I hope you didn’t think it was harsh of me to be open about that. In the city where I live, you can’t be too cautious. I don’t get into taxis or even walk on the streets alone. And being a young female who is alone during the day while my husband is at the office, factoring in that most of my students come from ads they’ve found online, letting a stranger into my house can be dangerous.
No, I think you are right to be cautious. For every 100 Ok people there could be 1 who has other ideas, and you have no idea who you are getting. Fortunately i live in the countryside where you can still get wrong’uns, but people are less anonymous which makes a difference.
Leia- This is a good topic! I’m at 28 students and I have not opened up Saturdays yet…… Although I can handle them just fine, when something else comes up I get easily over-whelmed. I also am teaching 2 college courses this semester….things add up and before you know it you spend your days frantically prepping for the next day! It’s made me think about this very question. Who will I take back in the fall? How many student do I want vs. how many do I need to pay the bills? Why do I say “yes” to too many and not “no” more often? Thanks for this great post!
I have a question: if you decide not to take back some students in the fall, how will you go about it? How will you address the issue with parents?
It’s so easy to say “yes” when we see eager little children dying to get their hands on the piano – but I think we aren’t going to be useful to anyone unless we’re relaxed and happy. Glad I got you thinking about how to protect yourself and your time!
I hold parent conferences in June when the academic year is over and I will talk to them about ending lessons at that time. I usually try to sugar-coat it as much as I can if I feel they would do better spending their money elsewhere.
But I have out-right terminated several students over the years- you know the ones (if they spent nearly as much time practicing as they did coming up with excuses about why they “can’t”, they might get somewhere).
Great idea about holding conferences! I usually send progress reports in May (end of the school year here) but I find it so approach parents about terminating lessons, especially because they can’t imagine that there is anything wrong with their child! I managed to cut a few singing students by honestly telling them that I needed more time to work on my Masters, and that worked out fine because they knew it wasn’t personal… but what about when it IS personal?
You know, I haven’t had a problem with lack of practice yet. The students I find unbearable are the undisciplined ones. They will spend the ENTIRE lesson talking about how they want some candy, or they will stomp on the pedals and bang on the piano keys instead of playing “with polite fingers” as I like to say, or they will tell me they don’t want to work on the lesson book and can they please watch Barbie videos instead. I guess you can tell I have far too many students under the age of 6!
Oh boy did this resonate with me. As a piano teacher, and Mom with an almost 5 year, here are my 2 sense:
When I was first growing my studio, I had to take on quite a few “pay the rent” students. Sometimes I felt more like a babysitter than a piano teacher! But those tough to teach students definitely helped me come up with some of my best teaching games and strategies, and so I am thankful for that. Now that my studio is larger and I have a wait list I am more picky about students I take on and teach (especially as my teaching is something I have to keep in balance with my Mommy gig). I think it is perfectly alright to tell a family that you feel you may not be the best teacher suited to teacher their child. There may be a teacher out there in your area that loves teaching preschoolers, or may have no problems inspiring so-and-so to practice more. But if you are dreading teaching a certain student than it is best for both parties to part ways. I certainly wouldn’t want my son taking lessons with someone who wasn’t keen on him! And I would be appreciative of a teacher who told me they felt they weren’t the best fit.
I also think it helps if you can recommend another teacher or music school for those students you wish to unload. Makes it easier for the parent, and makes a nice connection for you with another teacher.
Oh, you are so right about being a babysitter sometimes! My husband and I are thinking of expanding our family soon, so I certainly have to think about how that will affect my teaching.
I absolutely agree that recommending another teacher is the best way to go about parting with a student. Unfortunately, where I live, there just aren’t that many teachers of Western music, and the few that DO exist will either not take preschoolers or have busy schedules unable to accomodate more students. Tricky situation, no? Luckily, I did find a singing teacher willing to take the students I let go of this month, so I hope they will be happy to learn with someone who is passionate about teaching them.
Christine, do you have a blog or website? Would love to check it out, if so.
Leia's Lessons 
Fortunately my teacher takes male adults, at home, but I can understand your cautious approach.
