Most children benefit from involvement in the arts, especially children of the right mind and aptitude in the more creative and idealistic areas of study.
The guitar was and continues to be one of the first choices for both generations, despite what the Washington Post might think.
In this writing, we shall be looking at the guitar lessons for kids and young beginners alongside certain information on how you can get online guitar lessons for kids.
Table of contents
- At what age should a child start guitar lessons?
- Guitar lessons for kids
- 1. How to Teach Guitar to Kids – Start guitar lessons for young children in the 5 to 8 year old age group
- 3. Guitar Tricks Fundamentals I and II Courses
- 4. Guitargate Courses
- 5. TrueFire (Little Kids Rock Course)
- 6. Guitareo (Nate Savage’s program)
- 7. Justinguitar
- 8. Hub Guitar
- Is your Child Ready to Play Guitar?
- Tips for getting your child started with the Guitar
- Conclusion
- References
- Editor’s Recommendations
At what age should a child start guitar lessons?
For most students, the best age to learn guitar is around 7 years old. But it’s important to note that all students are different, so there really isn’t one best age to start guitar lessons.
Realistically, students can begin guitar lessons once they are comfortable holding a small guitar and depressing the strings.
If you ask us, around 9 or 10 is the best age to start learning guitar. However, many children start learning at a younger age (and let’s not forget those who learn later in life!).
Children under the age of 5 struggle with the guitar and may do better with a ukulele. If they’re good with the ukulele, they can always switch to a guitar when they get bigger.
How long does it take before you or your child can play the guitar well?
With steady practice, group play, and weekly private lessons, kids and adults can play with basic skills in just 6 months. Some students reach the advanced guitarist level in as little as 3-5 years, but it varies.
The bottom line is that it’s not the songs that you practice; it’s just that you or your child spend time playing the guitar. For best results, our guitar teachers recommend that students practice guitar for at least 30 minutes each day.
Guitar lessons for kids
Let’s take a look at the guitar lessons for kids
1. How to Teach Guitar to Kids – Start guitar lessons for young children in the 5 to 8 year old age group
Are you a music teacher who wants to start teaching kids guitar? Or a guitar teacher struggling to teach kids guitar and music notes?
This course is designed for beginner, intermediate, and advanced music teachers who want to start teaching guitar to children in the 5 to 8 age group.
If you are a parent who wants to teach a child guitar and you know the basics of music, you can join too.
Price – ₦3,500
2. Play YOUR Favorite Songs: The Guitar Super-Course
This course is the only beginner course that teaches you how to play ALL YOUR favorite songs + 36 shortcuts, hacks, tips & tricks.
The course is either for complete beginners or for those who already play some guitar but have never managed to play their songs SMOOTHLY – the course will get you there.
After several weeks of practicing what you will learn here, you will be able to play all your favorite songs beautifully.
Price – ₦3,500
3. Guitar Tricks Fundamentals I and II Courses
Guitar Tricks is the largest online repository for guitar lessons in the world. Since 1998 they are still leaders in this field. They are constantly recommended as the absolute best when it comes to video-based guitar courses and one-to-one lessons.
They are also particularly strong in beginner guitar lessons, offering two programs in their course catalog written and designed specifically for beginners.
Price – Free
4. Guitargate Courses
Michael Palmisano built his guitar gate classes from the ground up, drawing on years of teaching experience and a Guitar Institute of Technology degree at the Musicians Institute in Hollywood, California.
Its content covers everything from the most basic beginner topics to advanced theoretical material that may or may not apply to your child’s interests or skill level.
However, you do have a number of different options to try and/or purchase lessons that make Guitargate a really solid option for both kids and parents.
Price – $25
See also the best affordable summer programs for kids
5. TrueFire (Little Kids Rock Course)
TrueFire hosts a vast repository of standalone guitar lessons and courses submitted by a variety of organizations and teachers. Steve Vai, Tommy Emmanual, Andy Timmons, and Johnny Hilland are just a few of the big names who have contributed to the TrueFire database.
The Little Kids Rock course is hosted and sold on TrueFire, although it was created by a non-profit organization called Little Kids Rock, which focuses on arts and childhood education more broadly.
