piano lessons

Published February 8, 2009 by Nancy

When S was nine and having difficulty at school, we took him back to the OT. His handwriting was the issue. He couldn’t grip the pencil properly, so he couldn’t write very clearly.

Her response: It was more or less too late to fix his pencil grip. What he needed now was thicker pencils (easier to grip) and in time, a keyboard.

In the meantime, we should give him as much hand and finger exercise as we could, including small weights when he used the computer.

Okay. So we could do that. But then I asked:

He’s been taking piano lessons since he was four and playing lots every day. How can he have weak hand muscle tone if he plays so much?

Her response: If it hadn’t been for the piano lessons, he might not be able to grip the pencil at all.

I left that meeting a much bigger believer in piano lessons.

But not just because it’s good for sensory issues and muscle tone in the hands. Piano playing does far more for sensory issues kids than finger dexterity.

Started at an early age, piano lessons lay down miles of track inside the brain. Good track. Useful track.

Think about it. To play music you have to do all of the following — AT THE SAME TIME:

• coordinate your right and left hand to do different intricate tasks at the same time
• coordinate these actions by sound so that they fit together and follow the rhythm
• make the ear hear the rhythm and signal the hands follow it
• read the music with the eyes and send those messages to the two hands

So left brain, right brain, hands, plus eyes and ears are all working together on a single task. The task exists in space (keyboard, music book, right and left side) and time (counting, rhythm). It gets repeated several times every day. Presto — a vertical yarnball of nerve networks.

These yarnballs are cross-brain networks. As the child progresses in music, these cross-brain networks become stronger, and messages flow between them more and more quickly.

And not just for music cross-brain networks — but for all cross-brain networks. Once you have ‘em, your brain can use ‘em for anything. For example, math word problems require using both sides of the brain at once to apply analytical, reading, synthesizing, calculating, and imagining skills to solving the problem. Kids who have years of music training find word problems easy.

No surprise.

So how do you get a SPD kid to practice every day?

You don’t. You start by calling it “playing” the piano, instead of “practising” the piano. Then you get your kid to play the piano every day.

Set aside exactly the same time every day for practice, so that it becomes part of the day’s routine, like brushing teeth. Mornings are good, since the brain is most alert right after breakfast. The later in the day, the more tired the brain.

Find a piano teacher who likes fun music as well as classical music. Many kids like classical music because it’s predictable, but it’s good for them to experiment with modern rhythms.

Avoid exams and written theory. Just work on repertoire and a comfortable daily routine.

Finally, try not to avoid recitals. If they start early enough, kids learn to perform in front of others before they know about nerves or stage fright. This helps give them confidence.