Have you seen this great Zootopia trailer?!
I have not seen the whole movie, but I thought this trailer was hilarious when I saw it before the new Star Wars movie. Do you have students who seem to refuse to play slow even when you give them specific instructions to do so? Learning a piece slowly is such an important skill for our students and helps them to avoid mistakes, so the other day in a lesson I had a lightbulb moment!
“Have you seen the sloth on Zootopia?”
Of course she had.
“Remember how super slow the sloth was? Can you play this slow like the sloth?”
And like magic, my student played at a nice slow tempo that enabled her to play the piece accurately! And I didn’t have to nag, count them off slowly, tap the beat on the piano, or any of those possibly annoying things we do to get students to slow down. The next time you are trying to slow down a speedy student, try asking them to be slow like this sloth. Even if they haven’t seen the movie they likely have seen the trailer and will know what you are talking about. Let me know if it works for you!
Author: Spring
Spring Seals, NCTM, teaches 60 piano students ranging from age 3 to 70 in Fort Worth, Texas. She also serves as the Director of Certification for TMTA. She is passionate about helping teachers become more effective in their studios through professional development, new resources, and fresh ideas.