Experience Summary
On first obtaining my degree in South Africa, I taught there as a Fourth Grade teacher for three and a half years. My other classroom experience was in 1997-1998 when I taught as a substitute teacher at an elementary school in South Saint Paul. Those two experiences have taught me that the academic subject to which I am most drawn is English. Although most of my teaching experience since then has been in music, I feel that teaching piano is the same thing as tutoring.
I really enjoy the one-on-one in my piano lessons, and find it extremely rewarding to come up with new ways of teaching a concept that a student is finding confusing. I would love to take the skills I have aquired as a piano teacher, and use them to help someone learn how to read.
Teaching Style
I feel it is very important for the student to feel relaxed and confident when they are with me. To this end, I always give a few minutes of each lesson to personal contact, and chat with them a little about what is happening in their lives. I also encourage laughter and light-heartedness. I stress that it is OK to make mistakes. If they are having trouble grasping a concept I tell them it is because I have not explained it correctly and ask them to bear with me until I get it right. I use a lot of encouragement and praise, but also insist on keeping high standards. I want them to feel good about themselves when they leave me.