New Updates

Oh, I can't belive it's been almost a year since I have written.  So many things have happened, both good and bad, with my studio this year.
In my last post, I wrote about a new student (not the middleschooler) who came to his first lesson 15 minutes late.  Well, we had a bunch of lessons over about 6 months, but no lessons over the summer.  This fall, I counseled the parent out of continuing lessons.  It was really more her problem than the child's--she was rarely on time, they came without books, skipped lessons altogether, etc.  It's for the better, and maybe when the little one is older, they'll try again.
The student, M, who I wrote about last year also quit lessons this fall.  It was very sad.  I cried at her last lesson, and so did her mom.  It's true that she just wasn't progressing.  And she was getting frustrated.  I don't know why.  I had tried a couple of different strategies with her, but nothing really worked.  She's going to try the flute, and I hope that she experiences success with it.
I have 13 students this school year, which is a good number for me to handle.  I wish they weren't quite spread out over 4 days, but it is what it is.  I guess it's good that I only teach two or three lessons a day throughout the week.
I enrolled some boys in a Boys Only Recital sponsored by our local Music Society.  They boys did really well, and it was great for them to hear other boys play.  The advanced ones were really amazing, and I know it inspired my students.  I am sometimes concerned that the other teachers in the society won't appreciate my studio practices, but it works for me and my students and their families.
Our Christmas recital is coming up in a couple of weeks, on December 3 and I hope that we're all prepared.  Yikes!