Business & Tech

Piano Teacher Uses iPad to Bring Technology to Lessons

New Lenox resident Dawn Cousins says her teaching method will make things more fun and effective for her students, but she's also excited to work with children who have special needs and often benefit from the use of the tablet computer.

A New Lenox teacher is putting a twist on the traditional piano lesson by incorporating technology, most notably the iPad, as a way to broaden students' learning opportunities and even reach more children with special needs.

Dawn Cousins, a certified music teacher, recently started a new mobile piano studio called Tunes2You, this coming just a couple years after she stopped giving lessons in her New Lenox home.

Cousins stopped giving piano lessons once her daughters reached high school, and she used her music education degree to fill in for teachers in the New Lenox District 122 and other area schools.

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Last year she noticed District 122's use of iPads in the classroom as a complementary tool to teaching, and she was intrigued by what it could mean for piano lessons.

"That’s what spurred the idea," Cousins said. "I saw it solely used in the special-needs classrooms. That’s what sparked my interest because I feel that’s an underserved student who isn't taking piano lessons. I just have a special place in my heart for children with special needs."

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Cousins is particularly excited about using the iPad to help teach students with learning disabilities, because it's been shown they can benefit from the visual and hands-on tools provided. Music can also help aid the development of verbal memory, pattern recognition and literacy.

Through Tunes2You, Cousins comes to the students' homes for lessons—so a piano or full-size keyboard is required. She provides the iPad, but wanted to make it clear that it's not meant to replace the piano.

"I'm not here to replace any of the one-on-one learning," she said. "With this touch technology I feel like I can really reinforce what we’re establishing in the lesson."

Go to the Tunes2You website at tunes2you.com to learn more.

So how is the iPad used? The possibilities are endless and growing as Cousins continues to download apps. She might have students play along on the virtual keyboard, if they happen to learn better that way. They might draw a note to get a good feel for what it looks like. She could pull up music for them to listen to and compare it while they play.

The iPad isn't the only way Cousins is modernizing the piano teacher's job. She created a website and hopes to post videos of her students' strong performances. The site also accepts PayPal and credit card payments, something many piano teachers don't do.

"Music teachers are missing the whole technology aspect and missing the boat with a lot of kids," she said. "It’s more exciting when I can engage (my students) in learning rather than me just spitting everything out. They’ve grown up with technology and I'm meeting them we they are at."

Cousins said that the same old books and assignments won't keep kids' attention, especially when "I'm competing against iPods and Words With Friends and everything else."

Before getting back into the business with Tunes2You, Cousins spent 15 years teaching out of her home and has 25 years of experience total. Her lessons are open to all ages.

Echoing what many have said about the Internet and, to an extent, the iPad, Cousins summed up why she loves piano: "It's a universal tool for bringing people together."


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