Thursday, February 20, 2014 by Hamdani, Laurie | Ideas

Over my years of teaching I have come to believe that my role as a teacher extends beyond just the specifics of the language of music and the mechanics of the instrument. I strive to notice and act on "teachable moments". For example, when a student repeatedly comes to lessons unprepared, it can provide an opportunity to discuss personal responsibility, choices and consequences, motivation, and so on.

One tool I've used over the last few years is something I call the "Grins & Groans jar". Sometimes students walk into their lesson completely preoccupied with some event in their day or week and feel compelled to share. So much so, at times, that I need to find a way to help them focus on the task at hand, i.e. their piano lesson. In these situations, I offer them a chance to write a brief description of the issue or event on a card and then put it into the jar. "Grins" might be something really positive that happened to them, like getting a role in the musical they auditioned for. "Groans" might be something like their frustration with a teacher, a test, a friend, etc. Then I offer to save a few minutes at the end of the lesson to talk about what they wrote on the card if they so choose. But, once the card is in the jar, that topic stays in the jar during the lesson so that we can focus on the present moment, the present task at hand.

A recent example involved a student who is generally highly motivated, engaged, and prepared. But one day, she showed up very distraught and apologetic for not being prepared with her piano materials. She had had a bad pre-audition on another instrument at school, had had a death in the family, and had been out of town for a few days as well. In other words, she was feeling very stressed and sad and frustrated. I had her write some of this down on the card ("groans") and put it in the jar. Then I asked her whether she could just leave all of those groans in the jar while we had a working piano lesson, reviewing and practicing the things she couldn't get to over the last week. She responded "yes" and actually felt quite relieved to step away from all that drama for a while.

At the end of the lesson, I asked her if she wanted all those "groans" back to take home with her or whether she'd just like to leave them in the jar. Naturally, she left them in the jar. This is an exercise in mindfulness, being present in the present moment, and learning that you have a choice whether or not events external to you affect you in the present moment.

Not every student has needed to use this tool. But I have seen that when they do, it makes a huge impact going forward.