Drummers are often the most outgoing members of a musical group as there is no way to softly play the drums and just fade into the background. Drummers hang it all out every time they play.  They have to be right on every time.  If a child is very confident, likes to dance, raps on books, furniture, or car seats, they are a prime candidate for drum instruction.  Conversely if a child lacks confidence, or has been labeled "not musical," he or she could be a great candidate for drum instruction.  At Loudoun Music instruction I focus in heavily on the fundamentals of drumming.  First and foremost I make sure the kids keep time.  I teach that speed is cheap and that it comes from a focus on good timing.  I make sure the rudiments are grasped thoroughly before I worry about style.  The first few months focus on the building blocks of, music theory, reading drum notation on a musical staff, drum rudiments & basic sticking patterns and playing in various time signatures.  The emphasis of the first year is learning at a slow, consistent tempo and speeding up patterns a few beats per minute at a time to retain accuracy while increasing speed.  The metronome is the drummers best friend for that first year! Many drum students only use a snare drum for the first year and that's actually not a bad thing. After the fundamentals are learned I move the kids to different styles and more complex rhythms.  I love to watch their musical tastes mature as they realize what it takes to excel in different musical genres like jazz, blues, latin and reggae.  The speed, the fills and the rolls/flams and ruffs come so natural once they are relaxed and playing in time. Over the years I have had some serious fun teaching drums.  Watching the kids grow into full fledged rockers is flat out unbelievable.  I have drummers here that I am honored to teach and jam with.  These kids are the heart and soul of my in house band program.  Without them, the concerts couldn't rock the way they do.      The benefits of drum instruction are an excellent sense of rhythm, comfort with sets of numbers (an overall improvement in math skills though they won't realize it), good organizational skills (drummers often become good music arrangers), and unbelievable confidence.  If you want a child out of their shell...put him or her in drum lessons. Optimum starting age is between 8-10 years old.