If you are a teacher or student and have more ideas, please send them in.

General guidelines
Special tips for teaching children
Special tips for teaching adults
Freebies for teachers!

Teaching tips

• Since you're only teaching weekly, teach enough for students to practice. Not too much, but not too little. Something to practice every day - it may take a month for some students to learn a song, especially beginners.
  
• Teach to the lowest group. Too often teachers in India teach to the brightest students - while others lag behind. This isn't a competition, so the teacher should make sure everyone is up to speed. If one or a few students is lagging behind, teach them separately from the rest of the group. Move bright, motivated students to the next level.
  
• Tape what you teach. A recording can make sure that students are practicing the right thing. If they practice it wrong, there will be more to fix the following class. Ask students to bring tapes or make your own and distribute them.
  
• Enforce daily practice. Make sure students are practicing together before or after class, and check if they practiced this week. As little as 15 minutes is enough. Students should have a sruti box - or tape the sruti box playing and make copies of the right pitch. Remember that just because a student sings well doesn't mean she or he is practicing - in fact, often these are the ones who practice least. Keep track of them.
  
• Teach more than just the song. Each student, no matter how young, should pronounce the words correctly, understand the meaning of the song, know the raga, composer, and taalam, as well as sing the song with the taalam correctly. A full understanding of the music is essential, and knowing the background of the song helps remember and identify ragas later.
  
• Teach some theory. Little bits of theory even if not in a separate class are invaluable. What is a melakartha? What raga is this a janya of? Which ri does it have? When do you use a madhyama shruthi? Little questions can be worked into class and enrich any learning experience.
  
• Teach first without the taaLa and then add it later. This is especially important for beginning students. But make sure to teach with the rhythm of the song, so that the taaLa automatically fits.
  
• Make sure students have the basics down before they move on. There isn't much sense in moving higher up if the swarasthanas are not on pitch!
  
• But at the same time, teach something extra. Begin small songs even for first-time students. Bhajans and easy little songs make the class more interesting and give students something to practice besides just sa ri ga ma.
  
• Make students repeat after you in class. Ask them to sing individually - this is effective to get students over their shyness in groups as well. For difficult lines, make students repeat several times.
  
• Give students complete notations and words for early lessons and varnams. For kritis, provide at least the words and if possible, simplified notations as well. Be sure to put the raga, composer, and taala down, too. (You can download the Beginner Notes for printing).
  
• Encourage everyone to listen to Carnatic, attend concerts, and perform whenever they want and are ready. Show them which performers are easier to listen to and sing songs closest to your style. Ask them to try to remember the ragas of songs. Even young children can listen with their parents, practice keeping the taala and learn raga names.
  
• Finally, remember that teachers become better teachers by continuing to learn. Attend classes yourself, learn from people who are better than you. Be open to other forms of music and learn from it. Attend concerts. All these things will not only set a good example, but help you expand your horizons as a sincere teacher.
  

Children

• Children will be fidgety. They won't sit still for too long, so you have to accommodate. Of course, demand discipline as well as respect (don't let them call you names or be too familiar). But jokes are okay in moderation, and giggling is unavoidable.
  
• Sit littlest kids next to you, and show them some affection. Give regular encouragement - "yes, very good" "try it, I know you can"
  
• Accept no if they stick to it. Asking them to sing a few times is okay but beyond that, don't force.
  
• Teach even little kids with a simple method of keeping taalam - just a steady beat on the thigh.
  
• Give them homework sheets (download here). Ask them to practice 15 minutes a day or practice so many things. Check with parents to make sure and get signatures. Then reward good practice with stickers, treats, etc.
  
• Get parents involved. They will practice with their kids and are the "teachers away from class."
  
• Children are amazing. You will be surprised at how quickly they learn and how interested they can be when stimulated. You will have to be on the ball to keep up!
  

Adults

• Adults are good to teach because they are often motivated to stick to it. But they can also use more "reasonable" excuses - too busy, caught up with work, the kids take up all my time, I can't come to class this week because... Don't believe any of them. They can make time if they want to.
  
• Teach beginner adults patiently. Some may have learned before, but they may have entirely lost touch and be frustrated. Assure them it's a matter of time and practice - like riding a bike, you never really forget. Make sure they're on pitch.
  
• If they have children, ask the children to watch their parents or have them practice together.
  
• When beginning swaras - ask students first to sing learned swaras from a tape or written down. Then ask them to compose their own. When they are ready, they can do kalpana swaras of their own. At this point you can ask students to try to compose swaras spontaneously in class, one by one.
  
• Theory is crucial for adults. Understanding the fundamentals of carnatic music will help them perform better.
  
• Ask them what songs they want to learn. This can be very motivating. Give them a good tape and encourage/discourage listening to other performers regularly to learn the song.
  
• Lastly, remember adults are children too. They may not be perfectly behaved all the time or they might not learn as quickly as you might think, but they can develop over time. Be patient, and you will instill a love of carnatic in them as well.
  

Freebies

• In addition to the fun resources below, we've put a LOT of great (free) resources for teaching Carnatic music in engaging ways on Teachers Pay Teachers. Take a look here and download what you can use.
  
• If you're a teacher, recognize and motivate your students (or even other teachers) with a certificate. Download this colorful printable certificate now (you'll need Adobe Acrobat to view or print it).
  
• Teachers and students can print these great labels to be used as stickers or buttons. Print them in full color for the best effect! Download by clicking here (you'll need Adobe Acrobat to view or print it).
  
• More stickers! Print these mini stickers you can use to mark off your practice on assignment sheets or just decorate whatever you want! Click here to download (you'll need Adobe Acrobat to view or print it).
  
• When you want to write down (by hand) lyrics in class or out, keep a few of these Notebook Sheets around. You'll remember to write down the date and collect relevant information about each song (you'll need Adobe Acrobat to view or print it).
  
• Teachers can use these handy Assignment Sheets to keep track of homework and whether a student has practiced. Write in the date and what should be practiced for the week. Get parents (or students themselves) to check off the days they practiced, sign off. For a fun twist, use small stickers to mark off the practice days (you'll need Adobe Acrobat to view or print the sheet).
  
• Whether you're a teacher or student, you can write down songs from concerts and look up their ragas and information about them later. You can also use our great concert notes to plan your own concert or help record the pieces you performed. Print up several copies or even several to a page and take them with you (you'll need Adobe Acrobat to view or print the sheet).