Our summer session of lessons has begun and I thought my students needed a change of pace from piano points, so I’ve started a “Super Summer Practice Club.” The goal of this is to get students at the piano or at least thinking about piano as many days of the summer as possible. I’m trying to avoid the “I completely forgot about piano until it was time to come to my lesson” syndrome. Hopefully once they get seated at the piano they’ll stay for longer than they planned. All my students took home this chart this week. They write down the date and what they did related to piano, this includes coming to their lesson (which is a struggle for some over the summer), any practice at the piano, doing theory work or listening worksheets, or improvising and composing.
I have a poster up in my studio that they will get to chart their progress 
on and see how they are doing in comparison to other students. They will get a prize at 25 and 40 days. I am also planning to give out certificates or awards for the students who get the most days over the summer. I’ll keep you updated on how this works in my studio over the summer.
Do you have a summer incentive program? Is it different from what you do during the school year?
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.