The Parent Piano Method™ online course from Parker Music Academy is a simple way to teach a child beginning piano even if the parent does not have a piano background. The course consists of online videos and lessons. Each week, the parent watches the five-to-ten-minute video with their child and assigns the lessons. The student will practice daily, complete an online quiz, and use flashcards to learn musical terms. Parker Music Academy offers this course at a yearly rate of $350. Included in that price is access to all online lessons for the level, interactive note and term flashcards, theory training, practice logs, and weekly check-in emails with a qualified piano instructor.

This method could work for anyone with limited to no piano knowledge. Intended to allow the student to really learn the material each week through repetition, someone with a little prior knowledge could easily work through lessons more quickly until they became challenged. The two available levels take a child through a primer and level one piano lesson book.

A typical lesson begins with an online video. Stephanie walks both parent and student through the theme of the week. For example, learning where the different C notes lie on the piano staff, Stephanie explains where the bass C, the middle C, and the treble C are on the piano. After watching the video, the child can practice while the parent calls out the different names. The second step is to have the child look at the flashcards online. Each flashcard is interactive, so the child can name the note shown and then click on the card to check their answer. My daughter would practice these daily, in addition to the term flashcards that come next. She would then spend ten minutes daily practicing the music assignment for the week. At the end of the week, she would complete the online assessment to ensure she knew the material and was ready to move on.

Each week, I spent ten to fifteen minutes supervising the lessons; my daughter spent around ten minutes a day practicing these lessons. I liked the fact that the time required for the parent is low. The program is thorough, and I was confident that my daughter was learning all the skills needed to play with ease.

This course would not be for someone who has taken previous lessons and is advanced beyond the first or second level of the traditional lesson book. However, the method would work well for a homeschooling or public schooling family as long as the parent and child are willing to put in the time weekly. Overall, I felt like this is an excellent option for anyone wishing their child to be able to play the piano. Whether there is a background in music or not, the Parent Piano Method™ will allow all parents to give their children a solid start in piano lessons.

-Product review by Katie Seppanen, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, June 2021