This post may contain affiliate links. As a Sheet Music Plus and Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. That means I make a small commission (at no additional cost to you) if you purchase something from an affiliate link.
In teaching music, we talk a lot about motivating students *between* lessons. There are endless ideas for motivating students to practice!
But what about motivating students *during* their lesson? Children are often “wiggle worms” who don’t want to sit on the bench or play something multiple times.
Here is a little known way to motivate students during their music lessons!
You can use a reward app to encourage students during their lessons.
My favorite app for doing is called Stars 2 Apples. This app is meant for ESL teachers, so there are some props and other functions in the app that you wouldn’t need. I have found it worth the purchase just to have the rewards function.
My favorite function in the app are the reward scenes. There are various scenes to build (ice cream, flowers, butterflies, emojis, farm animals, etc.) that students enjoy creating during in their lesson.
Here is how I use this app:
- Let a very young student drag an item into the reward scene each time she does something good in her lesson. Give a treat at the end of her lesson if she has a lot.
- Give a student a specific number to reach. For example, if a student reaches 6 rewards in his lesson, he can have a treat.
- Use a reward slide to count repetitions in a lesson. Adding a colorful picture to count repetitions really brings this monotonous task to life. Students of all ages like this when they have to play something 7 times in a row!
Using these colorful, fun visuals during a music lesson really encourages students of all ages!
Lauren teaches piano to students of all ages. She enjoys creating resources for her students and teachers. She is the author of Ready for Theory®. For personalized help, check out the consultations page for teachers.