6. Guitareo (Nate Savage’s program)
Nate Savage has been taking guitar lessons for a long time and at one point made almost all of his content available for free.
He has now switched his website to a paid membership platform called “Guitareo”. His teaching style is also conducive to children as he is slow and patient but also engaging and easy to follow.
The volume of Nate’s content is more in line with Guitar Tricks (although Guitar Tricks is still way ahead in this area), which helps justify the higher price and the fact that you can’t buy anything outside of a monthly membership.
Price – $29
7. Justinguitar
JustinGuitar.com has been around for a long time. Interestingly, the site has changed very little over the years, sharing the same basic layout as when I first came across it in 2011 and undergoing a more recent makeover in early 2019.
Still, Justin has published over 1000 video lessons, all broken down into courses and song tutorials. It’s well organized and very comprehensive to a point that few other free guitar lesson sites can match.
8. Hub Guitar
Hub Guitar may not have been around nearly as long as Justinguitar, but what it lacks in brand recognition it makes up for in production quality and up-to-date organization. It is the diamond in the rough on this list.
Lessons are structured similarly to Justinguitar, with individual videos and some written content divided into courses and sections.
Most lessons have a written and video component where you can review the video and then use the written material as needed. Hub Guitar’s Guitar Chords for Beginners lesson is a good example.
Price – Free
YouTube guitar lessons
YouTube guitar lessons are just as good as any other guitar or music lesson resource. This is much more of a competitive tactic than anything else.
In fact, many YouTube guitar lessons are pretty decent. However, there are some issues that come into play when it comes to guitar lessons for kids.
YouTube has real value when your child wants to address a specific guitar issue that may not be covered immediately by a teacher or full course.
Learning songs, setting up your guitar gear, or nuanced music theory topics are all good examples of how YouTube can offer a lot of value and actually save time.
Top 3 Disadvantages of Sending Your Child to YouTube University for Music Education
- Filter content
- Organize content
- Distraction
Is your Child Ready to Play Guitar?
So you want to see if your kid is ready to start jamming? The guitar is a great instrument for all skill levels and ages, but it’s best to start with guitars that are made for beginners, especially children with smaller frames.
To see if your child is ready to start playing, first look at how your child is holding the guitar. When seated, your child should be able to comfortably reach the low notes with their grip hand without having to fully straighten their arm.
Your elbow should be slightly bent. If they’re having a difficult time, you may need to look at smaller guitar sizes.
Tips for getting your child started with the Guitar
Here are some tips you can use to help your child get started with guitar:
- Choose the right guitar: Not all guitars are created equal, and knowing which guitar is best for beginners can prepare your child to play with confidence and success.
This tip is important because an improperly sized guitar can turn a rewarding experience into a frustrating one.
Try on several guitars to see how they fit and look at several sizes (full size, half size, etc.) to find what fits your child best. - Use an opening pick: Guitar picks can make playing easier for children, especially those with delicate or sensitive fingers. Try different thicknesses to find the one that works best for you.
It will take some guidance from a guitar teacher and some practice to master the use of the pick, but learning the skill will ultimately pay off. - Practice daily – even if it’s just 20 minutes: Shorter, more frequent practice is more productive than longer, occasional practice. Try to help your child retain what they learned in class by setting aside practice time each day.
- Start with light guitar strings: Beginners should start with light strings, as heavier strings can be difficult for smaller hands to grip or press down.
- Buy an electric tuner: Playing in tune is essential for students learning to play the guitar! And clip-on tuners are an inexpensive and easy way to tune a guitar.
- Playing guitar with others: Making music with other people is a fun and effective way to apply concepts learned in class. School of Rock offers students the opportunity to play with others right away. This speeds up the learning process enormously.
Conclusion
When you invest in your child’s artistic interests—even if it’s just an investment of time—you want to make sure your child gets a good return. There are other options available, but the ones covered here offer you the best odds.
References
- https://www.udemy.com/course/start-teaching-guitar-to-kids/
- https://www.guitarchalk.com/guitar-lessons-for-kids/
- https://www.learntoplaymusic.com/ how-to-play-guitar-for-kids.html
- https://teachwombat.com/kids-guitar-lesson-1.html
