Thought I'd share my idea on this.

I made a file in xl to help me manage my students. Basicaly every student has its own sheet in that file that I keep up to date electronbically but I also have a printed one always with me when I teach so that I can update on the fly and to use to know what I need to follow up on or move onto.

I was wondering what you guys are doing to help keep track. I made a quick jpg of the blank sheet I use and I can always email you a file version of it if anyone is interested to have it.

I'm really curious to see what you guys use and if I missed something obvious that I should keep track of...

I should probably put a list of scales and mode tp check mark what has been touched, but for those things I look at the charts they have with them or the printed material I supply once in a while. I always encourage them to re-transcribe everything and have it all in a binder or document folder of some sort.

Here's the sheet I use...

I know it's a bit fuzzy but I resized it so it woudl fit on here...

That's a great looking spread sheet, Glorbz. I should be so organized. Basically, I keep my students' ongoing progress in my head, which probably accounts for the fact that my head is a mangled spider's web of info and whatnots. When I have my morning coffee, I toss around in my head the day's agenda, including student clientele. I do think about where each and every one of my students are at - with some of them, I mull it over several times during the course of the week - and I work toward bringing something of value in to them.

Sometimes it's a Merle Travis thing like "Cannonball Rag", sometimes it's a classic rock riff or an etude such as "Romanza". Some guys are way into improv and ear training, others want to hone their reading, others want to know how to best represent themselves at a blues jam, some want to develop a personalized vibrato, some want to learn to phrase like their heroes, some want to soak up every musical style they can think of, some want to nail Gershwin's "Rhythm Changes", some want to play Eagles tunes at parties, others are hot to dig into "outside tonalities", some want to play mandolin or banjo at church, others ask about getting the most from their rig for their preferred styles of music.

It's all good, it's all education, and every bit of it keeps me hopping (and educated).

I was thinking I could gather cues from other teachers on teh subject.

Yeah no students are alike and it's hard to keep track at times but my thinking for that sheet I had fro a few years now is that this quick checklist allows me to keep tracks of a few 'essentials' that I think everyone should at least hear about once.

I'm a strong believer on having students have stuff handy as a reference... that's mostly how you make theory click. How many time did you go through your notes/books because you just clicked on something and reference it to be sure or to digest it furthermore. I know a few students of mine told me they didn't get it at first but talking to them after a few years some will tell me good thing I had those papers with those theory things around now I get it. That is one of the rewards of teaching, that and getting paid to practice of course.

Looks like you have a pretty cool system going.

I have all of my students buya blank Manuscript/Tab book. Usually they pick up the green one, or the purple one from Mel Bay. I write everything in their book, during the lessons. So their book has where they're at, and I just look in there. I can see what we've been working on, and go from there.

I also keep a stack of small Post-It paper handy. Whenever I need to prepare something, or bring some reference materials (books, CDs, etc.), I write a note on a Post-It and stick it on the front of my schedule book. Every night I go through the Post-It notes, and get things ready for their next week's class.

Cool thread. It will be interesting to see what everyone does. I'd also like to hear what Forum Members who have taken lessons have seen from their instructors.

As students, what seemed to work for them. What didn't. How did your instructor do things. That would be good feedback for all of us!

quote:

Originally posted by Swain:
Cool thread. It will be interesting to see what everyone does. I'd also like to hear what Forum Members who have taken lessons have seen from their instructors.

As students, what seemed to work for them. What didn't. How did your instructor do things. That would be good feedback for all of us!

That is an angle that I'd like to read more on also! I'll link a thread to this in the main forum so we can get more infos on that side of things...

I'll have to look into those green & purple manuscript/tab book. I print my own sheets out of a pdf I made for myself. I haven't bought sheets since the late 80's... and still I think I bought some once and used to photocopy them from a blank I kept in a folder.

quote:

Originally posted by Swain:
I have all of my students buya blank Manuscript/Tab book. Usually they pick up the green one, or the purple one from Mel Bay.!

I must be dumb I can't seem to find this on melbay.com I know about the tab pads but books I'd be curious to see that.

