“You need to practice music more.”

“Don’t forget to practice your instrument!”

“Why won’t you practice?”

As music teachers, we’ve all felt the frustration and aggravation with students who won’t practice their music. If we’re being honest, we’ve probably been reluctant to practice a few times ourselves! Even so, it can be incredibly frustrating when one or more of our students fail to thrive due to a lack of practice at home. In this post, my goal is to provide realistic solutions that will help your students overcome the music practicing hurdle and guide them into habits that stick. If you’ve ever felt annoyance or frustration with getting students to practice, this post is for you.

Why kids forget or fail to practice music

Although it’s frustrating, most students aren’t neglecting their practice-music out of spite. Today’s students have a lot on their plates. Even the youngest of students are juggling longer homework hours, after-school activities, friends and family obligations, and many other commitments. Sometimes we have to acknowledge that kids are kids, and most won’t immediately have perfect time management or music practice routines. This is why it’s so important to continue encouraging students and guiding them towards the practice routine that is right for them. Next, I’ll discuss some common music practice missteps and pitfalls that can add to the challenge.

Common Pitfalls in Music Practice

It’s important to remember that music practice is something that needs to be taught to students, just like rhythm, reading notes, or any other musical concept. I have witnessed many music teachers who push practicing without actually guiding to success. Here are some of the common pitfalls I’ve observed over the years: 

• Pushing for longer practice sessions too early
• Lack of open dialogue surrounding practice routines at home
• Showing frustration or shaming a music student who doesn’t practice
• No guidance for establishing effective practice routines

I want to be clear—it’s never okay to shame a student for forgetting to practice, regardless of how frustrating it can feel. I say this while openly acknowledging that I made these very mistakes early in my teaching career. I regret venting that frustration to my students. It was never helpful. Music learning must be accompanied by positive feelings during the challenges. So now that I’ve discussed the common pitfalls, I’ll discuss how to change your strategy for the better.

Teaching Students to Practice Music

You might be a bit surprised to read that practicing music needs to be taught like any other musical skill. Consider this: Have you ever experienced a student who practices mistakes all week long? How about a student who plays their song one time and calls it practice?

Here’s the hard truth. Most of our students aren’t going to immediately know how to manage their time and build perfect practice routines right away. It’s up to us to maintain an open and friendly dialogue about music practice. These discussions should be happening frequently with students while also keeping their families in the loop. Music teachers, students, and families all want the same thing: progress. So don’t be afraid to have those open, honest dialogues. They help students feel acknowledged and understood, instead of embarrassed and ashamed.

Strategies for Positive Music Practice Habits

So far, I’ve looked at common but ineffective approaches to teaching good practice skills. I’ve also discussed why students need to be taught music practice just like any other skill. Now I’ll share some of the music practice strategies that have worked for me!

Strategy 1: Model Effective Music Practice Habits in Lessons and School

When a student is told to practice, without context or guidance, you’ll likely wind up a student rushing to play through all of their songs as fast as possible. In their mind, that’s music practice.

Music teachers are responsible for showing students a better way. After all, we want students to practice their music with purpose. We want our students to reflect on their mistakes and make meaningful improvements.

One of the most effective methods I’ve observed for encouraging students to improve their practice habits is through modeling practice skills and techniques. This includes:

• Recognizing and identifying mistakes
• Counting and clapping rhythms out loud
• Reading notes and rests
• Fingerings, bowing techniques, percussion sticking, and other kinesthetic skills
• Maintaining a steady beat
• Incorporating articulation and dynamics

Demonstrating these practice skills will look different depending on the teaching situation. It’s easy enough to encourage these skills in a private lesson setting, but it’s also important to introduce these skills in the general music classroom. One of the strategies that I frequently employed in my music classes was rotating practice stations. Each station would have a different task: 

• Count and clap rhythms
• Identify notes
• Practice fingerings
• Play

I would typically have my students work in small groups and spend 2–5 minutes at each station before rotating to the next task. On other occasions, I would set a timer and assign an individual practice task: “You have one minute to practice clapping and counting the rhythm in Measure 3.”

Utilizing these music practice strategies with students during instructional time is what ultimately inspires students to continue making meaningful progress at home.

