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Piano teaching gets a lot easier once you stop treating every missed practice session like a personal insult! I’m joined by Dr. Christina Mathis, founder and director of Carey Music Academy at William Carey University, to talk about what it looks like to teach with infectious joy and humor while still honoring the reality of busy schedules, neurodivergent learners, adult beginners, and stressed-out college students.

Christina shares how she helps students build sustainable practice habits, stay creative when life is packed, and find joy in the process, not just the “big moments” like festivals, exams, and performances. We also talk about human capacity and boundaries, including the hidden cost of “yes” when students stack commitments, scholarships, sports, and theater. As pedagogues, we want to ensure that students are enjoying their lessons rather than create environments where students approach lessons with dread and anxiety, and sometimes that means we have to check our egos at the door.

If you’re looking for real-life music education strategies that still produce strong musicianship, this fun and engaging conversation will meet you right where you teach.

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Links:
Learn more about Dr. Christina Mathis and her podcast here!

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As an Amazon Affiliate, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you if you purchase through our links. Thank you for helping support the podcast!

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Awareness is a start, but it’s not the finish line. Tara Mock joins me to unpack three words we hear constantly in music education and piano pedagogy right now: autism awareness, autism acceptance, and accessibility. From there, we move into what accessible teaching actually looks like for neurodivergent piano students and for learners with invisible disabilities.

Tara shares lived perspective around Tourette syndrome and the complicated reality of concert etiquette, judging processes, and policies that unintentionally exclude. The takeaway is simple but demanding: accessibility is not an option, and we can keep learning by asking better questions, listening to families, and staying skeptical of miracle solutions.

✨ Subscribe for more conversations on neurodiversity, inclusive piano teaching, ADHD, dyslexia, meltdowns, and accessible music education, and if this helped you, share it with a teacher friend and leave us a review! What’s one small change you could make this month to increase accessibility in your studio?

Links:
Create a free Member Account to access the freebies in the Member Resource Library!

Last call for Spring Book Club! Join us and read Bright Not Broken together!

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Let's stay in touch!
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You can find all of our favorite repertoire and teaching tools on the Amazon Storefront (affiliate link)
Questions or suggestions? Send Elizabeth an email:
elizabeth@creativepianopedagogy.com
As an Amazon Affiliate, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you if you purchase through our links. Thank you for helping support the podcast!

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Recital season can bring out the best in a studio and the most stress in our students. We’re taking a fresh, practical look at performances, festivals, and adjudications with one guiding question: does this experience help a student leave feeling joy, momentum, and pride in their music, or does it pile on fear that makes them want to quit? I share how I decide when an adjudicated event is a great fit and when it is simply not worth the anxiety, and you’ll also hear my perspective after more than two decades of adjudicating. We wrap up with an encouragement for end-of-year lessons and how to keep the joy in music making.

From today's episode:
Last chance to join the Spring Piano Teachers Book Club- there's room for you!
The Repertoire List we love (with ratings/motivation)
Join our Free Membership to access free resources!
Carnegie Hall Kids- great music games/quizzes!

Support the show

Subscribe to Elizabeth's email list here so you won’t miss future courses, freebies, teacher events and more.

Love the show? Buy us a coffee and support the podcast.

Let's stay in touch!
On the website/blog
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You can find all of our favorite repertoire and teaching tools on the Amazon Storefront (affiliate link)
Questions or suggestions? Send Elizabeth an email:
elizabeth@creativepianopedagogy.com
As an Amazon Affiliate, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you if you purchase through our links. Thank you for helping support the podcast!

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What if the real breakthroughs in your piano studio have less to do with scales and more to do with the space between the notes—how we set boundaries, model calm, teach appropriate social skills and communication, and design lessons that students can actually navigate?

We start with the gap most teachers feel but rarely name: students arrive with different developmental ages than their birthdates suggest. That mismatch can make a brilliant nine-year-old look like a distracted preschooler unless we plan for social-emotional learning. You’ll hear how a simple routine (paired with clear gestures) builds delayed gratification, listening, and respect. Along the way, we share stories—from the unforgettable iPad-in-the-microwave moment to quiet wins where consistency and kindness changed the arc of a lesson.

We also announce fresh resources to support your growth:
-a free member portal with a growing library of digital tools (click "Join Now" at the top menu)
-spring book club of "Bright Not Broken" to better understand twice-exceptional students
-a summer cohort of Adaptive Piano Pedagogy 101
-new St. Patrick's Day themed activities for lessons
-brand new sacred sheet music by Elizabeth for Lent

If you’re ready to move from firefighting to foresight, this is your roadmap to proactive teaching that protects creativity, honors neurodiversity, and gets more music made.

Support the show

Subscribe to Elizabeth's email list here so you won’t miss future courses, freebies, teacher events and more.

Love the show? Buy us a coffee and support the podcast.

Let's stay in touch!
On the website/blog
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You can find all of our favorite repertoire and teaching tools on the Amazon Storefront (affiliate link)
Questions or suggestions? Send Elizabeth an email:
elizabeth@creativepianopedagogy.com
As an Amazon Affiliate, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you if you purchase through our links. Thank you for helping support the podcast!

