Observing your students' progress

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When you give your student an exercise or song to play in the lesson it should normally be something that stretches their ability, if only a little. Because of this you must always allow time for the student to get used to playing the exercise on their own terms.

Tutors often make the mistake of stopping the student the very instant that they sound as if they've got the hang of the exercise. This is a mistake. Although it may appear that they are playing it right, internally the student will still have a sense of 'only just getting it' and their attention will still be entirely focussed on the exercise at this point.

Watch your student carefully and you will observe certain signs that tell you when they are still engrossed in the exercise (in which case let them continue without interruption). Then, when they have reached a point of being satisfied that they have got it right, the student's attention will extrovert. This usually takes the form of them looking up from what they've been doing, changing their posture or simply stopping of their own accord. If in doubt always check with the student: " Happy with that ?".

It's always better to allow them to play exercises longer than it is to interrupt the process before the student feels happy with it.

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