Feeling fed up... Why bother learning an instrument in ptimary school to drop it in year 7?

stillenacht - I have 2 dc who went up to secondary full of enthusiasm for their music. ds was a cornet player and a singer, dd (3 yrs later, different school) a flute player.
Both wanted to carry on their music. Both got worn down by the complete lack of 'oomph' from their respective music departments.
ds had NO opportunities to sing (until he started a drama club when he was in Yr10), and the 'brass ensemble' was so uninspiring, he on'y lasted 6 months before losing the will to live.
At dd's school she tried to play in the flute choir, but got fed up of turning up to find it had been cancelled, etc., she too stopped bothering. There was one opportunity to join a choir - probably 50 Yr7s sang 2 Christmas Carols, and that was it - no choir happened again.

So it's not always the dc who stop doing music through their own choice, it's the lack of opportunity, through the lack of imagination and enthusiasm of the music teachers in these 2 schools.

What a very bizarre post!

What I am against is only having 10-15 minutes "down time" a day! I would think that whatever he or she was a doing with the rest of the time. I am aware that there are children who would pursue their particular "thing" to the exclusion of all else. And I believe that it is their parent's responsibility to make sure that there is balance in their lives.

DS, while nothing like so dedicated, was out of the house last Weds till 10 pm without a break, because he had a band rehearsal, music lesson and drama rehearsal all in the same evening, and was outraged at the thought of missing any.

So I can sort of see where Pictures is coming from. If DS had the chance to go to a performing arts school he would leap at it.

No curlew, they don't. They will do what they feel is right for their child. There is nothing intrinsically better about watching Telly than dancing or playing an instrument. Or rehearsing for a play/show. If I was you I'd save my disapproval for parents who 'let' their kids play on xboxes. Of course, there absolutely is a time and a place for sending you parents and siblings funny pictures of animals with hilarious captions (which seems to be the main teen and preteen activity this month) but that activity can actually be conducted alongside things like dance, practice etc (and indeed seems to happen most often when the senders are on the bus. And the sendees are in meetings).

I wonder - would you be so disapproving if Pictures DD was spending a lot of time doing elite sport? Or horse riding? Or dog walking? Is it just the arts you are so against?

I know. That's why their parents have to take charge. Just because a child wants to do something doesn't mean they should.

curlew It is for kids who are like that. They don't view the dancing (or acting or practising) as work. They view everything else as a pain (possibly even enforced Telly watching) that takes them away from what they want to be doing.

"We feel she has to have at least 10-15 mins down time each night so she doesn't get burnt out."

That is not viable long term. It just isn't.

Sounds like its a long drive or bus journey.

Pictures - that sounds an awful lot. 10-15 minutes down time really isnt enough. It's barely time to read a chapter of a book. Do the kids really manage that long term?

She doesn't get home until at least 7.30pm so by the time you factor in homework (approximately 30-60 mins per night though she does try & do some in the car it's time for bed. She's in bed by 9pm as she has to get up at 6am.

We feel she has to have at least 10-15 mins down time each night so she doesn't get burnt out. She is having individual singing lessons as well and music theory group lessons.

May be where we live (SE) is different because of the emphasis from immigrant families in private schools on hard work, Tiger mothers, practising, doing things which are hard. Perhaps that is why there are loads of children learning instruments. I suppose there may have been a drop off but I have not noticed it. If your prospective employer might sing in a choir or play in an orchestra because you are from or going into that kind of middle class culture it does no harm to have that in common with employers and everyone knows it is pretty difficult to get a couple of grade 8s so that is fairly good CV enhancement too never mind it is fun for life.

Pictures- but that means she doesn't have time for anything. That can't be right.

There seems to be a couple of different issues tied up in this.

Are fewer kids learning instruments, or is it just that more of those who are are learning guitar, keyboards and drums rather than orchestral instruments? I don't know.

