Grade 3 piano. How difficult & how much practice?

[Downwarddog2]

My 12 year old has just passed grade 2 & is about to start grade 3. How much practice required? She usually did approx 20 mins 4 times a week.
Also how long will it take to get to exam time? Tks.

It takes as long as it takes... jeez.

You're probably best off asking her teacher what the plan is.

I'll speak to the teacher just wondering the average that's all. She did grade 2 in three months, I was just wondering if grade 3 is a huge jump that's all.

My DCs did a grade a year, but with less practice than yours. They both stopped after G3 though.

My children do lots of other work inbetween grades, learning other pieces to improve technique etc. plus music theory, so they can do G5 when needed. So 3-4 terms between grades usually.

Thanks for the replies, I was just interested in what others did. We don't get much communication from her teacher. She came home on Sat with a grade 3 piece so I was just wondering. Thanks.

DD did grades 1-3 in about six months each grade - I’d say she probably practised for about that amount, maybe 15-20 minutes each day at grade 3. She didn’t find grade 3 a massive jump up from grade 2. She does have a natural aptitude for it though - I think the usual is about 1 year for each grade. The sight-reading is measurably more difficult at grade 3 from grade 2, because it’s on both hands at once.

DD’s now doing grade 4 but taking a year for it this time, not just because she has a lot of other extra-curriculars at the moment, but because we thought it would be a good idea not to rush the middle grades - they need a lot more scaffolding and preparation in terms of music theory and technique.

I'm learning as an adult, and my music teacher says grades are one a year.

You dont have to do every single grade exam. Ours dont do every single grade. And this allows more time to get really proficient and likely therefore make faster progress. Grade 2 in 2 years, Grade 5 20 months later. Practice of 30 minutes 5x a week on average (sometimes more often). Late primary age/early secondary now

Thank you. Dd is 12, she does about 20 mins 5 days a week. Enjoys playing other stuff too.

I think sight reading and scales are the biggest steps up from Grade 2. Make sure she is tackling those every week alongside her pieces, and that will help her to be ready sooner.
Otherwise, in terms of time, it’s just down to how long it takes her to master her pieces - some kids are super fast, some need much longer.
My DS took a year from G2 to G3 - and even then I pulled him out last minute, and we waited until the next exam session, as I didn’t think he was ready. But that is because he hadn’t been doing enough practice.

Congratulations to your DD. Lots of other repertoire, fun pieces, quicker studies to get good at sight-reading, starting on the scales so it's not a big job to learn them. Certainly wouldn't recommend just going on to the next exam book. How about getting value for money for the grade 2 book and learn some of them quickly. She might not need to do every exam ( it can slow progress down for some children, others need the motivation) Sounds like you have a regular practice habit, just make sure it's effective - not just playing through the bits she can already play but carefully looking at hands separately and nailing correct fingering at the earliest stages to avoid having to relearn later.

Thanks, she skipped the entry grades & grade 1 was her first, then she did grade 2 three months later. I was just wondering if it would take much longer to get to grade 3. She loves the piano but likes having something to works towards too.

It's really how long is a piece of string! She might still be on the rapid bit of her learning curve and do this level really quickly or she might have plateaued a bit and need longer to get to next level. It's definitely not linear progress we've found. Sounds like she enjoys it though which is the main thing.