I know we're not supposed to have "favorites," but I certainly lean more towards some students than others! Now that I've finished reading "teaching horror stories," time to remember why I love this job:

1. 6 yr. old beginner who sings her note letters along with every piece she plays. Her little voice warbles all around the note, you can hear her searching for it in her ear - precious. Every song somehow relates to her baby sister, so I get LOTS of stories. Just precious.

2. a 12 year old boy whose mother makes him practice every single day. he is a brilliant player, but doesn't know it, which makes it a joy to teach him. Every piece somehow reminds him of a battle/fight/explosion, etc. so I get LOTS of made up stories from him. After finishing a piece, "I can't believe the wizard exploded at the end." etc.


can you tell i suddenly have more free time with all my new posts?

I love it, keep posting!

I have a delightful 2nd grade girl who only just began, but is progressing so quickly and is a delight to teach.

I also have a couple of other students, who aren't progressing so well, but always seem sad when their lesson is over. That always makes my day!

I think we all have favourites, my favourite students are the ones who who practice, ask questions outside of the lesson time, go beyond what is learned in lessons and have a passion for music.

Meri

I can't help having a favorite, and at the moment, it's this cute 2nd grader who comes running in for her lesson with a big smile, throws her arms around me, sits down at the piano, is always prepared, maintains a super positive attitude throughout the lesson, and gives me a hug before leaving. What more could you ask for?

2nd graders are the best! I have two who have lessons back to back. As soon as the second one arrives, they both plead with me "Can we play our duet?" I was thinking of overlapping them every week so they can just play duets together. They didn't know each other before, either.

The others are the ones who say they practiced 3 times every day! Or the one who just started last fall and I assign him a scale and he comes back doing it in thirds.

It's what keeps us going.

Carol

I think its perfectly fine for teachers to have favorites ... you cant notice when you teach one to one and you're human, there is nothing wrong ( I even say that as a student ) ... In saying this I dont think a teacher should compare the favorite students saying "such and such is better ... etc".

John that 2nd grader sounds adorable! Mind you I might add that I don't appreciate being 'treated' as a favorite when it's class situation (publiclily) with the teacher calling me by pet names and treated everyone else like a number ...

The little ones are so adorable! I especially love my two little boys that need a stool for their feet since they can't reach the floor. When we were rehearsing for the recital the night before, two of my high school girls saw me put the stool down for one of them and they just said "Aww, he's sooo cute!!" And they always crack me up with they count out loud, and I mean REALLY loud!

And then, another of my favorite students (I have so many!) is a high school student who always comes in and plays songs that he's learn by ear from the radio, and then I try to "name that tune". Luckily, he likes 80s and before, otherwise I'd be at a complete loss!

It's great to have such imagination! Most kids are completely devoid of any imagination when they play music.

speaking of that 12 year old boy, he always brings me a souvenir when he travels. He just got back from a trip and brought me glass figurines from venice! (great taste too!)
His mother is the same way, such thoughtful people.