Practice: a method of learning through repetition
Practice is like brushing your teeth… best done every day! Without daily practice, progress is likely to be very minimal.
Frequency over duration!!!
But there is a standard of how long one should practice – and this will depend on how long you’ve been learning the guitar. For the beginner two minutes a day will start to develop a non-threatening habit that can be extended as they have learnt more on the instrument to something like; AMEB Preliminary Level = 10mins a day, AMEB Grade One = 15mins, AMEB Grade 2 = 20mins and so on going up in 5min intervals.
How did your practice go this week?
It is my job to encourage every day practice, but I know that in the real world this is unlikely to happen for anyone. Things get busy at home – and students need to develop the self-discipline to commit to a regular practice routine. It often falls on the parents and caregivers to help set up the routine. I tend to count the practice days in the week to define the level of practice:
6-7 days is excellent practice
3-5 days is ok(ish) practice
0-2 days is no practice…yes, I see similar results from students who practice on Sunday for an hour as those that don’t touch the instrument between lessons.
6-7 days is excellent practice
3-5 days is ok(ish) practice
0-2 days is no practice…yes, I see similar results from students who practice on Sunday for an hour as those that don’t touch the instrument between lessons.
I’m so sorry – I didn’t practice this week
There’ll be weeks where the practice drops off dramatically, for example camp, exam period, sickness, family things etc. etc. These do not inhibit the progress of a student who usually practices 6-7 days a week. The opposite is true too… one excellent week of practice for a student who generally doesn’t practice isn’t going to help a student catch up. Playing guitar is like a fitness and builds up over time.
Structure of a good Practice session
First let’s be clear what practice is. Practice means repetition, particularly on the hard bits – you know these bits because secretly you say “I hate that bit”. Practice is not simply playing through the song you’re working on…. That is Playing the guitar – and yes that’s more fun! Balance Practice and Play in your session. Divide your session into three parts;
1) Technical Warm-Up. A scale, exercise, arpeggio or study.
2) New Song. Practice time. Find the hard bits and play through each bit slowly and carefully 5 times each, then play through the whole song.
3) Revision. Play time. We build our ability through our old songs in music. Play through your favourite songs, at least two.
1) Technical Warm-Up. A scale, exercise, arpeggio or study.
2) New Song. Practice time. Find the hard bits and play through each bit slowly and carefully 5 times each, then play through the whole song.
3) Revision. Play time. We build our ability through our old songs in music. Play through your favourite songs, at least two.
Last updated January 2022