Stay Humble, Work Hard, Be Kind

So I registered for a course called "Independant Study" for the fall at the universityl. I would officially start this course 2nd semester but I'm researching topics and ideas now. Here's a list of the things I'm interested in: Private music lessons, music lessons, interpersonal relationships between teachers and students, efficacy of one/one time with teachers and students, who makes a good private music teacher, what is the prime age for music lessons, how can private music lessons supplement the public school system in areas of childhood development pertaining to; critical analysis and communication. The idea is that I have to spend first semester groveling for a professor to oversee my work, so I have to prove that my ideas and thought-vomit can be turned into something structured and poignent and potentially get me into grad school. I printed about 9 articles so far, just to get my feet wet and to see what's out there. There is a lot of stuff out there that talks about the efficacy of music lessons and IQ, the unique quality of teacher-student realtionships and the importance of a holistic environment that both motivates and comforts, is regimented yet flexible. However, there isn't anything that I've found so far, that describes the relationship of private music lessons as the catalyst for development, communication or critical thinking, arguing that the relationship is paramount to the music that is learned. So... that might be where I start filling in the gap!!! I am really excited about it! Just reading about the research that has be done re:music lessons has me thinking about how I can improve my home studio. Not just in the esthetic, which I'm quite please about right now- but about how I can better engage students, create a learning environment that is both playfull and serious in the right amount and be both professional and artistic! Wahhhh, ALL MY DREAMS. What I learned today : In the article "Creating Safe Spaces for Music Learning" by Hendricks, Smith and Stanuch..... -that it is much more effective to "recognize student individuality, focus(ing) on progress and effort and (to) provide students ownership and control over their musical development". -23% of children and 34% of adolescence experience performance anxiety. -"Creativity in the workplace has been found to be positively associated with joy and love"

In the article "Music Lessons on Prescription? The impact of music lessons for children with chronic anxiety problems" by Walker and Boyce-Tillman -The goal of the lesson can vary depending on the child and their needs. In the case of children with anxiety, it was clear that what most of the students needed was a companion that wasn't their parent, that could provide an environment that was both safe, supportive, appropriately challenging and creative. -All students that participated in a study to understand the influence of music lessons as therapy for anxiety, they "all experienced an increased sense of self-efficacy engendered by the acquisition