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Studio Booking Software Articles

20 Jul

Self-help Pedagogy: Part 2

by admin
in Performance, Policies and Procedures, Program Development
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Time management is an essential component of managing a studio. In addition to managing and planning the details on the business end, many studio owners take an active role in the lesson and class planning. In this month’s blog, I will summarize points from Marienne Uszler’s book, Time Flies…How to Make the Best Use of Teaching Time.

Like last month’s blog on the use of repetition in practice (Self-help Pedagogy: Part 1), the first step is to determine how you use lesson time by video or audio recording yourself teaching a variety of different lessons. Then, review the recordings and make a timeline noting how much time was spent on each activity.

In order to plan an effective music lesson for the Elementary, Intermediate and Advanced leves, Uszler suggests that the following six elements must be present:

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09 Jul

Marketing Your Studio in a Bad Economy

by cconrad
in Finances, Marketing, Program Development
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At one of my recent teaching association meetings, we discussed how even studio owners and music teachers are feeling the affects of the bad economy.  As families tighten their belts a bit more and look for ways to lower their budget, some of their children’s extra curricular activities are seen as unnecessary luxuries.  Use some of the tips below to prevent your studio growth from becoming stagnant during lean times:

Educate your clients

Make sure your client base understands the importance of the service that you offer, and why it isn’t expendable.  I use quarterly newsletters to reiterate the importance of music lessons by linking studies and data that show the benefits of learning piano.  I also write occasional articles for our local parenting magazine about the benefits of music education.  Doing so helps my students and their families prioritize music lessons and hopefully look to cut other things out of their budget if they are faced with making difficult choices during financial hardships.

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24 Jun

5 Ways to Organize Studio Repertoire

by admin
in Facilities
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Organize Music Repertoire

If there’s one thing us studio owners have lots of, it’s this: music. We’re constantly purchasing and collecting songs to use with our students, and I know I’m not the only one who has struggled with the best way to keep my ever-growing repertoire organized.

And after five years of trying to figure it out, I’ve come to realize that there isn’t necessarily one “best” way to keep my music organized. Rather, I rely on five different methods to keep tabs on the resources I use every day.

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22 Jun

Self-help Pedagogy: Part 1

by admin
in Performance, Policies and Procedures, Program Development
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Summer is such a great time to rest and read. For the next three months I will devote my blog to reviewing three small wonderful “self-help pedagogy” books written by Marienne Uszler that have really influenced my teaching.

There are three books in the series: Play it again, Sam…What, Why, and When to Repeat, Time Flies…How to Make the Best Use of Teaching Time and That’s a Good Question…How to Teach by Asking Questions. All three books are very practical and give specific teaching techniques, helpful hints and references for further research. They are short on words and length, but long on ideas and concepts.

Repetition of the same thought or physical action develops into a habit which, when repeated frequently enough, becomes an automatic reflex. – Norman Vincent Peale

Play it Again, Sam… is particularly appropriate for right now in my studio as students are learning new repetoire for the summer. Learning a new piece requires so much repetition. How many times do you have a student repeat a new idea in your studio? What types of repetition do you espouse? At first glance of Uszler’s book, I thought it might contain suggestions to make repetitions more fun using games and so forth. Well, not quite. This is not a quick fix – Uszler’s approach is holistic. It is about teaching concepts that will stick and developing independent learners capable of transferring skills.

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