No "Booster" Hurdles: We don't overwhelm small hands with massive, frustrating chords right away. We start with simple, single-note melodies and modified 1-to-3-finger chords.

Songs They Recognize: From the very first few lessons, your child will be playing real music! Learning songs by artists like The Beatles, classic rock favorites, and fun traditional tunes.

Bite-Sized Wins: Kids under 10 have shorter attention spans. My 30-minute lessons are fast-paced, highly interactive, and designed around gamified exercises so they leave every session feeling like a rockstar.

Ditch 6-String Chords Early On: Young kids do not have the hand span or finger strength for a full G major or C major. Lean heavily on Hal Leonard’s simplified 1-to-3-string chord variations (like playing a G chord using just the 3rd fret of the high E string).

"Left hand" vs "Right hand" defaults: Use colorful sticker dots on the neck of their guitar to show them exactly where to place their index finger (e.g., a green dot on the 1st fret, red dot on the 3rd fret). It saves you from constantly saying "No, move over one fret."

Praise Effort, Not Talent: Young kids get discouraged easily if their strings buzz. Frame buzzes as "sleeping notes" that just need a tiny bit of help to wake up, rather than mistakes.

Personalized Teaching: 1-on-1 private instruction customized to your child's pace.

Modern Learning Materials: Access to computer based tablature and fun play-along backing tracks to make home practice feel like playing in a band.

Progress Reports: Regular progress updates so you can hear what they are learning!

Rentable Instruments: 3/4th Child-sized guitars or Full sized rentals available!

In-Studio / In-Home Studio / Zoom & Webcam  (You travel to me) COMING SOON!

Per-Lesson Rate: $40 per 30-minute session.

Monthly Flat-Rate: $140 / month (based on 4 lessons).

Local Context: For comparison, national chains like Guitar Center in the Portland area charge about $32 per 30-minute session, while independent local instructors generally average around $35 to $40.

Mobile / In-Home Lessons (I travel to you)

Per-Lesson Rate: $50 per 30-minute session.

Monthly Flat-Rate: $180 / month.

Local Context: Established local institutions like the Maine Academy of Modern Music charge $50 per 30-minute lesson. As a mobile independent teacher, matching this rate is highly reasonable because of the concierge "we come to you" factor.

"The Beginner Starter Package" (Highly Recommended for Under-10s)

Price: $120 flat (paid upfront).

Includes: Four 30-minute lessons and a loaner kid-sized guitar for the first month if they don’t own one yet

Lessons cancelled with less than 24 hours' notice cannot be refunded or made up, out of respect for the scheduled time slot. Lessons cancelled with more than 24 hours' notice will receive a makeup credit to be used within 30 days.