Here's one of them:

http://www.melbay.com/product.asp?ProductID=93451&Headi...&sub1=44&mode=browse

My briefcase always contains a "Real Book", and I load it up with various other books depending on what day of the week it is. It also contains a variety of blank templates - manuscript paper for standard notation, six string tablature and chord blocks for guitar, four string tablature and chord blocks for bass and mandolin, five string banjo fingerboard templates, chord progression templates. I prefer the visual linear format of the piano for teaching harmony and theory, so loads of piano diagrams are included. I have diagrams that visually represent the various intervals and extended intervals for guitar and mandolin.

I've been writing lesson material for students for quite a while, and I always make copies of my masters, regardless of how esoteric they might seem at the time. If a student is interested in blues, celtic, R&B, gospel, jazz, bluegrass, rock, zydeco, fingerstyle, rockabilly, I can usually pull from the files of stuff that I've written and documented, at least as a starting point. For the self-starting folks that are hungry enough to progress on their own, I wind up writing new material.

One of my brighter young students is "auditioning" for his high school jazz ensemble, and this kid will totally destroy the vanilla charts that he's been presented with by his high school teacher. I've reorchestrated the voicings for his charts (which read "swing") with b5 subs and Freddie Green-approved voicings and whatnot. I've taught him about comping economically when working with pianists and horn sections (he'll be working with both), and I've suggested that, during rehearsals, he try everything that I've presented, as well as whatever he's ventured upon on his own. It's far easier to ask for forgiveness than permission. I've also reminded him that, regardless of available harmonic options, a leader is a leader for good reason. If the high school band director decides that b5 subs don't work with his or her arrangements, musical hipness needs to abandoned in a heartbeat, as such is the deal in the real world of working musicians. He's a bright and respectful kid, he gets it. Thank God, as I'm not conducting the high school classes. His director will either thank me or look for a way to run me over with a lawn mower. And yes, I've made copies of the suggested chord voicings.

I ask folks to burn me CD's (true audio, not "data" files) for tunes that they'd like to learn, and I ask them to mark their name on the disc with a Sharpie pen.

I also keep blank sheets and notes with me.

As for tunes students want to work on... I have to find them online most of the time and while I woudl like to ask for a cd of teh song. I'm often presented with the fact that they don't have a computer or don't know how to burn a cd(still amazed by that) but usually it's not a hard song to start with so it's no big deal.

Lats night at a lesson I surprised myself being able to sight-read standard notation! Wich I normally don't... haven't read a standard sheet since my piano years. Long story short it's a song that his kid has to learn to sing at school and it had a standard notation of the melody with it... so I showed it to him on guitar and in the process showed him the basic of reading and understanding standard notation.

The kid attend to the lessons on/off so I make a point of giving him kid oriented exercices so that he can forward them to his kid when he does want to get into it. He' snot really into it much but at least he's not forced into it either!

That's great! I use a fairly simple system: I have them all bring a 3-ring binder notebook.

I've got one as well. The front half is devoted to tracking their progress. There's a page for every half-hour slot, and I keep track, by date, of what we did, what I've asked them to do for the next lesson, and whether they paid.

The back half is blank paper that I write on and give to them to put in their books. I also have lots of printed materials (inc. blank staff paper, score paper and chord blanks) in my bag, along with the clear plastic 3-hole paper-holders. That way, if I give them something I've computer printed or xeroxed, they can stick it in their books.

The only trick is not to lose my notebook. I'm a champ at leaving it lying around...

Good to know. I guess that's sort of what I do also with my one 'checklist' page by student that I bring with me.


I make a point of teaching them how to tune with open strings, harmonics, a tuner and at least try with a 440 fork once. That I always spend oen lesson with them on changing strings and basic maintenance whenever the string change thing arise.


Any specific thinsg liek that that you guys make a point of teaching them... might be obvious to you by now but might be something I should add to my lessons.

I know for a fact that not every teachers are gonna bother showing how to change strings and how to tune your guitar. I think it is of high importance to be able to tune to someone eles's A if anyone ever wants to get into any sort of jamming.

