Renting v. Purchasing an Instrument

RENTING V. PURCHASING AN INSTRUMENT

GENERAL COST CONSIDERATIONS

• If finances are a consideration, take this into account from the beginning when offering your child instrument choices.

• Think about whether you want to rent, buy, or rent the instrument with the option to buy it. Like a car, the value of a musical instrument depreciates as soon as it becomes yours. Make sure your child knows that this is a long-term commitment, not a month-long endeavor. Once you commit to the music shop, you commit to the instrument and to the financial responsibilities that accompany it. Even though some music shops will let you switch instruments, they will not let you end the commitment altogether. Make your child keep her end of the bargain and encourage her to practice.

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Choosing a Musical Instrument

CHOOSING A MUSICAL INSTRUMENT

Which instrument should your child play? If ever there was a time to encourage your child to experiment, this is it. Chances are your child will want to try out at least a couple of instruments before settling on one.

Expose your child to instrumental music as early as you can. With some early music instruction in a church or community choir or even at home, she may be able to pick up an instrument quite rapidly. All instruments fall into four categories: string, brass, woodwind, and percussion. Piano is considered a basic instrument (many music programs expect “piano proficiency”). It also provides a good basis for picking up a secondary and portable instrument. Many students make the easy switch to a different instrument within the same family, such as from clarinet to saxophone.

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Enouraging Musical Interest In Your Child

GENERAL MUSIC CONSIDERATIONS

Approximately 62 million people in the United States play a musical instrument, and 97% of parents polled feel children benefit from a music education. Because music is often no longer included in the mainstream curriculum of schools, it is up to you to decide the best way to introduce your child to music. Deciding if or when to start private lessons, selecting an instrument to study, and choosing the right teacher are key decisions.

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Soccer

SOCCER

GENERAL BENEFITS

• Soccer is the ultimate starter sport, with various formats offered to children, including small-sided fields and smaller sided-teams.

• Soccer improves muscular strength, endurance, joint flexibility, cardiovascular fitness, coordination, agility, and balance.

• It also improves mental focus and strategic thinking.

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Snowboarding

SNOWBOARDING

GENERAL BENEFITS

• Improves strength, cardiovascular fitness, agility, balance, and athleticism.
• Develops a positive attitude and persistence

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Sailing

SAILING

GENERAL BENEFITS

• Sailing improves hand-eye coordination, balance, and develops upper body and lower body strength along with hand and finger strength.

• Trimming sails requires endurance and strength in the arms and chest. Because a sailor will most likely encounter heavy winds, she has to know how to maneuver herself when the boat wants to heel (lie up on its side in the water). The sailor in the boat has to keep the boat flat on the water to move quickly and in the right direction, so use her legs and abdominal muscles to flatten the boat out by hiking the body outside the boat. Hiking out and sheeting the sail in and out (using a line to adjust your sails) works the abdominal muscles, quads, and arm muscles.

• Sailing solo will keep your child active and agile. It also teaches quick reaction times.

• Racing gets kids interested in storm fronts, wind shifts, and aerodynamic design principles.

• Being able to navigate a craft and control wind is an exhilarating experience that increases a child’s independence and self-esteem.

• Sailing helps children appreciate the awesome power of nature and learn about scientific principles, such as why a sailboat moves forward, how the rudder deflects water, and how the centerboard or keel works.

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