Aureus Academy of Music: Home Lessons

Posted by May June 28, 2017

Aureus Academy of Music: Home Lessons

Media Invite - Six Months Later

Six months on with Aureus Academy and we are moving into home lessons! The beauty of being a student here at the school is that we have the flexibility of moving from instrument to instrument and/or school to home.

Read: I Am A Trialist Mom to find out how we figured out Piano was Ewan's instrument. Yet, this choice may or may not be here to stay since he was only four when he decided Piano over Violin and Drum. I am happy to open his options further as he become more aware of himself and I am confident Aureus Academy will be able to cater to our needs when the time comes.

Shuttling from home to Aureus once a week isn't too much to handle. Everything can be made a routine and we were getting used to it after two lessons at the school. Yet, the convenience of having lessons at home is unbeatable.

We have a piano at home so how about give this new feature of Aureus Academy a try?

The only downside is, we have to change teachers. So if your child is already attached to a particular teacher who doesn't go on home runs, you might have to manage his or her emotions. I posed this question to Ewan, "Do you want to take piano lessons at home instead? However, it will be a different teacher."

He agreed readily to my proposal because he was lazy to shuttle between places. He isn't one who has much attachments to a place, well you can say he is flexible, so we got the learning arrangements changed with immediate effect.

Ewan started playing the piano with Aureus Academy in January 2017 and I must say he has been progressing really well. Read: Two Months Later On The Piano. He transitioned from Book A to Book B in April and is articulate with key recognition on the piano. The only challenge he has now is reading notes on the staff. He remembers them at times and forget them at times but I am sure he will get the hang of it with practice.

HOW DOES HOME LESSONS WORK?

1. Indicate where you Stay

2. Choose a Teacher

3. Pick a Day and Time

4. Book your FREE TRIAL!

I love it that the school believes in trials before committing to lesson proper. It gives the child and teacher the opportunity to access each other's comfortability and to pick up where the child last left off with the previous teacher.

Once you indicate the region where you are residing, a list of available teachers together with their profiles and qualifications will be available for reads. Choose a day and time that suits you and you have your 45 minute music trial booked instantly! Best of all, they offer Violin, Voice and Piano home lessons! Book Free Trial here.

When you have decided you want to continue with lessons, you get 50% off your first month! What a deal!

Ewan's new teacher for home-learning is Ms Tham Yih Shyue. Her teaching style is world's apart from Ms Gemma and we [I mostly] had to make certain adjustments to adapt to one another. World's Apart in a good way actually! Better for Ewan but not any saner for mommy.

Let me explain.

With no-nonsense Ms Gemma in school, my son concentrates in his 30-minute piano lessons without fidgeting. He would work on his fingers and notes with perfect precision. He would draw his crochets and alphabets neatly. He wouldn't dare to play a fool in class. Sounds scary but I was really glad someone finally had him under her thumb! No doubt, I sometimes cringe at the back of the class as I watch them but I was also proud of the speed of his musical progression. When Ewan concentrates, he soars! I liked this arrangement.

When Ms Yih Shyue came to our home, she was fun, approachable and all smiles! Oh the kind of teacher I like. The kind that makes me look forward to piano lessons. Then our little mischievous boy started to throw this weight around! He realised that this new teacher is kind and he could probably throw some tantrums without her getting mad at him. And she didn't ever got mad at him! There were times he refused to play a single note during lesson or when he did, he would side-track and play with his toys. Ms Yih Shyue, knowing she had to break the ice, allowed him to use his Storm Trooper [is that a storm trooper?] to hit the notes on the piano.

I appreciate her efforts and it made learning piano a lot more fun! I mean, why can't we let Storm Trooper in for a little musical induction during lesson if it helps to encourage Ewan to play? He hit all the right notes on the book with his toy and they were all laughs! They even gave Beethoven sticker headphones and a star on his chest just to make lessons less mundane.

Yet, a little part of me didn't like it that he is controlling the situation at home. I know I would have felt exasperated by his mischiefs if I were his teacher. He draws tornadoes on his theory book and digress to talk about LEGOs when they are clearly trying to play a G on bass clef. Ms Yih Shyue is patient and reminded me that he has only just turned five. In her opinion, it isn't time to be all strict and scary just yet. It is not like I am sending Ewan for grading examinations and turning him into a Mozart! What's important is that he is receptive to learn. However, I still felt apologetic towards the piano teacher for trying so hard to get him to listen. He became a totally different person from when he was with Ms Gemma and I know it's because he can finally push his weight around.

I asked him again, "Since you do not pay attention in Ms Yih Shyue's class, would you like to return to Ms Gemma at school?"

His replies were clear the past two weeks. I want Ms Yih Shyue.

Oh thank you for choosing home learning Ewan because we can always have our lessons on time [Ms Yih Shyue is super punctual] and we save shuttling time to and fro. However, can you please concentrate and not play the clown whenever she comes in future?

Yes Mommy; adding a cheeky grin to his face.

At the end of the day, I must keep reminded that this is his piano lesson and it is between him and Ms Yih Shyue. I will try not to interfere [and keep making Ewan sit still] in the way she runs her class, giving him an opportunity to lead.

Because well, he is really impressive with sight-reading when he wants to do it properly! He isn't lack in music smarts in any way. Just listen to this video clip and watch how he mischief his way through class towards the end.