Are you a professional keyboard player and want to pass on your knowledge to the new generation? As a teacher, knowledge and skills are the two most important factors before you start your own classes. As you might know, not all great keyboard players can be great teachers as well. One should be able to build a rapport with students and understand their concerns to be a good teacher. If you are intent on starting your own classes, take a look at some of the factors that you will need to consider. Most of them are basic and you will need to consider them before you are ready.
Space and Infrastructure
Think about how many students you would be able to accommodate at one point of time. Are you more comfortable giving private lessons or group lessons? If you are giving private lessons to students, you might be able to teach at the student’s place of residence. But if you have a group of students, you might have to arrange for a suitable place for them to learn. If you are just starting out and cannot finance renting a room for your classes, you need to do the next best thing. Ask your friends or colleagues if they have an empty garage or shed that you can use, or you can put your home into use. But make sure your neighbors, family, and friends will not be disturbed.
Lessons
You need to prepare a structured lesson plan for beginners and advanced students separately. You need to put in a lot of efforts to prepare your keyboard lessons. Lessons that are done on the spur of the moment are messy and confusing. They will not adhere to a pattern and leave the student confused. Keep in mind that beginners will need a different sort of approach while advanced students require a different approach. Make sure you plan for both and are ready for this before your class starts.
Fees
Ask around in your neighborhood and location to know what the approximate cost is for keyboard lessons. If you are starting out new, you can offer low rates for a while. But once you establish yourself as a good and qualified teacher, charge the standard rates. Do not over-charge as it may lead to unpopularity. As your experience increases in teaching, you can start charging more as students would also be willing to pay more for a more experienced and skilled teacher.
Networking
Try to attend local music workshops, connect with schools and colleges in your locality to increase your visibility. You can also teach at schools and other institutions where you would get the proper infrastructure to teach as well. You will be able to meet students and parents and make a name for yourself. Later, if you want to start classes outside, you will have a crowd of students already.
As mentioned above, to truly excel at the keyboard, or any instrument, you need to take care of it so that it can have a longer life. If you are a beginner and do not own a keyboard yet and are looking for tips on how to buy a keyboard, check out this link: http://keyboardlessonssingapore.com/how-to-buy-a-musical-keyboard/. For more on musical keyboards, you can refer to www.keyboardlessonssingapore.com/.