Yeah, I spend a class with students who are interested, on changing strings, tightening up loose parts, polishing, using lemon oil, 0000 steel wool on the frets, etc.

Also, whenever they have a minor repair or adjustment, I show them how to do it.
I also will use class time to do a set-up on their guitars. That usually happens in stages. Maybe 1 week, we do a little truss rod adjustment. Then, spend the rest of the class, doing actual musical stuff. With the wood having a week of getting "Set" and accustomed to it's adjustment, we'll adjust saddle heights. And if there's time, we set intonation. Another week, and we may adjust pickup heights. Things like that.

As the student progresses, I teach them more ways to tune their guitars. Ways to set up sweet spots, with their tuning, depending on the tune, etc.

All the things I would've LOVED to have known, sooner!

I did a string changing lesson with one of my guys yesterday. I'm super careful when offering advice as to, or especially actually doing, any additional "tech" work.

First of all, and I don't say this with any of the negative connotations that might accompany a "union" mentality, I'm a teacher, not a tech. I take my personal instruments to pro techs for work, as my techs have often referred clients to me for professional educational sevices. It's great to be a jack of several, but it's also a good idea to be realistic and make certain that when you offer a service, it can be delivered with reasonable confidence as supported by expertise.

Secondly, I'm not mechanically inclined by nature, at least with the sort of efficiency that will guarantee a client that they'll be in and out of my studio with an 'improved' instrument within the span of the typical teaching session time frame, which is 30 minutes for in-store and in-school clients, and 45 minutes for home-based clients - and when 30-40 weekly students are factored in, the time constraints become incrementally worthy of consideration. I can solder and I can set intonation. However, it takes me twice as long as it does a pro. I don't file nut slots and I don't do fret crowns. I show folks what I know about lubricants and steel wool if they inquire, but with a bunch of disclaimers. I generally refer tech work to pros, which I am not.

A student asked a while back to teach him how to properly re-string his Floyd Rose-equipped instrument. I've extensive experience with Floyd and Kahler systems, so I said, "sure, why not". That instrument proved to be a monumental friggin' mess, and I couldn't get it to together within the alloted time frame. I felt responsible, so I credited the lesson (took a financial hit), and referred him to a luthier. Similarly, I've encountered guitars and mandolins with badly buggered bridges and nut slots, disasterous tuning keys, you name it. I make assessments really quickly anymore; if it's not cut and dry, I'll pass.


I do feel that there is a difference between a teacher that is actually a working player and one who is not. With students that are ready to go out and get their feet wet with live performance, be it at jams or at club sets with their band, a working player/teacher is able to offer insight that the non-working teacher might not be aware of. No slam intended, but I can always tell a rookie teacher by listening to the volume projected from their studio - there are no dynamics present, everything sounds the same. Regardless of age, anybody that brings an electric guitar into my studio is gonna learn from jump street what those little knobs on their guitar do, and that the picking/strumming/plucking hand is a volume control unto itself. With some guys, I'll bring in one of my boards and discuss with them what I know about designing a signal path, circuit interaction, etc.

I think you explaining how all their gear works, is an excellent topic for lessons.

And, your real-world knowledge would probably be a huge benefit to any student. He**, I'd be going to you for lessons, if I were in Atlanta!

And I do know what you mean, about repairs, etc. I will tell many students to take their instruments to the local tech. It just depends on what the situation is. But, there are some things that I feel very comfortable with, maintainance-wise.
Most of them go to the tech, anyway. But, by knowing what the tech is probably going to do they will feel less intimidated, or nervous, about knowing what they need.

Now, Floyd Roses'? Take it to the tech! LOL

And take your 12 strings, Harps, Autoharps, and all the rest straight to the tech! LOL

Customer: "$5.00 for a string change?"

Guitar Tech: "Yeah."


Customer: "Cool, I'll go get my guitar out of the car. Be right back."



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Wait for it........



Customer: "Here you go. I'll be back, in an hour."