I hope you didn’t think it was harsh of me to be open about that. In the city where I live, you can’t be too cautious. I don’t get into taxis or even walk on the streets alone. And being a young female who is alone during the day while my husband is at the office, factoring in that most of my students come from ads they’ve found online, letting a stranger into my house can be dangerous.
No, I think you are right to be cautious. For every 100 Ok people there could be 1 who has other ideas, and you have no idea who you are getting. Fortunately i live in the countryside where you can still get wrong’uns, but people are less anonymous which makes a difference.
Leia- This is a good topic! I’m at 28 students and I have not opened up Saturdays yet…… Although I can handle them just fine, when something else comes up I get easily over-whelmed. I also am teaching 2 college courses this semester….things add up and before you know it you spend your days frantically prepping for the next day! It’s made me think about this very question. Who will I take back in the fall? How many student do I want vs. how many do I need to pay the bills? Why do I say “yes” to too many and not “no” more often? Thanks for this great post!
I’ve been feeling so overwhelmed, as well!
I have a question: if you decide not to take back some students in the fall, how will you go about it? How will you address the issue with parents?
It’s so easy to say “yes” when we see eager little children dying to get their hands on the piano – but I think we aren’t going to be useful to anyone unless we’re relaxed and happy. Glad I got you thinking about how to protect yourself and your time!
I hold parent conferences in June when the academic year is over and I will talk to them about ending lessons at that time. I usually try to sugar-coat it as much as I can if I feel they would do better spending their money elsewhere.
But I have out-right terminated several students over the years- you know the ones (if they spent nearly as much time practicing as they did coming up with excuses about why they “can’t”, they might get somewhere).
Great idea about holding conferences! I usually send progress reports in May (end of the school year here) but I find it so approach parents about terminating lessons, especially because they can’t imagine that there is anything wrong with their child! I managed to cut a few singing students by honestly telling them that I needed more time to work on my Masters, and that worked out fine because they knew it wasn’t personal… but what about when it IS personal?
You know, I haven’t had a problem with lack of practice yet. The students I find unbearable are the undisciplined ones. They will spend the ENTIRE lesson talking about how they want some candy, or they will stomp on the pedals and bang on the piano keys instead of playing “with polite fingers” as I like to say, or they will tell me they don’t want to work on the lesson book and can they please watch Barbie videos instead. I guess you can tell I have far too many students under the age of 6!
Oh boy did this resonate with me. As a piano teacher, and Mom with an almost 5 year, here are my 2 sense:
When I was first growing my studio, I had to take on quite a few “pay the rent” students. Sometimes I felt more like a babysitter than a piano teacher! But those tough to teach students definitely helped me come up with some of my best teaching games and strategies, and so I am thankful for that. Now that my studio is larger and I have a wait list I am more picky about students I take on and teach (especially as my teaching is something I have to keep in balance with my Mommy gig). I think it is perfectly alright to tell a family that you feel you may not be the best teacher suited to teacher their child. There may be a teacher out there in your area that loves teaching preschoolers, or may have no problems inspiring so-and-so to practice more. But if you are dreading teaching a certain student than it is best for both parties to part ways. I certainly wouldn’t want my son taking lessons with someone who wasn’t keen on him! And I would be appreciative of a teacher who told me they felt they weren’t the best fit.
I also think it helps if you can recommend another teacher or music school for those students you wish to unload. Makes it easier for the parent, and makes a nice connection for you with another teacher.
Oh, you are so right about being a babysitter sometimes! My husband and I are thinking of expanding our family soon, so I certainly have to think about how that will affect my teaching.
I absolutely agree that recommending another teacher is the best way to go about parting with a student. Unfortunately, where I live, there just aren’t that many teachers of Western music, and the few that DO exist will either not take preschoolers or have busy schedules unable to accomodate more students. Tricky situation, no? Luckily, I did find a singing teacher willing to take the students I let go of this month, so I hope they will be happy to learn with someone who is passionate about teaching them.
Christine, do you have a blog or website? Would love to check it out, if so.