Supporting Your Child’s Study
Children need support no matter which exams they are taking. But a creative subject such as GCSE may require a slightly different kind of support than others because of the element of performance.
It’s nice for your child when they discover that there is something that they know more about than you do. All you have to is keep telling them how wonderful they are and watch them take off!
Maria Kerr, Parent
TOP Tips
* As your child will probably be expected to play a musical instrument or sing you should encourage them and support them as they practise
* Plenty of praise and encouragement will help to give them the confidence to play in front of other people
* Discuss with your child what they are studying for their exam and what music they are listening to
* BBC Music Online, and its Advanced Classical Search are good sources of further information on musicians and composers
* Key music terms are explained in Music Essentials
* The basics of music theory are brought to life in Music Sense
* BBC’s GCSE Bitesize Music is a handy revision tool and it may help you understand what they are learning
* They will be listening to a wider range of musical styles as part of their studies so explore this with them, BBC Music Online could be a good starting point
* Take them to live music events for inspiration
* Encourage them to listen to a range of radio stations. Do they ever tune into Radio 3? Half an hour a day over time could greatly increase their knowledge of classical music.
* There is a debate about whether listening to music while revising is good for your child’s studies or not - some say it helps concentration and increases the ability to remember, others that it is a distraction. Ultimately it is down to the individual child to identify what they feel they need to support their own private study.
* They may need room to practise
* If they have been using ICT as part of their studies you may wish to invest in a computer for the home and some simple music software. See the feature on Computers and Music: In the Home and In the School.
* When it comes to exam time there is plenty of helpful advice on the internet - see the links provided