Adding Some Sparkle to Practice: A Conversation with Leslie Thackeray of The Practice Shoppe

This week I am excited to share an interview with violinist, music educator, parent and owner of The Practice Shoppe: Leslie Thackeray. We had a great discussion about incorporating games, practice projects, and the importance of performance opportunities for some students. We also discussed how to know when some extra fun or sparkle is needed in practice. Leslie encourages families to add practice charts and games to their practice using the assignments from their teacher as a guide. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did!

To Listen to the full episode you can find the Time to Practice Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Audible or your favorite podcast platform. You can also listen directly from the link below: 

Highlights of our Conversation Include:

• Leslie shares her experience as a former Suzuki student, teacher, and parent and discusses the challenges of motivating students to practice. We discuss the importance of performance opportunities and short-term goals to keep students engaged.
  
• Leslie discusses various practice games and resources she has developed, such as bingo cards, magnetic fishing game cards, and a bead counter, to make practice more fun and interactive for students. She encourages parents to take the initiative in creating these types of activities at home. We talk about practicing the tasks assigned by your teacher but being creative in getting that done.
• Leslie describes how she started the Practice Shoppe to provide teaching supplies and resources that make music practice more enjoyable. She highlights the bead counter as a particularly useful tool for breaking down and repeating small sections of music.
  
• Leslie advises that when practice becomes a struggle, parents should look for ways to add more “sparkle” or fun to the experience. She suggests considering the student’s consistency and workload as potential factors that may need adjustment.
  

For our whole conversation, listen through the link above, wherever you stream podcasts, or read the transcript attached below.

Links in this episode:

The Practice Shoppe Website

From this episode: The bead counter that started it all, Practice Bingo Cards, and one of Christine’s favorites: Practice Dice

Find the Practice Shoppe online on Facebook & Instagram 

Leslie Thackeray’s Scale Book

The launch event for the Musical Nest Community is this Saturday: Sign up to attend here

Learn more about the community that Christine & Barbie are starting and/or join the waitlist: https://barbiewong.com/community/

Find blog post & Transcript for this episode here: https://www.Suzukitriangle.com/ttpepisode57Connect with Christine on Instagram: https://www.Instagram.com/suzukitriangle

Transcript: