The Teenage Years​: 13 - 18 years​
We encourage teens to study music THEY LOVE, while learning the basics in an accelerated method. This way students can learn quickly, but be sure to know the basics thoroughly. Having an outlet like playing an instrument, or singing, is really helpful for teens who are going through stressful situations at home and at school.
Accomplishments in music also contribute greatly to a teen's self-esteem, which is the single highest factor in keeping kids out of troubled behaviors. A teen needs to have a point of emerging competence at this age, or they can become depressed and unmotivated. With a custom-tailored curriculum, and a teacher/mentor that is matched exactly to their personality type and learning style, teens are often the fastest learners in our school. They can go from beginning to advanced in as little as 2 years!
These years can be the most EXCITING years for young students, because the music they can perform is truly spectacular and filled with emotion. They can win competitions, and learn to write their own music. If you have a teen who shows some of the signs of musical talent, music lessons are the single greatest gift you can give them. If school seems more important right now, read more below on how music students are more successful in life, not only socially, but academically and emotionally when they study music concurrently.
We also hire many of our teen students to be mentors for younger students. We have found that when our students tutor others, their confidence in their own music soars. They gain musical maturity while giving their own students a peer to look up to. It's a win for the younger student because they get an additional lesson per week, with the tutor, for free. They also get an older peer to look up to. It's a win for the older student because they get to think through, and present the material in a way that a younger student would understand it, which solidifies the knowledge for them.
Music is great, but we are focusing on college.
Teens and Voice Lessons
If a student really wants to pursue higher education, in any subject, and get a Master's or Doctorate Degree, music majors are the most likely group to be admitted into graduate school.​
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Even if a student doesn't want to be a professional performing musician, or a music teacher, there are many benefits to considering a music major in college. Of all majors that someone can have in college, 66% of students who major in music are accepted to medical school. That is the highest percentage of acceptance of any major.

We have had many students receive full and partial scholarships to college after as little as only two years of formal lessons. Whether the student wants to major in music, or just study music while in school, many scholarships are available and waiting for people to ask for them. Music lessons as a child pay off BIG TIME when it's time to figure out how to pay for college!
Teens are at the age to finally utilize a full vocal range, opening up a vast array of musical selections to choose from.

Voice students of this age have usually been singing with songs on the radio for years, and have the opportunity, if trained, to be incredible vocalists. Shows like 'Glee' and 'American Idol' have made singing into an amazingly popular art form, and highlight the importance of a high level of music education, beginning at a young age, to truly master singing.

Singing is one of the most pure forms of self expression a human being can engage in. Voice lessons are pure joy. We work with teens by using the songs they already love to teach them correct breathing, tone production, and pitch matching. We have a full digital recording studio, which we utilize to let teens hear themselves sing. This is also great for teens working on auditions for theater productions.

When Things Get Rough
Waiting Because of Poor Grades In School
Waiting Because Of Negitive Behavior...
Teen years are some of the most difficult years, in an educational, social, and a hormonal way. They need a positive mentor, and activities that challenge them while also giving them a creative outlet for self-expression. This is the time for learning songwriting, enjoying the social outlet of playing in their own band, or conquering a very difficult piece that they have always wanted to play.
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Continuing lessons during times of stress gives a young adult the ability to express themselves, especially when they feel troubled. We hire not just teachers, but mentors who have demonstrated that they can help guide young people through these difficult times in life. Our teachers practice what they preach, living lives of doing good, and being positive role models in the communities in which we all live.
For many students, their music teacher at teVelde is the only adult person, besides their parents, who they have seen every week since they started going to school. This long term mentoring relationship is a valuable extra benefit from taking lessons at teVelde.
Parents may have a tendency to postpone starting lessons when thier child has problems socially. Without realizing it, they are taking away the very activity that can help the issue. Music improves self esteem, which directly affects which friend group a child identifies with.

When teens are stressed out or frustrated, singing or playing an instrument gets them in contact with their feelings, helping them to understand and deal with those emotions. When they have an outlet, they feel better, and they start to see some hope for being happier in the future.
When children mature to teenagers, school may become a second priority, leading to less then desirable grades. When this happens taking away fun activities seems to be a logical step. Music may be fun, but it is also one of the positive things you can do to help your child's brain develop the organizational structure to do well in school.
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Surprisingly, high school music students score higher on SATs in both verbal and math skills than their peers. In 2001, SAT takers with coursework/experience in music performance scored 57 points higher on the verbal portion of the test and 41 points higher on the math portion than students with no coursework/experience in the arts.