Strategy 2: Maintain Open Dialogue with Each Student

I can’t emphasize enough how important it is to check in on your students’ practice progress on a regular basis. Every student who steps into your room is going to have a different experience practicing at home. If you don’t ask, you may never truly understand your student’s situation. Here are just a few anonymous things that were uncovered among my students over the years:

• A student who struggled with remembering to practice
• Another student who was forbidden to practice his recorder at home
• One family that didn’t have access to an instrument at home
• Another student who experienced anxiety over making mistakes while practicing
• A student who had an overloaded schedule that made practicing feel impossible

As you can see, each of these situations is completely different and requires its own unique approach. Some situations required conversations with families. Others required modifications and lots of encouragement. It would be impossible for me to advise on every unique situation out there, but I do believe most students have the resources and abilities to practice at home, even if that student is simply clapping rhythms or practicing with headphones.

It’s equally important to maintain an ongoing dialogue with families, especially when new practice routines are being implemented. This makes it easier to evaluate what is or isn’t working and make adjustments as necessary.

Strategy 3: Show Students How To Structure Practice Routines of Various Lengths

One of the most common reasons given for a lack of practice is a lack of time.

Do your students know what a five-minute practice routine looks like? What about a thirty-minute or hour-long session?

Sometimes kids really do need examples of how effective practice can happen in any length of time. Here is an example of effective music practice routines that might vary depending on length.

Once students realize that meaningful progress can be made even in the shortest of practice sessions, it makes the task feel more accessible. Slow and small successes will ultimately lead to big results over time.

Strategy 4: Find Each Student’s Focus Time

Not every student is going to be a morning person. Likewise, not every student can focus in a practice session for thirty minutes straight. Encouraging students to find their focus time is sometimes all that’s needed for consistency in a practice routine.

Strategy 5: Emphasize Goal Setting

This is the most important practice strategy of all. Setting goals is what makes a music practice routine productive. When I work with my private students, I’ll frequently ask, “So, tell me about your practice goals during the week. What was your main focus?”

If a student ever seems hesitant or unsure of how to answer, we’ll work together to brainstorm their practice goals for next time. Some students may need that initial push to start establishing their own musical goals. Other students may be too ambitious and need guidance on making a practice goal realistic. For instance, a student who makes it their practice goal to play all their songs perfectly without any mistakes may walk into their next lesson frustrated. This is where you’ll need to guide the student and break down “playing perfectly” into smaller achievable tasks (rhythm, note reading, etc.)

Here’s the magical part of this strategy. When students learn to set effective practice goals, their practice becomes intentional. Students begin to notice small successes in their playing and hear improvements in their sound. Suddenly, your student isn’t practicing for five minutes; they’re pushing it to half an hour! When students are focused on meeting goals, longer practice sessions seem to happen organically. And that is why this strategy is so powerful.

Strategy 6: Consider Practice Charts for Students Who Need Structure

Other students may need reminders or motivation in the form of a visual organizer. Music practice charts can help students organize their assignments, document their practice routines, and set intentional goals. They also provide information on how a student is approaching their music practice at home. 

Would you like a set of printable music practice charts for your classroom? I designed a set of five different practice charts that are free to download and use in your classroom. You can access this freebie by joining the Chamber of Freebies!

 

Strategy 7: Encouraging Students to Reflect on Practice Routines

Not every practice session will be perfect—and that’s okay! What matters most is that students begin to develop awareness of what went well, what didn’t, and what they might try to do differently next time.

You can encourage students by asking questions like:

• What part of your practice felt easiest?
• Where did you get stuck, and what did you do about it?
• Did you meet the goal you set for yourself?
• What could you try to do differently next time?
• What are you proud of?

Students can reflect in conversation with you, on their practice chart, or even in a small notebook. Using this approach doesn’t just build effective practice habits, it helps shape good musicians.

Strategy 8: Point Out Areas of Growth Frequently

Finally, if you’ve read my post The Power of Positive Feedback in Music Class, you know how strongly I feel about celebrating student achievements regularly. Some students need to hear how much they’ve grown, and how far they’ve come. Pointing out the improvements you see over time is going to have more impact than you realize. 

It might sound like this:

• “Your rhythm has improved by leaps and bounds.”
• “I heard more dynamic contrast this week—nice job!”

Students thrive when they feel seen. The more often you highlight a student’s success, the more likely they are to keep showing up and putting in the work at home.

Final Thoughts

Encouraging students to practice music should not feel like a chore. It’s a meaningful process that transforms students into confident and capable musicians. So the next time you feel frustrated with a student who just won’t practice, take a breath and get to the root of why. Be the music teacher that turns “I can’t” into “I can,” and keep encouraging your students to find the practice routine that works for them! Your support will be the ultimate reason they decide to pick up their instrument tomorrow—and the day after that.

Have something to add to this conversation? Share your advice and experience in the comments!