How much should we expect public schools to do for gifted students? We already want the schools to meet the needs of gifted students academically. Is it realistic to also expect schools to meet the needs of those who are gifted in music? One of my sons was a very talented piano player. He was not talented enough to be at the top of the class at the best music schools in the country, but he was heads and shoulders above his K-12 academic peers. It never occurred to me to expect the public schools to address his needs. Instead, I made sure we hired the best private piano teachers in our area. As he approached middle school, he spent a week for each of two summers at a music camp where the kids practiced five hours a day and had lots of private lessons and performance opportunities. He absolutely loved it. It was the first time he ever met others who shared his interest so passionately. I could not expect the public schools to offer these types of opportunities. We were fortunate, because we could afford the private lessons and the camp. It is much more difficult for those who are not in the same position. [However, there are organizations, such as The MusicLink Foundation that can help.]

 

I’m not sure what the definition is of a child who is gifted in music. We used to laugh about Todd because he would sing himself to sleep long before he could talk. After I would put him down for a nap, visitors would say “What’s he doing?” I replied that I always rocked and sang Brian to sleep, but I didn’t have as much time with Todd, so I just taught him to sing himself to sleep. When he was still very little, he would sit with a record player so he could listen to and sing with the music. I had lots of old 45 rpm records from my youth and I didn’t care if they got scratched, so he would play those over and over again. When Todd was 3, my mother sent out the piano that had been in our house when I was growing up. Todd begged to learn to play. I started teaching him and there was no stopping him after that. Eventually, Todd got his first college degree in music. Does that make him gifted? I don’t know. But I do know that I could not expect the public schools to meet his needs in music.

 

When observing children who have a strong interest in music, remember that they may have great strengths in one area, but not another and that is just fine. For instance, a young person may have talent singing, playing a specific instrument or type of music, composing, or conducting. Don’t expect a student (even one who is musically gifted) to be interested in all areas of music.