1. Set aside a consistent time to practice.
   1. General rule of thumb: 30 minute lesson = 2.5 hours of practice a week, 45 minute lesson = 4 hours of practice a week, and 60 minute lesson = 5+ hours of practice a week.  
   2. If you sign up for piano, it is a commitment of at least 3 hours per week of lesson time & work.  
2. Before sitting down:
   1. Stretch your body tall, stretch side to side, stretch arms out, up, and around.  
   2. Do a few shoulder rolls and arm rolls to relax shoulders and arms..  
   3. Stretch arms out, grasp fingers and gently pull them back, then release and do it again. 
   4. Sit at the bench with the right height and distance for your height.  Adjust as needed. 
3. Warm up hands with Hanon, scales, or an etude, or a favorite piece you’ve memorized.  
4. Practice scales, arpeggios, cadences, and progressions of the piece you are working on, then repertoire. 

Learning a new piece is a process that is personal.  Here is a general guide, but make the process one that works for you and is effective.  This is the heart of being a good musician- study, practice, refining, study, and maybe performance.  Not every piece you learn will be performed, but the more consistently you practice the more experience you will gain in playing well.  

5. Study & Sight Read:
   1. Take time to research the composer, the time period, the style, the subject matter for deeper understanding of the music.  
   2. If you enjoy the surprise of hearing something for the first time, take a moment to sight read the music. 
   3. If it is a common repertoire piece, there is probably a recording of it.  Feel free to listen to the recording along with reading the music before sight reading it.  
6. Note Reading
   1. Say letter names out loud before playing
   2. Say letter names out loud while playing
7. Rhythm
   1. Clap/ tap and count out loud before playing
   2. Count out loud before playing
   3. Play one hand while tapping the rhythm of the other hand
8. Slowly practice hands separately focusing on consistent rhythm & fingerings.
   1. Go Slow
   2. Consistent rhythm: use the metronome as tolerated and to speed up
   3. Consistent fingerings: write in tricky spots and practice 
9. Start putting hands together in phrases (typically 4 measures), repeat until comfortable in your hands
10. Isolate areas to focus on and slowly add back into the phrase
11. Play the piece adding articulations and dynamics, stopping to note areas to improve
12. Focus on improvement using steps 9 & 10
13. Review the music for articulation and dynamic markings to be sure they are present in your playing.
    1. Recording a section of your playing is helpful to hear if you are playing articulations the way you are hearing them in your head as you play.  
14. Play for your teacher and incorporate their suggestions.
15. Memorize the piece in phrases and sections, again consistent in fingerings and rhythm, articulations and dynamic expression.  
16. If you didn’t do it at the beginning of the process, take time to review the research of the composer, the time period, the style, the subject matter for deeper understanding of the music and see if applying any of that knowledge changes your interpretation of the piece.
17. Play!