| Name of Student: | Harry Aston | Name of Tutor | Harry Marsden | |||
| Date | 22/04/26 | Time | 11:30 | Room | 303 | |
| Aims | Build finger independence and dexterity |
| Objectives | Chromatic four-fret ascending and descending up and down the string set using alternate picking. (Chromatic alternate picking exercise) |
| ExtensionIf the learner progresses particularly well they may also be able to: | After being able to successfully complete this exercise to a metronome at 100bpm, Harry can begin the developed exercise. This is the same concept but with one finger staying in place on the first note while the others play the exercise as normal, each time going from one finger to the next. |
| Time | Activities | Assessment Methods | Resources |
| 5 mins | A couple of minutes will be spent at the beginning of the lesson to check-in with the student to make sure they are getting on okay with playing outside of the lesson, had a good week and are ready to move onto to something new or if they would like a recap of last lesson or to go over any content from the previous lesson. Starter Activity – Alternate picking warm-up. Simply alternate picking constant quavers on unfretted strings at 150bpm to a metronome. Moving between strings a focusing on a smooth transition and even projection between the notes. This will allow the student to warm up and prepare for the exercise we will be doing later in the lesson. I will give a brief overview of the contents of the lesson and describe the exercise we will be focusing on (Chromatic alternate picking exercise) and talk about how this will improve their playing and what it will directly focus on – finger independence and dexterity and alternate picking. | As this is a relaxed part of the lesson where the only task to be completed is a warmup, I will make sure the student is able to complet the exercise at the highest tempo that is comfortable. This will very much a formative assessment for learning. The same method of brief assessment will be carried out for the content of the previous lesson to make sure it was understood and practiced sufficiently. I will ensure to make this very light-hearted and brief, so the student does not feel pressure or stress to complete the task perfectly. If a recap is needed, that is no problem and we will go over the previous work. | As this is a simple exercise, no additional learning material such as books and websites will be needed. All that is required is a guitar for myself to use and demonstrate the exercise, and a guitar for my student to use if they did not provide their own instrument. A metronome is required; this can include a physical metronome or simply a digital one found on apps or websites. |
| Time (approx) | Activities | Assessment Methods | Resources |
| 10 mins | Main Part of the Lesson The main focus of this lesson will be to develop finger independence and dexterity. This will be done through various exercises. The first exercise will be the chromatic alternate picking exercise. This targets both fretting hand dexterity and picking hand efficiency and accuracy. This exercise consists of a four-fret chromatic ascending line starting on fret five of the low E string. The is simply ascending in semi-tones (one fret) up to fret eight. This is repeated on each string, first moving up the string set and once the high E string is reached, moving down the string set. This will always be completed to a metronome as quavers with a target of 150bpm. Once Harry has got the hang of that, I will introduce some variations of the exercise. This will include an exercise of the same contents; however, a descending chromatic line will be played from fret eight down to fret five. Depending on how well this exercise goes, we will step it up to the next development of the exercise. This includes holding a chosen finger in place on the E string and carrying out the previous exercise as normal. Once each round is complete, swap fingers. This is to be done at a slower tempo as it is more difficult and will require more precision and concentration. | For this exercise, I will use a more structured, formal method of formative assessment. This will include completion of the exercise two times in a row to metronome at 150bpm. If not completed successfully, we will look at areas to improve and try again. After this is completed successfully, we will then move on to the developed, more difficult exercise. | No additional resources or equipment will be required. I will continue to use a guitar to demonstrate the exercises and will provide one for the student in necessary. A metronome will also be required. |
| Time | Activities | Assessment Methods | Resources |
| 5 mins | I will summarise the aims and objectives if this lesson. Aim – improve finger independence and dexterityObjective – to successfully carry out the exercises to a metronome. I will reiterate how to carry out the exercises and how they will benefit Harry’s technique, along with how much and how often it should be practiced. You should aim to practice this exercise and its variations for 15 minutes before each time you practice your instrument – it will serve as an effective warmup. |
