Struggling To Keep Your Child Motivated During Guitar Practice? Here Are 5 Ways To Make It More Fun!

Stop Struggling With Your Child’s Guitar Practice And Make Playing Guitar At Home Fun Again!

As parents, we want our children to develop a love for music and pursue their interests, and often turn to guitar lessons as a fun hobby.

Like with all hobbies though, once the newness has worn off so too does the practice at home.. 

Guitar practice can be tedious and monotonous for children, making it difficult to keep them motivated. As a parent, it is important to make guitar practice fun and exciting for your child.

In this article, we will discuss five ways to make your child’s guitar practice at home more fun.

Who Is Responsible For Guitar Practice At Home?

As parents, it’s common to feel uncertain about the extent of our responsibility when it comes to our children’s music practice.

While our children must put in the work and practice regularly, it’s up to us to ensure that they have the support and guidance they need to excel. Therefore, it is our job to help our children practice at home.

To support our children’s music practice, it’s important to establish a consistent routine that’s achievable and appropriate for their skill level. 

A routine can help our children understand the expectations around their practice and create a sense of structure, making it easier to motivate them.

You need to make guitar practice part of their routine and then make their routine a habit. This will set the expectation of when practice occurs instead of them seeing it as impeding on their free time.

Yes you’re a busy parent and you already have so much responsibility, but you know your child can’t be left to do things independently yet (unless it’s a PlayStation right?). So how are they meant to figure something as complex as guitar practice out all by themselves?

Making Guitar Practice Fun

At the end of the day, your child wants to have fun.

They also want to put in the least amount of effort possible.

It’s going to be hard for guitar to be as much fun as an iPad or a video game which are geared to trigger dopamine and become addictive for children. Especially in the beginning when they are still just developing their skills.

In order for guitar to stand any chance we need to make playing the guitar at home fun for our kids. Let’s explore 5 ways we can do this at home.

Make Guitar Practice A Game

Children love games, and incorporating games into guitar practice can make it more enjoyable for them. 

For example, you can create a game where your child must correctly play a chord that you call out and earns a point for everyone they get right.

If you have two siblings who learn guitar you can also make it a competition between them to see who can learn a new song the fastest.

Ask your guitar teacher if they can give you ideas for games you can play at home to make learning more fun.

Play Along With Your Child During Their Practice Sessions

Playing along with your child is an excellent way to make guitar practice more fun. 

You can accompany your child on another instrument or sing along while they play. 

You can also ask them to teach you something they have learned, which will help build their confidence and make them feel more accomplished.

If you don’t know how to play guitar, consider taking a few lessons with your child’s teacher. If you’re a Melbourne Guitar Academy parent you get access to free online guitar lessons as part of your membership. You can use this resource to teach yourself the basics.

Let Your Child Choose The Music

Playing the guitar is only one component of musical development and guitar practice.

Listening to music actively has many benefits and is something that should be done regularly.

Allowing your child to choose the music they want to listen to is an excellent way to expose them to new music and inspire them to learn new songs on guitar. 

When children are given the opportunity to choose their own music, they are more likely to be motivated to practice. You can also encourage them to try different genres and styles of music to broaden their musical knowledge.

As you’re listening to music, ask them questions to get them to think about what they hear. This will lead to them developing a deeper understanding of how music works and an awareness of many different elements of music.

Incorporate Technology Into Guitar Practice

Technology can be a valuable tool when it comes to making guitar practice more fun. 

There are many guitar apps and online resources available that can help your child learn new songs and practice their skills. 

Apps like Yousician offer a gamified approach to learning where students earn points based on how well they play things.

You can also use technology to record your child’s progress and share it with friends and family.

Lastly, your complimentary Guitar Ninjas membership has access to over 50 online guitar courses. You can have your kids watching the video playthroughs of the song they are working on as part of their practice.

This will help them hear what they are trying to play and will make learning the song easier.

Make It A Social Event

Music is always more fun when it’s played with somebody else.

In order to get good at playing music with other people we should practise guitar with other people.

We’ve already mentioned playing along with your child, but there are additional things you can do to facilitate this:

• Organize a playdate with a friend or family member who already plays an instrument.
• Have your child play for their grandparents live over a video call.
• Encourage them to work on a set of 2-3 songs to play at the next family get-together.

Playing with others can help build their confidence and will prepare them for playing in bands and ensembles when they are older.

Conclusion

In conclusion, making guitar practice more fun for your child is essential to help them stay engaged and motivated. 

Remember to prioritize their interests, be creative with your approach, use technology to your advantage, create a comfortable and positive environment, and provide opportunities for them to perform and share their progress. 

By doing so, you can help your child develop a lifelong love of music and the guitar.

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