If it's the latter, I'm not sure we can definitely say that's such a bad thing. Times change. Far more people are going to spend their lives indulging an interest in rock, jazz, folk and related forms than in classical music, so it makes sense that they're learning the instruments that are relevant to them.

I think last I looked, classical music was responsible for 3% of recorded music sales in the UK. It's probably less now. As such it's always seemed weird to me that "learning music" seems to mean "learning classical music, in the classical way" to so many people. Huge government investment in free lessons managed to delay the inherent contradiction in that coming home to roost, but it was bound to happen one day.

Change is always unsettling. I'm a classically trained musician and a music teacher so I feel the pain of the OP. But objectively, I think what I see mostly is the education system reorienting itself around the reality of most peoples' lives.

The school has an excellent music department & runs a music strand. Dd however is on the dance Strand She gets a music lesson, choir & vocal technique each week but as she is dancing until 6pm each night plus saturdays. something has to give.

Just wondering , Pictures, why a performing arts school would not ensure she has time to continue with Piano? This is a performing art too! Jux, I totally agree with you. Sport was everything at DD1s school, but the new Head of music was so encouraging. He also said something to us which may be worth sharing here (although no doubt some will dispute it!). He said the universities like musical students and playing an instrument and/ or singing to a high grade, orchestra and choir participation and musical theory exams count more than being in the 3rd team for hockey! Silent - I think you need better contact with your feeder schools and get the musical parents on board, early! Could you not run taster days at your school for the children learning instruments so they were encouraged to continue? Can you run a music festival for your feeder schools? Relying on forms coming back is a bit unreliable. Music in primary schools always seems to fall on a single teacher and if the school does not have one then it does not flourish. Sport brings much more instant success than music.

Dd has just started year 7 and has been playing piano for 3 years

Reluctantly after just two weeks it looks like she is going to have to give it up

She goes to a specialist performing arts school and dances every night from 4-6 plus Saturday mornings. By the time she gets home, eats, & does her homework it's past bedtime. There is literally no time for practice.

We're sad about it but she can't do everything.

She was and is, stillenacht. But the word is that she's a great buddy with the Chair of Governors and apparently this has some effect. We took dd out of school after a big fuss was made about one of the teachers being ex-stage and screen and very into music, only for him to be told once he'd started that he couldn't do any music due to the noise (just ordinary music lesson noise, not great amplifier twangy guitar etc noise). He gave up and concentrated on sport then. We sent dd elsewhere, where music was better handled but still not fantastic - there was nowhere else round here though

Most of her experience is with the Church. It is hard to find good teachers for her, here too. I'd move for that reason alone, but dh wouldn't.

how easy is it for children at your school to have lessons?

Well, found out y7 DD's mates got their letters & appt. times thru a week ago, but DD has had nothing. Email to head of music dept. but no joy from that either, yet. Argh.

it will cost £120-ish/term with hire, whenever it happens.

It drives me nuts that sport is now deemed to be so much more important than music. All through primary, music hardly happened but sport - extra sport stuff happening every lunchtime and every evening. One truly crap choir which sang nursery songs. OK, the HT was particularly against music, but still.

Our nearest secondary is not much better.

It is desperate in this country. Music has multiple effects on the developing brain and all of them good.

Music is very time consuming and there is a great conflict between music and sport, especially on Saturday mornings when children are invited to do orchestra at the music centre where we live. Only the committed do this as it means parents are tied to the routine of music school. Really brings on their confidence though. I think no-one at DDs primary schools was grade 5 in year 6 and this would represent the very musical kids only. At DD2s prep school, several were at this level. If parents are going to complain about the noise an instrument makes in the early stages of learning or does not make sure any practice is done, then is it surprising that children do not get very far and give up. I think your local music service needs to get children learning the instruments in schools into the music centre orchestras, assuming you have them. This accelerates learning and is a good springboard for secondary school, regardless of grade. But, as I said earlier, it it commitment, not computer games, TV or thinking getting good at something happens because you want it.