teaching how to teach

Some of you will remember my post about one of my dear piano teachers, in which I mentioned that she emphatically stated at our first meeting, “I teach teachers.” I love that.

It is because of her dedication and love for teaching that I became a teacher. And it was also because of her help and constant encouragement. She actually found my very first student for me (her next-door neighbor). She encouraged me and gave me advice. But one of the most helpful things that she did was this: one week, instead of my regular lesson, she taught me a lesson on how to teach a first lesson.

Looking back on this, I think this was one of the best things she could have done for me. Teaching a first lesson can be nerve-wracking, especially if and when you don’t have a clue what you are doing. It was so helpful to have her sit down with me and go over exactly what you should do on a first lesson.

I have had the privilege of teaching one of my own students a lesson on how to teach a first lesson. By this time I had quite a bit of experience to draw from, including pedagogy classes in college, but I still used quite a bit of the same material that my teacher taught me that day. It was actually a really cool feeling to encourage one of my own students to teach, just as my teacher had encouraged me. I would highly recommend encouraging some of your students to teach by teaching them how to teach a first lesson – after all, sometimes we just need a little push in the right direction!

What or who encouraged you to begin teaching? Did you have any help in learning what to do at the first lesson?

Don’t forget to take this week’s poll – and you can actually vote for more than one answer this week!