either have to buy used or only afford their entry level piano, the T118 PE, which was a very nice piano but I just I wasn’t sold. I really liked the sound of some of the more professional (and expensive) models much better so we started to look online. There are so many different piano dealers online it can make your head spin. We called around to some of them and some sounded sketchy, some of the people didn’t seem knowledgeable, some seemed more like car dealers but then we found Piano Tek. Piano Tek is a small piano store that only houses about 50 pianos at a time. The owner answers the phone when you call, he takes his time to speak to you and is open and honest about pricing and very helpful to someone (like me) who doesn’t know a lot about pianos. Piano Tek was also very flexible with us about how we wanted to pay for our new piano which was also very helpful to us. We ended up buying a 1978 fully refurbished U3 model which is the top of the line model for $3,295 which was less then the brand new entry level one from our local store.

The study of music is food for the brain. I found this great information from Carpenter’s Music World:

The study of music at a young age increases the quality of the child’s early life experiences. Music can soothe, stimulate or entertain children. It provides pleasure, joy and an outlet for creative expression; it helps develop listening and auditory discrimination skills; it contributes to motor skill development (both large muscle and small muscle); and it increases the range and flexibility of the voice. Music can soothe emotions, invite enthusiasm and bring immense pleasure to the listener.

Eight Cool Things Music Does for Kids

1. Confidence and Poise: Music making offers children a chance to perform with and for others, and to develop confidence in their ability to make presentations for groups.

2. Perseverance and Commitment: As children become more skilled in singing, moving and playing instruments, they can see and hear the results of their efforts.

3. Coordination: The many movement activities associated with music experiences develop both small muscles and large muscles. The awareness of internal steady pulse, coordinated with external movements, helps children regulate their behavior.

4. Self-respect and Satisfaction: As musical skills develop, children feel a strong sense of satisfaction in their progress and develop a feeling of self-respect that transfers to other situations in life.

5. Creativity and Self-expression: Music experiences often invite individual creative responses and encourage children’s imagination in other creative endeavors.

6. Pride in Achievement: Sharing music with peers and family reinforces the value of each child in the classroom, and children develop a sense of pride in their musical achievements.

7. Concentration and Problem-solving: Learning about music requires concentration and focus. When children are asked to analyze, compare and contrast sounds, they are actively engaged in problem-solving experiences.

8. Fun and Relaxation: Singing, moving, playing instruments and listening to music are all enjoyable experiences. Music making can provide hours of personal entertainment and relaxation throughout one’s entire life.

Science proves the importance of music

Several recent studies show improved spatial-temporal task scores and pattern-recognition scores for children in different age groups who had received piano instruction as compared to the same-age control groups without piano instruction. These studies report that piano instruction is far superior to computer instruction in enhancing a child’s abstract reasoning skills necessary for learning science and math.

Studies also suggest that playing and listening to music at a young age improves learning, memory, reasoning ability, and general creativity. Research supports the theory that young children who are exposed to music develop enhanced cognitive skills. Music teachers are aware that influences of music go far beyond the intellectual and physical development of the child. Studying music contributes to the growth of a well-balanced child in sensitivity, expressiveness, and the spirit essential for functioning in a complicated world.

Call out: Children who received music instruction (including keyboard lessons) scored higher in spatial task ability than those who had not. –Frances Rauscher, University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh and associates, February 1997, Neurological Research

Call out: Elementary school children who took piano lessons showed improved math scores. –Gordon Shaw, University of California, Irvine, March 1999 Neurological Research

Call out text: Early music education encourages abstract thinking, improves intellect, and helps develop the reasoning skills needed to learn math and science. –“The Effect of Early Music Training on Child Cognitive Development,” Sam Houston State University

Call out text: Exposure to music activities enhances cognitive processes involved in language and reasoning. –“Music Lessons Enhance IQ,” E. Glenn Schellenberg, University of Toronto at Mississauga

Call out text: Students with coursework and experience with musical performance scored an average of 51 points higher on the verbal portion of the SAT test and an average of 39 points higher on the math portion. –“Predicting Music Theory Grades: The Relative Efficiency of Academic Ability, Music Experience, and Musical Aptitude”, Carole S. Harrison, Journal of Research in Music Education

An historical perspective

Educators and psychologists from the beginning of the twentieth century to the present have attested to the value of music study on the development of the child. According to Jean Piaget (1896-1980), the noted Swiss psychologist, a child’s early years are the optimum period for intellectual development. He believed that children and adults think in different ways. During the “pre-operational” learning stage (ages 2-7), children begin to think and react through symbols (language, drama, drawings and dreams). This stage is perfect for starting the process of learning music.

Jerome Bruner (b. 1915), an important American cognitive psychologist, believes that the foundations of any subject can be taught to anybody at any age. In his theories, he places great emphasis on teaching the structure of the subject. He developed a spiral curriculum where general principles are presented and applied to various learning situations in ever-increasing complexity. Learning should be structured to serve the future.

The study of music at a young age is supported by the humanist theories of Abraham Maslow (1908-1970) and leads to a fully realized, complete human, person (self-actualized). Harvard psychologist Howard Gardner (b. 1943) sets forth a theory that some children seem to “think musically” at a very young age. These children represent a small percentage of our society, but Gardner suggests that the numbers might increase if music were taught at a young age. Young children have the ability to understand music intuitively through performance and/or composition. In addition, they seem to have a genetic predisposition to hear, remember and produce musical patterns regardless of whether of not they are products of musical environments.