When practicing it is easy to get into a rut. There are plenty that you, student or parent, can do to help get out of it. The easiest is to ask yourself these three questions (or ask them to you child) as you are practicing.
1. Did I get all the right notes and use all the right fingering?
2. Did I correctly count out loud as I was playing?
3. Did I add in all the "extras"? Staccato, legato, dynamics (loud and soft sounds), etc.
If you answered no to any of these questions, go back in your song and add in whatever it is you might have missed.
Remember that practicing is more than just playing the song from beginning to end. It is making sure you are spending enough time on your piece to get all of the details. It's the details that make the piece sound like it is supposed to.
