Little Pianist

I never expected Jerilyn to love playing the piano because she always gives me the 'I am rough, rugged, impatient, therefore, I don't play piano' impression. She is also quite tone-deaf. However, I still introduced piano to her a year ago. We started with the birthday song.

Today, she hasn't played like a pro yet, but she plays with passion. Averagely, she plays 30 minutes daily without supervision and during each session, she spends between 5-15 minutes. I don't have to remind her to practise. She, herself has the initiative and interest. What really amazes me is she plays from page to page repeatedly. For example, she starts with page 10 today and she plays from page to page til the last page(pg 50). It could be tomorrow or day after. After that, she flips back to the first few pages and start all over again; playing from page to page til the last page. She is still playing the beginner's book I bought her. Other than this book, she has completed another book for beginners, given by her cousin.

I am not rushing her into Book 2. I have learned a lesson thru a colleague's story. My colleague was complaining to me that her daughter doesn't like to play piano so much so that the teacher complains to her every week. She has been playing the piano for more than 5 years but she is only in 2nd grade. She plays the same piece every week because she couldn't play it (well). At that moment, it struck me that I need to give my daughter time to practise each piece moderately well before introducing a new piece. I used to introduce a new song practically every other day, ignoring her ability to cope. I was too ambitious. In my time, I learned a new piece every other WEEK. Instead of giving Jerilyn week(s), I gave her only DAY(s) which was unfair to her. I must have gotten mixed up between weeks and days! :p

However, I believe an early start benefits a kid tremendously in the long run. A good foundation makes it easier for the kids to catch up later on.