Best 100 Communities for Music Education in Ensuring the Best Music Education for Your Child

–Steps You Can Take in Your Community–

As with any subject a child studies, parents bear the ultimate responsibility for the success of their children's music education. However, not every parent is proficient in music—just as some parents may lack proficiency in math, science or foreign languages. According to American Music Conference Executive Director Joe Lamond, any parent can help foster a budding musician by observing a few guidelines.

"The most important thing is to insist on personal involvement," Lamond says. "You can take part in your child's homework, get to know his or her teachers, and participate in the community decision-making process that determines what resources will be available."

• Your child's decision regarding what instrument to study may have far-reaching effects on his or her enjoyment, success and eagerness to continue. You can help by making it a process of inquiry and explanation. Find out what kinds of sounds your child enjoys making and hearing. Let him or her try out a variety of instruments, and ask your child's teacher what instruments would be best suited to his or her size and facial structure.
  
• You'll never get to fine-tune the details of your child's music education if your district doesn't have adequate offerings to begin with. Go to school board meetings, read the newspaper and know your district budget. The district should have a written music curriculum based on established local, state or national standards; the courses should be taught by qualified teachers; and there should be adequate facilities for the district's music program.
  
• At home, set up a special place for you r child to play, and establish a regular time for playing music. Be involved: ask your child to explain what he or she is learning, and offer plenty of praise. Take your child to see professional musicians at work, especially ones that play the same instrument. And never react negatively to your child's attempts to make music. It can be hard!
  
• If your child takes part in private lessons, make sure the instructor makes you feel welcome to observe, and make sure the lessons take place at an appropriate place and time. Watch to see how comfortable your child is with the teacher. The teacher you choose should belong to one or more professional organizations, and you should check the teacher's credentials in the particular area of music—jazz or classical, for example—that your child wants to study.
  
• It may surprise parents that good sheet music can be expensive—the music for a course of study may cost as much as several of the lessons. Rest assured that it's an investment that will be important in your child's progress.

"Even if you don't have any music knowledge or ability, you don't have to surrender such an important part of your child's upbringing to ‘experts,'" Lamond concludes. "You can still decide to make a difference in your child's introduction to the world of music. In that respect, music is no different from any other core subject."