Learning to play an instrument

girl playing guitar near wall
Type: Vocabulary
Originally published on September 21, 2020 and last updated on February 4, 2023

Learning to play a musical instrument when you are a child used to be much more common than it is nowadays. With modern technology keeping children occupied the need and the desire to learn to play a musical instrument seems to be disappearing. Aside from the ability to create music, learning to play a musical instrument can also have an array of other benefits for a child that they will keep with them all throughout their life. Maybe it is time for children to put down the tablets and pick up a guitar.

Instructions:
Go through the vocabulary below with your students and ask them to try and use this vocabaulry where possible when discussing the different conversation questions.

Useful Vocabulary

Try and use the following vocabulary when answering the question. Click to look up the definition in the dictionary

  • instrument (noun)
  • play (verb)
  • grow up (phrasal verb)
  • common (adjective)
  • musical (adjective)
  • talented (adjective)
  • beneficial (adjective)
  • childhood (noun)

Conversation Questions

  • What are the benefits of learning to play an instrument as a child?
  • Did you play a musical instrument when you were a child? If yes, did you like it?
  • What are the common musical instruments children learn to play?
  • Do you think that the majority of children who learn to play an instrument actually enjoy it?
  • What do you think a child learns from playing a musical instrument?
  • If you could go back in time what would you like to have learnt to play when you were growing up?
Gregory
This conversation topic was prepared by Gregory

Gregory is a qualified TEFL teacher who has been teaching English as a Foreign Language (ESL) for over a decade. He has taught in-person classes in Spain and to English learners around the world online.