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A decent 3/4 size nylon string might still be the best option unless she wants to go electric. I think it's best to start on acoustic though.
On the basis that even a 3/4 size will be too big for a 7-year-old. A guitarlele has normal string spacing, with a "virtual capo" at the 5th fret. Genuinely decent tone. Sized very nicely for a younger child I would have thought. And it's also a very useful size to use as a travel guitar for adults. Easyjet allow it on in your hand luggage without question or extra charges. Budget for a new set of strings, the stock ones are rubbish.
Nylon strings can take a while to settle in regarding tuning and ditto regarding variation in room temperature - but you soon get use to tuning the guitar, especially with a tuner
Take her with you to a good local shop and let her sit down and see what feels comfortable - might be 1/2 or 3/4 based on her size - live with this for a while, build up some knowledge of playing then by a better guitar once you know she is interested - a nylon is fine to start to learn initial chords etc
I know what you are saying though
So we've had objections to both steel strings and nylon strings because they hurt the ickle kiddies' fingers. Perhaps the hive mind is recommending this?
So I'm searching for a small electric guitar with a thin neck and narrow nut width, a trip to the guitar shop I think.
At 7 they would just be on a 3/4 nylon string. They can start to play 4/4 size at the same time they move to steel strings (acoustic and electric). This happens at about age 9 if they're reasonably competent on the 3/4 scale.
If you can't get a 3/4 nylon string to stay in tune, you're either using the wrong strings or fitting them wrong. No offense implied but it's simply not true that they don't stay in tune. They take a bit of stretching in, but that's about it.
There are exceptions but they are rare.
Get any cheap 3/4 nylon string- it will essentially be a toy for a few years.
Studio: https://www.voltperoctave.com
Music: https://www.euclideancircuits.com
Me: https://www.jamesrichmond.com
Football is rubbish.
That's not true, it just depends on the teaching. In my Primary School they had a really good Music teacher and almost all of the children were successfully taught to play Piano to a decent standard at the age of 8.
Unfortunately the school was a bit crap in every other respect. I still turned out okay though.
As for @octatonic and they're inablity to learn, I disagree with that, at 7 my eldest was doing basic finger picking folk tunes. He's now 10 and doing Van Halen, this wouldn't be possible without the basics he learned at 7. But I do agree with treat it like a toy, at 7 they don't have the ability to look after themselves let alone a guitar.
I say this as someone who taught many children over a 20+ years of teaching and had many conversations with other teachers.
You don't teach in the same way- it is essentially 'play' like playing in the schoolyard is play, rather than 'study'.
Studio: https://www.voltperoctave.com
Music: https://www.euclideancircuits.com
Me: https://www.jamesrichmond.com
Football is rubbish.
I absolutely don't force them to do it though, that's massively counter productive. Also I leave the guitars lying about in the back room so they can just go and pick one up and have a go. My wife obviously loves this...
It also works better for adults, incidentally.
There is something about picking it up and putting it down that solidifies things more than grinding it out for hours at a time.
Studio: https://www.voltperoctave.com
Music: https://www.euclideancircuits.com
Me: https://www.jamesrichmond.com
Football is rubbish.
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