Beautiful Functional Furniture for Your Studio

July 14, 2024
by Amy
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As music teachers, our instruments are the most important piece of furniture in our studios (I love my Yamaha Grand!). However, a functional teaching space requires more than just our beloved instruments.

There are frequently used repertoire books to keep nearby, student files we may want to access daily, sightreading material, highlighters, tripods, pedal extenders, and more!

After five years in our new house, we finally finished my studio space this past January. Check out the finished product and get a full tour in this post: ➡️ Check out my Piano Studio.

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Check Out My Piano Studio!

July 5, 2024
by Amy
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Today is FINALLY the day you get to check out my piano studio – it’s tour time!

If you follow me on social media at all, you might have seen a few “in-progress” photos as we worked to finish the new studio space. It’s been six months since it’s been complete, and I’ve been dying to show you the end product!

Feel free to “snoop around” my piano studio at your leisure.

This is a phrase I state to any teacher who attends the Piano Pantry Digital Organization Retreat at my home in the summer months.

Why?

You know why! You LOVE seeing other teacher’s spaces!

In fact, I knew you loved it so much that I made sure it was the FIRST blog post I published in 2016. ➡️ Welcome to My Studio! (It wasn’t much of a “tour” but just a photo of my then-teaching space.)

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Assignment Sheet #23 – Practice Tips

June 3, 2024
by Amy
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Assignment Sheet #23 is here and it features practice tips and techniques! The assignment sheet bundle here on Piano Pantry continues to grow little by little.

The last time I shared a new assignment sheet was not long after the pandemic. It was a Star Wars-themed sheet. Check it out here.

After the closure of Tonara, switching practice apps greatly affected many of my students’ usage. I’m fine with not having all my students use the practice app, but a couple of students actually requested getting a written practice sheet again. (BTW If you’re interested, I moved to Vivid Practice.)

As of now, I don’t mind some students using the app and some using a written page. I do still struggle a bit taking the time to fill them out since it’s not something I do at every lesson.

The newest practice sheet features a practice schedule and practice technique tips to aid students in creating a varied practice routine. I find it works well for students ages 10 and up.

Download This Practice Tips Assignment Sheet

You can access this free assignment sheet as part of the growing assignment sheet bundle.

A Reading Guide for Piano Inspires KIDS Magazine

June 2, 2024
by Amy
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Today, I have a new resource for you – a reading guide to accompany the new Piano Inspires Kids publication from The Francis Clark Center!

It’s been three years since we first learned that Piano Explorer Magazine was being discontinued. It was a sad day for many who enjoyed sharing the fun and unique resource with students.

Luckily, in 2023, The Francis Clark Center launched Piano Inspires Kids – a similar publication!

Printed quarterly, each issue will contain feature articles on musicians, composers, musical styles, music in the news, practice tips, new music, theory lessons, creative activities, games and puzzles, and student submissions.

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Friday Finds #275

May 24, 2024
by Amy
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What Children Teach Us About Creativity (A Slight Change of Plans Podcast)

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If you’re still looking for a professional development event to attend this summer, consider the Music Teacher Turboboost Nicola Cantan is hosting in July. My friend Christina Whitlock and I were both invited to share as part of this event—Christina on Saturday and me on Sunday—along with lots of other great sessions put on by Nicola and her team. Hope to see you there!

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I tried the “6/10 Method,” and it’s Become My New Favorite Cleaning Method (The Kitchn)

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Friday Finds #274

May 3, 2024
by Amy
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Earlier this year, I splurged on something I’ve wanted to do for a long time: get a color consult. My wardrobe has been in need of attention for a few years now, and I wanted to approach it with a better process.

I hope to blog about this in more detail someday, but until then, if you’re interested, use THIS link or the discount code AMYCHAPLIN to get $20 OFF all products from Created Colorful, including consults, gifts, and the Love Your Closet Audio Course! (I am an affiliate, but purchasing through my link doesn’t cost you any extra.)

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A new reporting requirement from the US Treasury Department went into effect in January. Andrea Miller’s podcast episode #139 on the Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) Reporting Requirement was a great source of clarity on the subject.

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Utilizing forScore App Features: A Visual Guide

April 29, 2024
by Amy
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This post is a visual guide that follows up on a two-part podcast episode series published on The Piano Pantry Podcast in December 2023 on utilizing forScore app features.

Episode 097 – forScore (pt 1): Organizing Digital Scores and Setlists

Episode 098 – forScore (pt 2): Need-to-Know Features

In those episodes, I gave a lot of details and described basic features that I thought were important for users to know. As a visual person, I realized it might be helpful to follow up the verbal descriptions with some supporting visuals.

If you have never heard of ForScore, it is a digital sheet music app for iPad, iPhone, and Mac. It’s more than just a place to save digital sheet music, though. (In fact, I recommend still keeping master copies of your digital scores in your file manager).

You can create setlists, annotate directly on the music, rearrange, delete, and duplicate pages, enable half-page turns, jump in the score with a touch of a button, and more. The features of forScore are extensive.

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Friday Finds #273

April 12, 2024
by Amy
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It is so sad to hear of Susan Paradis’s passing. Susan was a gem in the early world of online content for piano teachers.

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In early May, a new ruling by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will go into effect, putting a cap on late credit card fees.

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I’ve gone back and forth on keeping energy/snack bars in the house and haven’t had any in a while. In preparation for last month’s ‘MTNA conference, though, I grabbed some and found a couple of new favorites!

Chocolate Raspberry Truffle LÄRABAR 

KIND Blueberry Almond Breakfast Bars

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Friday Finds #272: MTNA 2024 Conference News

March 29, 2024
by Amy
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Welcome to a special edition of Friday Finds! I thought it would be fun to follow the 2024 Music Teacher National Conference in Atlanta with a list of announcements, favorite new products, and special features. (Thanks to all the teacher friends who sent me items to add to the list! You know who you are! 🙂

Let me know in the comments which item(s) you are most excited about!

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Announcing: The new CEO of Music Teachers National Association

Effective July 1, 2024, Brian Shepard has been named MTNA’s new CEO. Shepard began his career at MTNA in 2003 as the Director of Marketing and Public Relations. In 2008, he was promoted to Chief Operating Officer.

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Announcing: Faber’s Piano Adventures Exams.

There will be a free webinar on Tuesday, April 23, @ 1:00 pm EDT for those who want to “get an overview of the exam requirements, explore fun ways to prepare, and learn how to get started.

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