Teaching my daughter guitar

[Steel Icarus]

Hi musos/teachers/idle passersby,

Bought my daughter (12) an electric guitar for Christmas and have agreed to teach her the basics - something fun we can do together. I've realised (pre-first "lesson") that I have no real idea how to go about it.

I can play the guitar fine - decent rhythm player, I know the basic chords and some other ones - but I taught myself so have never had a lesson. And as soon as I knew a few chords I started writing songs so I've not really learned anyone else's songs, at least not properly (I can listen to a song and transpose the chord sequences into a key that's easier to play/sing with no trouble but I don't really want to teach her songs in F# major just yet tbh).

I'm conscious she has to learn the basics, but I want to make it fun for her too so it's not all grind at the start.

Got any tips? I'm thinking of aiming for playing a song so she has a goal - "Come as you are" is five basic chords, Em, D, G, A, C - but before that I'm not sure how to go about it.

Cheers

 

[danny la rouge]

This is the best series of books to learn acoustic guitar on from that age. If you can learn this way you’ll be able to play any style easily, on electric or anything.

 

[souljacker]

I started with the blues progressions, mainly because you can quickly chuck a song together that sounds half decent. G-C-D are also easier chords to learn I think.

Beatles songs or Ramones tunes are also really easy to learn.

 

[danny la rouge]

This is the gold standard plectrum guitar course:

A Modern Method for Guitar Book/DVD-ROM

Online extension school and career center for Berklee College of Music.

online.berklee.edu

They’re both excellent courses, but I’d say RGT is the better one for 12 year olds.

 

[danny la rouge]

I’ll see if I can find some of my old handouts and post them up, but it won’t be straight away.

 

[danny la rouge]

It’s a really good thing early on to get her associating chord shapes with their corresponding scale patterns.

 

[Saffy]

My boy taught himself using Andy guitar in YouTube. Being able to teach himself a recognisable song quickly helped him loads. He's gone back now and taught himself the proper basics and he's really good now (to me, I know I'm his Mum )
He's just been paid him first wage packet and about to splurge the lot on a new guitar.

 

[Kaka Tim]

Depends what she wants to do with the guitar. I generally start with basic chords and playing a few simple songs - ones she knows and likes - helps make it relatable. Encourage her to sing along whilst playing - helps develop a sense of rhythm - and singing ability - (and the ability to sing and play at the same time).
If she wants to play riffs and lead lines find some simple ones to get her going - stuff like smoke on the water (yeah i know), Jean Jeanie, Louie Louie, the riff from man who sold the world - contemporary eqiuivalnets if shes not down with dad rock. A few easy-sih but pleasing solos where is more about voicing and expression than speed and dexterity - Smells like teen spirit?
But don't neglect the chord stuff.
Move on to barre chords when she's got the basics down.

I always tell my students that they wont learn to play guitar in lessons - you learn at home, on your own, putting in the hours in your bedroom. No way round it.
I also advice to leave the guitar out of the case somewhere like on a bed or sofa - then you are going to pick it up and play more often.

Also - its IS hard especially at the start. Those first few chords and the changes between them are the hardest thing you ever have to learn. Followed by barre chords.

And generally encourage to mess about, experiment try things and trust her ears.

Good luck to you both.

eta - for beginner electric guitar the one note solo in the whos "i can see for miles" is a good one - easy to do and sounds great - and you learn just how much you can do with distortion and attack and pick technique.

 

[Steel Icarus]

Yeah, I might be over thinking it. I'm not even sure what SHE wants out of it. Definitely to make a lot of noise. Myself I can't finger pick, I don't know scales but I can play along to almost anything. When I learned I remember it was switching between chords that was hard, and I avoided barre chords and difficult chords, instead using chords that were near enough. I think as long as we have fun... she's more punk than Floyd for sure, as am I

 

[High Voltage]

. . . Definitely to make a lot of noise. . . .

Should've got her a drum kit then

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

If she wants to do it it will just happen. There is so much help out there today. I would only help her if she asks for it. I might be projecting my daughter's attitude to learning and my own experience to learning guitar in this answer.

 

[Steel Icarus]

Should've got her a drum kit then

I don't want to hear it!
Got her a multi-effects pedal she can put headphones into

 

[High Voltage]

I don't want to hear it!

Sounds to me like you're trying to stifle your daughters creative talents purely for your "convenience"

 

[Steel Icarus]

Sounds to me like you're trying to stifle your daughters creative talents purely for your "convenience"

I like my neighbours. Plus if I'd got her a drumkit I'd never let her have a go

 

[danny la rouge]

These are the RGT electric books:



I really like the RGT courses. I think they’re much better than the Rock School books.

 

[danny la rouge]

First scale to learn:



Learn it at the same time as the “easy G chord”. (Third finger on high E string fret 3. Strum highest three strings).

Note how the scale “fits inside” that chord.

Fingering:
always* finger one = fret one
finger two = fret two
Finger three = fret three
Finger four = fret four.

(This is “first position”).

* yeah yeah, very occasionally it’s not.

G major scale is.

G string 0 2
B string 0 1 3
E string 0 2 3

Then backwards. Don’t repeat the high G.

First chords to learn.



(Ignore their fingering oh G. It’s daft).

Strum each chord 4 times. One strum per beat. Go round and round until it’s smooth.

Then learn Jamalaya.

C
Goodbye, joe, me gotta
G
go, me oh my oh.

Me gotta go, pole the
C
pirogue down the bayou.

My yvonne, the sweetest
G
one, me oh my oh.

Son of a gun, we'll have
C
big fun on the bayou.


[Chorus]

Well jambalaya and a crawfish
G
pie and fillet gumbo

Cause tonight I'm gonna
C
see my ma cher amio.

Pick guitar, fill
G
fruit jar and be gayo,

Son of a gun, we'll have
C
big fun on the bayou.

 

[danny la rouge]

How guitarists number their fingers. (Piano players are wrong).

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

Should've got her a drum kit then

I bought my daughter a drum kit and paid for lessons.
Now I have a drum kit. Hooray.

Rods are the answer by the way. Not very loud at all (silencer pads don't work very well at silencing and make for completely different drumming (bounce) experience.

 

[danny la rouge]

And learn this tune. Looking at TAB and the standard notation as you go.

 

[danny la rouge]

And that’s lesson one.

Practice regular. Little and often is better than massive splurges once a week.

 

[Knotted]

I think it's important to play with a light touch with the fretting hand otherwise it could be a painful experience that won't be repeated. That's my one tip.

I have an idea of how I would go about teaching guitar. I would start with three strings tuned to a major triad and the first lesson would be harmonics and simple barre chords and how they relate and the three chord trick including some simple jangle song. 0-5-7-12 frets relate to the proportions 1, 3/4, 2/3, 1/2. Second lesson would be Three Blind Mice on one string. Then the major arpeggio on one string. Then the pentatonic scale on one string. Then the major scale on one string. Sing the notes while playing them. I don't think you should touch standard tuning or chord shapes or playing across strings until you understand what these things are and why they are and why they're convenient short cuts. Luckily I don't teach guitar.

 

[danny la rouge]

Sing the notes while playing them.

This is good.