The Best Ways To Motivate Your Child To Practice Piano (Without The Tantrums)

We’ve all been there. Getting your kid to sit down and practice piano for an uninterrupted time can feel like pulling teeth out. It’s a slow and painful (seemingly impossible) process. Motivating your child to practice piano for their piano lessons can be challenging, but try to be empathic, and if you can, recall what it was like to sit down and be still for a full half-hour as a kid. Probably can’t, right? 

Parents, you want your kids to take the time to master the piano, so you have to encourage them to put in the work to do it. Here are 5 ways to help you motivate your child to practice the piano! 

Get creative with piano practice times. 

Playing the piano or any instrument for that matter takes intense focus and concentration. If you notice that your child struggles to concentrate during certain times of the day, take that as a cue to play around with practice times. Some parents have reported that getting their children to practice piano before school is an easy feat compared to practicing after-school when they’re tired. Try it out for yourself and see if it helps! 

Set a routine. 

So, you want your child to practice the piano like clockwork? Make it into a daily routine and teach your kids the importance of discipline and structure. If you really want to increase your chances of motivating them enough to practice regularly, let your child be in control and in charge of making their own schedule. 

Remember to make time for play. 

Practicing is necessary, but so is having fun too! Encourage your child to play the piano throughout the week just for fun. Maybe they can learn to play their favorite song or get creative and make a song of their own! Either way, don’t forget to give your child the space to be an artist. 

Create incentives with music games. 

The easiest way to trick, I mean, motivate your kid into practicing piano is by making a game out of it. Decide on a reward together that they’ll receive if they play the piano for x amount of time or master a scale or song. You can come up with your own game that works best to motivate your kid!

Be their biggest cheerleader.

Offering words and acts of encouragement to your kid is a tried-and-true method for motivating your child to practice the piano. The piano isn’t an easy instrument to master, and it’s important to highlight all the milestones along the way so that they feel motivated to keep going! Celebrate your child’s accomplishments no matter how big or small they may be. 

Options may seem slim when you feel like you’ve tried everything to encourage your child to practice, but if there’s a will, there’s always a way! Try out these tips for yourself and see if that makes practice time go a bit smoother.