How do you keep students engaged in the vocal lesson?
A great question! This is the (hands down) number one question I get in our FULL VOICE Teacher Training workshops (🇦🇺 AU workshops here).
It is challenging to keep students on task in productive singing lessons. While it is convenient to blame outside issues for distracted students, in many situations, it is more about how we present the information and allow students to participate in the learning.
Engagement is far more than simply “paying attention” but the degree of curiosity, interest, excitement, and motivation in learning. Here are simple recommended strategies to improve student engagement.
Making Connections With Students
Getting to know our students is crucial for successful lessons. When we know about their passions and preferences, we can personalize the voice lesson and build the teacher-student relationship. Giving students time to tell us about their day or share information with us is vital. Of course, you will have to direct them into singing-related activities, but we must build trust and connection with our students.
When people feel well-cared for, connected, befriended, and trusted, it boosts the neurotransmitter oxytocin, which primes the brain to learn. A sense of belonging in the classroom, and a genuine social connection to their teacher and classmates, can create an ideal learning environment for students. (Studycat.com)
Personalize Activities and Repertoire
Does your student have a cat? Perhaps they will enjoy vocal exploration activities using meows? Are they excited about Halloween? Introduce spooky vocal exercises and repertoire to embrace the season. Use student preferences to make connections that matter to your singers.
Teacher Tip: Use the FULL VOICE Listening library to discover new music. You can share the videos with students to help them decide.
Finding age-appropriate repertoire is easier when you have made an effort to know your students. Furthermore, allowing singers to choose a new solo from a small selection of songs will make all the difference in your student engagement.
For more teaching strategies for helping students engage with new repertoire – Listen to the interview with Donna Rhodenizer on episode 162 of the FULL VOICE Podcast.
Piquing Interest
Sharing interesting information (fun facts!) about the song’s subject is an effective teaching strategy. Allowing students to share fun facts about details in the music will ensure excitement, interest, and personal connection to the activity. In addition, understanding how the student connects to the song’s story can help teachers bring more exciting music to the lesson.
Check out the lesson plan and fun facts for Wolf in the Forest
Active Participation
Active participation is any activity where the student is moving while learning. So ditch the boring standing by the piano exercises and level up your singing warm-ups by:
- singing with solfege hand signs
- allowing students to use props
- tapping the beat when singing
- using flashcards
Props and Visuals
Make your singing activities more visual and kinaesthetic by incorporating props and visuals. An engaging voice teacher can:
- use a solfege wall or flashcards (🇦🇺 AU cards here)
- allow students to use a whiteboard (vocal rollercoasters)
- utilize resistance bands or exercise balls in warm-ups
- incorporate Ann Baltz’s Attitude, gesture, and movement cards into your lesson.
Learning Stations
Allowing students to move around your studio to work at different learning stations is helpful. Learning stations could include:
- sitting on the floor
- sitting at a desk
- a solfege wall
- singing with the piano
- having a performance area in your studio
If you are teaching online, have your student set up both a sitting and standing station in the area where they are having their lesson.
Make them Laugh
A child smiling and laughing is learning. If you have a low-energy student, introduce a silly activity. Giggles will help them come back into your lesson plan. Ask students to:
- Sing while standing on one foot.
- Sing while standing on one foot and closing one eye
- gradually sing the exercise faster and faster
- Sing a silly song (Check out Donna Rhodenizer’s Camp Songs)
Flexible Lesson Pacing
It is essential to have a lesson plan. It is equally important to have a backup plan. Observe your students. If they are enjoying the activity, you can continue a bit longer. If they are getting fidgety, it is time to modify the exercise or move to another activity.
Mindful Lesson Pacing
Students may not be up for your original lesson plan, which is OK. Whether the student is nervous, has low energy, or needs vocal rest, having a backup plan with non-singing exercises is essential. Non-singing activities could include:
- Music reading and writing activities (Full Voice Workbooks)(🇦🇺 AU books here)
- Lyric discovery
- Tongue Twisters
Autonomy and Choice
Giving students a choice of activities in your lessons builds greater independence. However, autonomy doesn’t mean they have free reign over all decisions, and providing limited options of activities or songs can help prevent overwhelm or keep students working towards their goals.
Wishing you a fabulous season of singing! ~ Nikki
