Piano Parent Podcast: helping teachers, parents, and students get the most of their piano lessons.

Shelly Davis hosts a teacher chat with Becki Laurent and Clinton Pratt about piano teaching and parenting.

Shelly Davis interviews a guest after a long hiatus, discussing the broader life skills children learn through piano lessons.

["Piano Parent Podcast episode 379 features Shelly Davis talking with Kristen Pennington about Barrett's piano lessons, his \"good attitude\" chart, and the way she handles \"I'm too stupid\" moments.", "Kristen says Barrett started lessons around age 6, practices inside a homeschool schedule with math breaks and trampoline time, and watches music at church and at home.", "Shelly and Kristen use a hand-drawn \"good attitude reward chart\" that pays $2 for baseball cards or $5 during theory weeks, and it changed Barrett's habit of stopping after mistakes.", "The payoff shows up when Barrett calls down to say he is playing \"Home on the Range\" on his own, earns a 101 on his theory exam, and walks into his first recital calm enough to bow and play cleanly."]

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PPP 377 on the Piano Parent Podcast has Shelly Davis explaining three memorization strategies for piano kids preparing recital pieces.

Piano Parent Podcast episode 376 features Shelly Davis talking with Susan Staples-Bell about jazz, storytelling, and keeping students engaged at the piano.

Shelly Davis, a longtime piano teacher and parent of four, presents five ways piano lessons can build independence beyond notes, rhythms, and pedal technique.

Dorla Aparicio explains how her Cleburne, Texas studio uses multi-level group piano to accommodate beginners through early-intermediate students while reducing parent-child practice battles.

Shelly Davis uses Anna Sewell’s 1877 novel Black Beauty to compare three horse-driving styles with micromanaging, disengaged, and over-scheduled parenting.

Shelly Davis explains that Joy to the World was written by Isaac Watts from Psalm 98, not for Christmas and not as part of Handel's Messiah.

Shelly Davis reviews Piano-vember 2025, reporting 51,945 practice tallies from 197 participants and Ruhi Kahl's second consecutive win with 4,656 tallies.

Shelly Davis's Piano Parent Podcast Episode 370 presents 10 off-piano finger activities for preschoolers and beginning pianists, including stickers, beads, coins, clothespins, play-doh, puzzles, Legos, blocks, and board games.

Shelly Davis uses a 2025 Utah road trip and a widower’s North Rim story to examine how phones can replace conversation between parents and children.

Shelley Davis, host of the Piano Parent Podcast and a longtime piano teacher and parent, explains three questions she asks students during lessons: “What do you think?”, “What can we do to help you with your practice this next week?”, and “What should we do with this piece this week?” She describes using student feedback to identify missed staccatos, dynamics, finger strategies, F-sharps, and difficult passages before adding her own critique.

Shelly Davis explains what children should do after they sit at the piano, using habit-building, the “practice sandwich,” interleaved practice, and goal-oriented sessions.

Shelly Davis uses Chad Cannon’s phrase “human nature delays” to explain why people postpone actions they already value, including piano practice.

Piano Parent Podcast host Shelly Davis interviews Michael Hemsworth, founder of New Song and author of Mr.

Shelly Davis uses family examples, including dots-and-boxes and Scattergories, to argue that physical games build connection, communication, memory recall, problem solving, and sportsmanship.

Shelly Davis hosts a teacher chat with Becki Laurent and Clinton Pratt about a topic they will discuss, starting with introductions.

An interview with children's book author Vicki Weber about her background in music education and her books for young piano students.

Shelly Davis introduces the podcast's mission to support parents of piano students with practice tips and encouragement.