Hayley Flagstad, left, instructs a lesson to children and parents at the Children’s Music Academy. Next to Flagstad is Terri Aldrich, studio owner and teacher. Hannah Baleme/MDN

Minot State University student Hayley Flagstad leads a busy life. Along with raising two kids, attending college and playing in the Minot Symphony Orchestra, she manages to teach at the Children’s Music Academy.

“I just want to help kids see how important music is in everyday life. Teaching them at a young age is the best way to learn because the brain is still growing,” Flagstad said.

Flagstad attended and graduated from the Children’s Music Academy as a little girl. Now, 17 years later, she teaches the same curriculum to a new batch of kids. She is passionate about the students she instructs and wants them to grow up with the same solid foundation she has.

“I would have struggled if I did not come here first,” said Flagstad.

Now a student of music at Minot State, Flagstad plays quite a few instruments, including piano, viola and French horn, to name a few.

“I have had a whole lot of college classes where nobody knew much about music. In class, one of my best friends did not even know how to read music. I would not have known much either if I did not come here first,” Flagstad said of the academy.

She said nostalgia surrounds the Children’s Music Academy and that is a big reason why she came back to teach.

“The parents are really involved. The curriculum is still the same as when I went. All the duets and music are the same. It reminds me of when I was with my parents here. I lost both my parents, so it’s fun to get to relive all the great memories while watching my students create their own memories with their parents,” Flagstad said.

Moreso, she finds it rewarding to see growth in her students at such a young age.

“I have a student in the CMA master’s program who joined later than others, so he was a little behind. But now he’s graduated and I do private lessons with him. At 12, he has grown so much and he’s one of my best students,” she said.

Flagstad said the academy was able to retain its students during the pandemic, but it was difficult to get new students.

“It was hard during the pandemic for about a year because we had to do our piano classes over Zoom. It’s hard to keep the kids’ attention because what 4-year-old can manage to stay focused in front of a computer screen?” she said.

Now that classes have resumed regularly, Flagstad teaches three times a week. She has 20 students and about eight private lessons.

“The youngest class is for ages 3 to 4. That was the first class I ever went to here. When I was that age, I did not like coming but now I look back and I realize how much I actually did like it,” Flagstad said.