Will My Child Lose Interest, or Will Their Progress Stall, if We Go on Vacation?

So your child is a passionate musician, who has been working hard to master the drums, or a skill of their choice - awesome! But you have booked a family holiday, or school holidays are coming up, and you want to know what to do to keep them motivated?

I have personally been worried about this every single time we go on holidays, or when the kids are off for our long (6 week) summer holidays. Younger kids in particular are prone to changing passions and interests relatively quickly, but in our experience we have always been able to keep John motivated (and practicing) throughout school and family vacations. At no stage was he truly at risk of “giving up” the drums though, and we actively looked for ways to keep him on track - even while we spent a month in Japan.

At the end of the day, playing an instrument (like the drums) should be something that is fun, engaging, and helps bring out your child’s passion and curiosity. If your child doesn’t want to continue after a vacation, then that should be OK too - without the passion, there really is no point. The ideas below, try to help keep the passion alive over a long vacation away from the drum kit.

Why do kids quit extracurricular activities?

Kids learn a lot about themselves and the world by exploring new hobbies, instruments, and interests. In fact, developmentally it is important for children to try new things, and to see what they really enjoy, and where their talents reside. If you place yourself in your child’s shoes; with no sense of what you will and won’t like, the possibilities for who you can be, and thus what you want to do seem endless! If one hobby, or instrument, is frustrating - or requires too much effort - then the natural response is to try something else.

Coming back from a long break can be especially jarring for a child. In drumming, there is a lot of coordination involved, and thus a lot to remember. After a long break, it can almost feel like your first lesson all over again, or like driving a car after spending 5 years overseas (personal experience). This is why it is so important to find ways to keep your child engaged with music - at least once a week during a break. That doesn’t mean they need to actually play the drums - although there are ways you can do this too.

In the end though, if your child loses all interest in the drums after a month (or two), then there is a good chance that they were not truly in love with the instrument in the first place. If your child is prone to tapping on random surfaces all day, and or tapping their feet to the frustration of everyone around them - then you probably don’t have this problem. If your child seldom practices to begin with, and/or doesn’t spend every waking moment tapping on desks, their knees, or the floor, then perhaps you want to make an effort to do all of the below motivators during your vacation:

Things Young Drummers Can Do to Keep Motivated during a vacation

Visit Music Stores

Every country, and major city, will have a musical instrument stores. If we are away from home, I love researching “the best drum store” or “best second hand music store” with my son, and then spending half a day visiting, exploring, and even testing out their wares. I cannot emphasise this last opportunity enough - visiting music stores, gives your child (and maybe you) a chance to play the drums. It even gives you a chance to explore new configurations, snares, and cymbals! Trust me when I say that no shop owner will ever say no to a 10 year old busting out some grooves in their store. All in all this is a great way to spend a day, and meet some cool locals. If we are home, we know the best spots - but still makes for a fun day.

When we were in Japan, my son had a budget that he had saved by himself. His intent was to visit the second-hand stores in Ochanomizu (a shopping district in Tokyo) and search for cymbals, or cowbells, or anything he couldn’t get cheaply (or easily) back in Sydney. We spent hours searching online together, plotting maps, and walking routes. We looked for cafes and restaurants in between, and made a full day out of it. We repeated this same series of steps in each city we visited, and will probably continue to do where-ever we go next.

Listen to Music

It sounds too obvious, but there really is no better motivator for a young musician, than to listen to music together. Why not bust out the old LP, or CD collection and show your child the songs that you grew up with? Why not run through the 1001 CDs you must listen to before you die book together? There is a good chance you will find something new, and enjoy listening to together.

If you are abroad, explore the music! Be that the local traditional music, or modern pop, rock, indie scenes. It is all good, and a really exciting way to expand your CD collection. Ask some locals what their favourite bands are, and get on Spotify!

Find Cultural Activities

The drums are the most universal of all instruments. As such, the range of musical styles, and instruments is never ending. No matter where you are in the world during your vacation, learning about these traditional drums, and associated techniques is just a Google away.

In Japan, you can attend a 1 hour Taiko class (or a series of classes). If that doesn’t motivate a young drummer, then I am not quite sure what else will. For those that don’t know - Taiko are massive, and incredibly loud, traditional Japanese drums.

Go to Karaoke

While Karaoke isn’t exactly drumming, it is very musical - and crazy fun. It is also relatively cheap, thus making for a great rainy day activity with kids. If you don’t have a Karaoke centre near to where you are staying, then fire up your laptop or mobile phone. The “DAM” karaoke player (as well as a stack of other options) can turn your living room into a karaoke party in < 5 minutes.

Go to a Game Centre

Have you ever played a drumming game at a game centre? Regardless of your answer, this is the easiest way to become the coolest parent in town, and to keep your child interested in the drums. While of course, this won’t require any real technique, many of the simulators are basically an electronic kit under the guise of a video game. As such, you can transform many of the freeplay modes into an actual practice session.

Summary

In the end, everyone needs a break, and we found that taking a holiday away from the kit, made our son realise how much he missed it. Literally within minutes of coming home, John was back down stairs playing beats. As a parent, I wouldn’t be too worried. If your child loves something - they will want to keep doing it. If you find ways to remind them how much they love drumming while on holidays, even better.