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In this second episode on dyslexia with Dr. Olivia Colomaio, we explore how dyslexia shows up in piano study and share tools that replace quick fixes with sound-first learning and real transfer. Practical strategies, honest self-assessment, and effort-based awards help students grow skills and confidence without gimmicks. If you’ve wondered how to support dyslexic pianists with compassion and precision, this conversation gives you a map you can use today!

Don’t forget to share this with a teacher friend that you think might enjoy it!

Check out The Dyslexic Advantage recommended by Dr. Olivia

📚The Spring session of the Piano Teachers Book Club starts soon- Join us!

Don't miss the new freebies and teaching resources on the CPP shop or Etsy

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Subscribe to Elizabeth's email list here so you won’t miss future courses, freebies, teacher events and more.

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Let's stay in touch!
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You can find all of our favorite repertoire and teaching tools on the Amazon Storefront (affiliate link)
Questions or suggestions? Send Elizabeth an email:
elizabeth@creativepianopedagogy.com
As an Amazon Affiliate, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you if you purchase through our links. Thank you for helping support the podcast!

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In part 1 of the conversation with Dr. Olivia Colomaio, we dive into what dyslexia actually is, why it’s often misunderstood, and how those myths affect piano teaching and our students. Olivia shares research, lived experience, and practical ways teachers can adapt without waiting for a diagnosis, while we urge more empathy for families navigating dyslexia and neurodiversity.

We also talk openly about why parents may not disclose diagnoses, the emotional journey of seeking answers, and how music teachers can approach families with respect, curiosity, and care. Most importantly, we offer practical, compassionate strategies you can use right away with your own students.

✨ Subscribe and share with a friend
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--> And don't miss out on the new teaching resources [and freebies] on the online store!

📚 The spring session of the Piano Teachers Book Club starts soon- Join the waitlist!

Questions about piano teaching? Feel free to contact us:
Dr. Olivia- ocolomaio@sc.edu
Dr. Elizabeth- elizabeth@creativepianopedagogy.com

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Support the show

Subscribe to Elizabeth's email list here so you won’t miss future courses, freebies, teacher events and more.

Love the show? Buy us a coffee and support the podcast.

Let's stay in touch!
On the website/blog
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You can find all of our favorite repertoire and teaching tools on the Amazon Storefront (affiliate link)
Questions or suggestions? Send Elizabeth an email:
elizabeth@creativepianopedagogy.com
As an Amazon Affiliate, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you if you purchase through our links. Thank you for helping support the podcast!

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We share eight concrete (but easy) changes that made teaching calmer, more creative, and more student-centered in 2025, from consolidating schedules to story-driven composition. Along the way, we explore deeper questioning, smarter research habits, and small rituals that fuel focus and joy.

If you’re ready to teach with more intention and less noise, this conversation offers concrete steps and tools you can try this week. Subscribe, leave a review if this helped you, and share the episode with a colleague who could use a calmer, more creative start to their teaching year.

✨ You can also watch the podcast on YouTube!

Support the show

Subscribe to Elizabeth's email list here so you won’t miss future courses, freebies, teacher events and more.

Love the show? Buy us a coffee and support the podcast.

Let's stay in touch!
On the website/blog
Follow on Facebook
Follow on Instagram
Follow on YouTube

You can find all of our favorite repertoire and teaching tools on the Amazon Storefront (affiliate link)
Questions or suggestions? Send Elizabeth an email:
elizabeth@creativepianopedagogy.com
As an Amazon Affiliate, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you if you purchase through our links. Thank you for helping support the podcast!

Send us Fan Mail

Teaching doesn’t require superhero energy; it requires humane rhythms, clear anchors, and courage to pivot. We sit down to unpack the real weight of lesson planning during a busy season, how we manage exhaustion without guilt, and why lowering the pressure can raise the music. From the “sacred 45” minutes that protect our focus to the 15-minute pauses that keep us present, we share small rituals that sustain big care.

We also tackle neurodivergent-friendly strategies with honesty and warmth. When plans flop, we don’t panic—we adapt. Along the way, we invite your questions for a crowd-sourced Q&A in January and share details about our upcoming teacher chat on Zoom.

If you’re craving practical ideas for piano pedagogy, neurodiversity-aware teaching, and low-stress recital planning, you’ll feel right at home here. Press play, save your favorite tips, and tell us what you’ll try next. If this conversation helped, subscribe, share it with a colleague, and leave a quick review so more teachers can find it.

Support the show

Subscribe to Elizabeth's email list here so you won’t miss future courses, freebies, teacher events and more.

Love the show? Buy us a coffee and support the podcast.

Let's stay in touch!
On the website/blog
Follow on Facebook
Follow on Instagram
Follow on YouTube

You can find all of our favorite repertoire and teaching tools on the Amazon Storefront (affiliate link)
Questions or suggestions? Send Elizabeth an email:
elizabeth@creativepianopedagogy.com
As an Amazon Affiliate, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you if you purchase through our links. Thank you for helping support the podcast!