The bloke round the corner has asked you to give a few lessons to his lad who is mad about drums. What are you going to teach on your first lesson?  

       I have taught the following many times to first timers of junior school age. So far, every pupil has left the room able to play his first rhythm and eager to return. 

1.    Sit the pupil at the drum kit. Give them the sticks. Name the drums and cymbals and let them hit each. Pupils want to get behind the drums as quickly as possible and hit them. If you don't let them get it over with, they will be staring at the drums and thinking about hitting them instead of listening to you. So let them have a good thwack. Watch their grip as they do it. Correct it afterwards. Show them a good grip and play the drums for them with control and musicality. Show them good posture and demonstrate how the instruments work. Show them the snare mechanism and the hi-hats. Get them to name each drum and cymbal correctly. 

2.  Teach them a basic rhythm on bass drum, hi hat and snare. Just crotchets. A simple 4. Let them try to copy you. See how close they are to what you played. Then break the parts down - separate hands and feet and let them try again. This may take some time. Encourage all the good parts and reassure the bad ones until the pupil gets a good bar together. Then encourage in a big way. Fantastic! Superb! Your'e getting it already! You are going to be really good at this! If the pupil is nowhere near -  which is rare, take a different tack and teach hands only or one hand and foot. Build the rhythm up over a couple of lessons. All my recent pupils have managed a rhythm in one lesson. But it is no big deal. It takes as long as it takes. Once they have that rhythm in their locker they are drumming. Suggest a song they can play along to. I like "Living on a Prayer" by Bon Jovi. I sing it to them and play it to show them, very simply; 4 crotchets - bass, snare, bass, snare and 4 on hi hat.

3.   Wind up the lesson by showing them the notation for the rhythm they have just played.  Don't elaborate. Just tell them they just played notes called crotchets and you will look at them next lesson. 

On the sheet there should be the a picture of a drum kit with labels for all the drums and cymbals. And some minims, crotchets and quavers. Let the pupil look at them too and say the names. Tell the pupil to take the sheet home and look at it. No pressure.

4.  For next time they are to practice their new rhythm and learn the names of the drums and cymbals. Give them a cheap folder to keep their sheet in. Tell them to bring it next week. Repeat the instructions to mum or dad. Tell them their child was great. And look forward to the next lesson!  

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