Tips on teaching

[Mikael Dez]

My 12 year old nephew reached out to me asking if I can teach him to play guitar and what he should buy. I told him to get an HSS Squier Strat (I’m going to set it up and teach him how) and I’m giving him the Fender Mustang LT that my daughter never used. Her pink mini Strat is going to be modded to hell one day

Anyway, he wants to learn to play classic rock - I know what to teach him, but I could use tips for how to approach this for a complete beginner, bonus points if it’s for a kid. I don’t want to overwhelm him and potentially ruin what could be an amazing hobby for him lol. Is there any reference material out there specifically for kids that you’d recommend?

Also I’m gonna turn this kid into a metalhead if it’s the last thing I do

 

[Progressive_disclosure]

How about checking out Justinguitars beginner courses together and then discussing the stuff that’s hard?

There’s also song lessons that are quite basic. And it’s free.

 

[AlbertA]

 

[Mikael Dez]

If he sticks with it I’ll invite him here when he turns 16 lmao

 

[AlbertA]

If he sticks with it I’ll invite him here when he turns 16 lmao

 

[gearJunkie]

Guitar for Kids - Hal Leonard Guitar Method Hal Leonard Online

Buy the official Hal Leonard Guitar Method, 'Guitar for Kids - Hal Leonard Guitar Method' - This series includes official Hal Leonard sheet music for the following songs, available in: Softcover Audio Online and Digital Book/Online Audio

www.halleonard.com

 

[TSJMajesty]

I could use tips for how to approach this for a complete beginner, bonus points if it’s for a kid. I don’t want to overwhelm him and potentially ruin what could be an amazing hobby for him

Having absolutely no experience teaching, but having lots of experience being a kid taking lessons on an instrument, my first thoughts go straight to keeping him interested.

I'm thinking..., get in his head first. Find out what music, exactly, he likes, and why. Does he want to be able to play that music, or maybe he wants to ultimately learn how to make music like what he likes to listen to. Because that would take his lessons on a different track, imo.

The reality of it is anyone starting out needs a good foundation, but having some early goals of his outlined in your own mind, would go a long way towards keeping him excited about the entire experience.

It can get boring learning the basics, but ensuring he understands the importance of that stuff, while leading him straight towards something that's also fun for him..., in my mind, that's an important part to balance out, while you're teaching him.

As an example, suppose he thinks the crazy whammy bar stuff EVH does is the coolest thing ever, and that's something he wants to learn. Knowing that, would give you some sort of roadmap, and you could probably find some quick exercises to get him doing some of that stuff in short order, but you'd also have to blend in the types of techniques that Eddie used, that would have to be practiced. A lot.

So I guess what I'm saying is to find out what drives his interest, figure out ways to teach him fun stuff to do on the guitar along those lines, while at the same time building in the things he'd have to develop, and work on, to be able to progress in that type of playing.

 

[AlbertA]

All kidding aside - I guess do half/half - half foundations, half a riff/song he wants to learn or likes. Try to gamify progress.

 

[TSJMajesty]

All kidding aside - I guess do half/half - half foundations, half a riff/song he wants to learn or likes. Try to gamify progress.

Exactly!

 

[Tenebris]

Remember foundations are BASIC though. Like, get a list of songs he likes, and use that to teach cowboy chords. Figure out what he's got to let him play along with a youtube video or spotify track even if it's just banging the root on the e or a string so he makes the connection right away between hands doing something on the guitar = making recognizable music. Kids who discover they like that will rapidly progress to where they can make their own decisions about what they want to learn and how they want to learn it, and that's how to ensure they stick with it.

 

[Mikael Dez]

Remember foundations are BASIC though. Like, get a list of songs he likes, and use that to teach cowboy chords. Figure out what he's got to let him play along with a youtube video or spotify track even if it's just banging the root on the e or a string so he makes the connection right away between hands doing something on the guitar = making recognizable music. Kids who discover they like that will rapidly progress to where they can make their own decisions about what they want to learn and how they want to learn it, and that's how to ensure they stick with it.

Oh yeah I got one song, for some reason he’s gravitated to Billy Squier’s “Lonely is the Night” so I’m learning that so I can teach him. I never really liked that song, it sounds like dollar tree Zeppelin to me, so maybe that’s a nice gateway into Zeppelin.

 

[HomespunEffects]

I made a mistake with my one grandson. He said he wanted to learn so I gave him one exercise and two chords the first lesson. He didn’t practice them so I added two more chords and another exercise. He didn’t practice and wanted to know how to play a song.

My mistake was that I said you have to practice the chords and exercise to play a song. I should have just magically made him know how to play.

 

[Mikael Dez]

I made a mistake with my one grandson. He said he wanted to learn so I gave him one exercise and two chords the first lesson. He didn’t practice them so I added two more chords and another exercise. He didn’t practice and wanted to know how to play a song.

My mistake was that I said you have to practice the chords abs exercise to play a song. I should have just magically made him know how to play.

I’m gonna be real with him and tell him that A: his fingers will hurt and B: it may be boring and he’ll feel frustrated and C: it will be fucking worth it. If he can’t handle it he can go back to Minecraft lmao

 

[Chocol8]

Fast rewards are important to keep interest. That means finding a few simple songs HE WANTS TO LEARN that he can play pretty quickly.

 

[Mikael Dez]

Fast rewards are important to keep interest. That means finding a few simple songs HE WANTS TO LEARN that he can play pretty quickly.

I played the same Iron Man riff over, and over, and over for like the first 6 months I started

 

[TSJMajesty]

I played the same Iron Man riff over, and over, and over for like the first 6 months I started

And you STILL can't play it!

 

[Mikael Dez]

And you STILL can't play it!

I never actually finished learning the song so no, I can’t play it

 

[TSJMajesty]

Yeah, rewards are important. I jumped right in with the tabs to Stairway to Heaven. Man, getting my 1st finger to lay flat for that opening barre was SO HARD at first!

Even just hearing a high gain, open D in drop D, thru a Tri Axis/2:90 with 2 4x12 Recto cabs with a little stereo ambience would be enough to hold my interest!

 

[TSJMajesty]

I never actually finished learning the song so no, I can’t play it

Yep. We lose interest, but hopefully move on to something even more fun!

 

[Mikael Dez]

Yep. We lose interest, but hopefully move on to something even more fun!

The first metal song I learned that I can really attribute to serious growth was learning Iron Maiden’s “Hallowed Be Thy Name”, that song got me going with alternate picking and my skill level jumped up enough to branch out into a lot.