I often get enquiries from parents asking if their child is old enough to start piano lessons so I put together this list of things to consider.

1. At what age can my child start lessons?
   • Every child is different and they develop at different ages so there is no magic number. As their parent, you are a lot better placed than I am answer this question. Try not to think ‘are they old enough?’, but ‘are they ready?’
2. Do they know left from right?
   • Playing piano involves using both hands and your child should know the difference between their left and right hand.
3. Are their hands developed?
   • Their fingers will need to be able to press the keys of the piano individually if they are to learn to play. If their hands are too small then they will not be able to play the keys individually.
4. Can they concentrate for extended periods of time?
   • Lessons mainly consist of sitting at the piano, taking instruction and playing. In lessons involving younger pupils, I break up the lesson to include other fun, learning, activities but your child should be able to concentrate for 10 minutes.
5. Will they enjoy and participate in daily practice?
   • It is essential to practice at home what is learned in lessons. Again each child is different but I recommend a daily, between-lessons, practice schedule of at least 15-minutes per day for young pupils. Young children are unlikely to be self-motivated and you will need to dedicate time to the practice sessions as well.
6. What type of piano do I need at home?
   • The simple answer is the best your budget can handle. Buying a cheap, low quality, instrument will not encourage your child to play it. Acoustic pianos, while excellent, are expensive and beginners normally choose a digital piano. There is some good advice in my buyer’s guide on what to look for when purchasing a new piano and a few that I recommend.

As you can see, there is a lot more to consider than just a number indicating how old your child is. My recommendation is to book a taster lesson and I will give you my honest opinion as to the suitability of piano lessons for your child. You can book online and chose the beginners level.

If your child is too young to start piano lessons they would benefit from my Music & Movement lessons where I teach Rhythm, Singing and lots of other fun activities. If appropriate, I also incorporate the piano into lessons. The skills learned in the Music & Movement course are a fantastic grounding for when pupils are old enough to progress to the Piano Beginner’s Course.

In my experience, all children who start with Music & Movement go on to choose an instrument and study music from around the age of 5 or 6. Pupils who study music also tend to do well in other subjects at school. I wrote about this in a previous blog post – Does learning piano promote better school results – a while ago.

If you think you child is not being challenged by pre-school nursery or toddler group activities then they will definitely have fun and learn on my Music & Movement course.