Imagine your child practicing their very first Christmas Song on the piano, such as Away in the Manger, or Silent Night, but theyre not holding out the half notes or playing the dotted quarter rhythms like were all used to hearing it. Their song starts and stops and lacks the rhythm your trained ear is used to hearing. But of course you dont want to say anything discouraging! When parents do try to correct such imperfections in rhythm and tempo, it often creates a lot of friction. Young students just cant seem to get the right beat and parents dont understand why! Well there is a solution thats easy to use. One of the great features of modern piano lessons is the electronic or digital keyboard. With guidance from parents and piano teachers the recording features of these instruments are very useful to piano students.

One of the most difficult things for young students to learn is how to keep a steady beat and play correct note values. While a metronome is a great tool for this, it keeps a very strict beat that may not allow for proper expression of the music. Plus the concept of a metronome is difficult for young students to grasp. One of the great features of modern piano lessons is the electronic or digital keyboard.

With guidance from parents and piano teachers the recording features of these instruments are very useful to piano students. By recording passages of music for students, however, parents and teachers can give young children musical examples to imitate. Once a student can imitate the music (this is kind of like a baby bird learning its family song) they can learn to count the rhythms they are already playing.

Another great feature of a digital keyboard is that students can record their own pieces of music for self evaluation. This is a whole lot better than parents and teachers telling kids what to do, and of course this is the ultimate goal of teaching and parenting.