AndyBob09 Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 So, yesterday I received a phone call from a lady who was looking for guitar lessons for her son and daughter. As somebody who teaches bass and who only potters on guitar, I had to make that split second decision that I'd be willing to take on two utter beginner guitar students. Does anybody on here teach bass and guitar? What do you teach on a guitarist's first lesson? Any help about what to teach these pupils on their first lesson would be more than appreciated! Cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike257 Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 I guess a lot of the basic theory/musical knowledge stuff stays much the same - note names, rhythms etc can be taught in the same way. Age of the students will make a big difference - I got a book and a half size guitar to try teaching our youngest (she was 6 at the time) and it started with basic one note 'songs' that functioned as basic rhythm exercises, moving to two/three note stuff with simple repetitive patterns. When it starts touching on chords, it uses simple three string stuff up on the skinny strings, with minimal fretting. Older kids will probably lose interest at that level much more quickly - I got our oldest interested by doing the basics very quickly and then teaching her songs by her favourite band. In hindsight I probably jumped the gun a bit, as once she'd got her head round a Paramore tune, she didn't feel the need to learn anything else and just stopped! There's probably some tutorial stuff on line that could give you a good starting point, or maybe take a look at the early grades in the Rockschool books or similar. Good luck with it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyBob09 Posted January 3, 2012 Author Share Posted January 3, 2012 Her kids are aged 11 and 9. I was thinking for the first few lessons I taught them G, C, Em and they've got "I Gotta Feeling" by Black Eyed Peas or D, C, G and they have Sweet Home Alabama. I'm not really sure what 11 and 9 year olds are in to these days! But yes, you're right, the basic theory is the same and they'll need to know note names, string names etc. Once they've got a few chords under their belts, I was thinking of starting them on Rockschool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike257 Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 It's hard to keep up with what they're into! Our oldest is 13, she's well into her rock bands, Paramore, You Me At Six andn Deaf Havana are her favourites right now. I'd find out what their favourites are in the first lesson (or before, if you can get a heads up from the parents) and try and tailor it to that from early on. They're probably just old enough that you won't have to learn any Hannah Montana songs! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyBob09 Posted January 3, 2012 Author Share Posted January 3, 2012 Aye, despite only taking these two on yesterday, first lesson is tonight. Can't knock being keen! Nothing like feeling old. I'm 21 and have no idea who Deaf Havana are! And I have NO idea who Hannah Montana is. But by the sounds of things, I don't want to know who she is! I'll get a feel for what they're into tonight and I'll polish up my guitar skills over the next week. Maybe even get going on Rockschool Grade 1! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RhysP Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 If you "only potter" on guitar & don't even know what to teach them on their first lesson then you're doing these kids a disservice IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyBob09 Posted January 3, 2012 Author Share Posted January 3, 2012 I'd feel confident enough to gig as rhythm guitar. That's how I'd qualify "only potter"ing. Like, I don't sit down and practice it and I don't gig on guitar but I'd feel confident enough in my teaching ability and my playing ability to teach total beginners on guitar. There are a whole host of guitar teachers who's first instrument is guitar that teach bass. I'd never teach anybody who I feel that I could not teach. If, when I'm finished these lessons, I feel that it wasn't for me, I'll be honest with the parents and tell them that and refer her to another teacher, however, the pupils and I may get on like a house on fire. The reward will be in their playing ability and I'm sure that in a few weeks time, they'll be damn better players than they are right now. I'm sure that on anybody's first lesson that they're giving, they may be slightly unsure of what to teach. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 I`ve taught a couple of people rhythm guitar. I cobbled together some diagrams of chords on the guitar neck, using Excel. I then put a selction of chords that "go together" such as C, Am, G, F, and D, A, G, Bm, and made the first few lessons switching from one chord to another. Then, as Andybob09, once they`d got changing from one to another, gave them songs such as Bad Moon Rising by Credence Clearwater, Songbird by Oasis, just easy strum-along songs that they could gain confidence from. That`s about as far as I could go, but both people have gone on to play, and write fairly well. I suppose all I did was give them a kick-start, but it pushed them in the right direction, and they (hopefully) got there a bit quicker because of my "lessons". The one thing I couldn`t manage, was to teach them a bar-chord F. Both refused. Slackers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike257 Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 I've found that the hardest thing for any beginner on guitar is actually changing between the chord shapes fluently - that's the bit that will try their (and your!) patience, so go easy with them on it and dobt expect it to come too quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leftybassman392 Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 (edited) [quote name='AndyBob09' timestamp='1325606164' post='1485031'] Her kids are aged 11 and 9. I was thinking for the first few lessons I taught them G, C, Em and they've got "I Gotta Feeling" by Black Eyed Peas or D, C, G and they have Sweet Home Alabama. I'm not really sure what 11 and 9 year olds are in to these days! But yes, you're right, the basic theory is the same and they'll need to know note names, string names etc. Once they've got a few chords under their belts, I was thinking of starting them on Rockschool. [/quote] Word of warning - you might be surprised how long it may take them to learn the chords unless you simplify them somewhat. Very common problem with teaching guitar/bass is that you've been doing it a while so you're inclined to see these as 'basic' chords. I doubt the students will see it that way. To actually play a full 'C' chord, you need to simultaneously control the movements of three fingers of one hand in such a way that they don't get in each other's way. Then with your other hand you'll be asked to hold this weird looking piece of plastic, and move it across the strings (but not all of them) so that you hear a total of 5 separate notes - assuming your other hand hasn't gone south in the meantime. Not trying to put you off - just making sure you know what could be involved in teaching someone to play a guitar. School-based tutors routinely teach kids that age on Spanish guitars, and get them to organise their hands gradually over a period of time. It's not universal, and there are always exceptions for a variety of reasons, but that's how it's usually done. Oh, and one other thing - don't try to push them too hard too quickly, or you'll kill off their interest altogether. I think your timescale for these events should be quite a lot longer than you seem to feel. Rockschool Grade 1 after a few weeks? I don't think so. (In any case, you'll need to take them through the Debut Grade first - which, surprise surprise, consists mainly of single note melodies plus a few VERY simple chord progressions.) Edited January 3, 2012 by leftybassman392 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike257 Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 How did you get on? Have they introduced you to any exciting new bands to get your head round for lesson two? Hope it went well mate! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fat Rich Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 This is a great website for learning guitar, might give you some ideas about how to structure your lessons: [url="http://www.justinguitar.com/en/AA-000-LessonIndex.php"]http://www.justinguitar.com/en/AA-000-LessonIndex.php[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huw Foster Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 I'll be teaching guitar and ukulele to primary school kids as of Monday, so I hope the resources in this thread come in handy. Will try to write up my experiences at some point! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leftybassman392 Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 [quote name='Huwberry' timestamp='1325783988' post='1487671'] I'll be teaching guitar and ukulele to primary school kids as of Monday, so I hope the resources in this thread come in handy. Will try to write up my experiences at some point! [/quote] There's a quality that will stand you in good stead - patience. The more the better. Also, be organised. Kids work best if they're clear about what they should be doing. Are you doing it privately or through a Local Authority Music Service? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyBob09 Posted January 5, 2012 Author Share Posted January 5, 2012 My teaching went very well. The 11 year old boy likes AC/DC and a lot of the songs on "Guitar Hero" - So that gives me a lot to work with somewhere down the line. The 10 year old girl likes "One Direction" whoever they are. Aye, it worked to teach them a few chords. One of the pupils couldn't get her hands round full G and C chords so taught her simplified versions. But aye, I think all went well. The kids certainly seemed to lap it all up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huw Foster Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 [quote name='leftybassman392' timestamp='1325785394' post='1487711'] There's a quality that will stand you in good stead - patience. The more the better. Also, be organised. Kids work best if they're clear about what they should be doing. Are you doing it privately or through a Local Authority Music Service? [/quote] It's through a local authority. I'm taking over from a friend who had to give up his teaching work to take up a full-time job. It's all happened a bit quickly so I haven't had time to do much thorough prep, but I'll have something to work with on Monday at least! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leftybassman392 Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 [quote name='Huwberry' timestamp='1325948336' post='1490232'] It's through a local authority. I'm taking over from a friend who had to give up his teaching work to take up a full-time job. It's all happened a bit quickly so I haven't had time to do much thorough prep, but I'll have something to work with on Monday at least! [/quote] Local authority is good. You'll get some backup, and schools (not necessarily teachers - some schools give this work to bursars or other admin staff) will usually be more helpful. Downside is that there's endless paperwork (which you'll have to do so you get paid). I'm guessing you've had some info from your friend about where he's got to with each of the students? Students themselves are unlikely to be a problem - if they've been having lessons a while they'll be used to the routine (although you may get the odd "...Mr. xxxxx didn't do it this way..."). I wouldn't worry about not being too well prepped at this stage. A good tactic first time you meet kids is to ask them upfront to play something they've been working on recently. It serves two very useful purposes: 1. kids go to lessons to play their instruments, and they won't thank you for rabbiting on at them; 2. you'll get a lot more information about what they're doing and how they're getting on than you'd get by just talking to them. One final point - all students are different, even at that age. Whatever you do, don't go in expecting to do the same routine with all of them. Take some time to get to know them a bit. It's a very rewarding job (not least because if you get it right at this early stage you've set them up for life), but it's hard work. Good luck and enjoy. I spent 13 years as a schoolteacher, followed by 15 as a tutor. If you want any further hints & tips, feel free to PM me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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