My First Piano Adventure is designed for young beginners, ages 5 and 6.  I suspect that 4-year-olds would also thrive using this book, and maybe even precocious 3-year-olds — but don’t quote me on that until I’ve had more time to test it out.

The Lesson Book comes with a CD full of fun songs and activities that teach the student about basic technique, how to make different sounds on the piano, and much more.  The CD alone is worth the price of the Lesson Book!!   Parents can play the CD at home or in the car so the student is hearing them all week long.  I bought my own copy to play during lessons — but I also plan to use some of the songs on the CD with my Piano Readiness Classes and Homeschool Music class because they are that good.  :)  Many of the songs involve some pretty creative activities for learning basic piano technique — which is great, because I am always on the lookout for finding effective ways to teach young beginners proper technique.

The accompanying Writing Book contains worksheets and activities that reinforce that concepts the student is learning about in the Lesson Book.  Both the Lesson and Writing books feature some “piano friends” who show up throughout the books to teach the student about different concepts, and show up in the pieces’ illustrations.  The piano friends are: Marta and Millie (the twins), Carols, Dallas, Katie, and Mrs. Razzle-Dazzle (the piano teacher).  Their pictures are shown on the cover of the book.  Students will be excited to meet these friends and learn about the piano from them.

After the student completes level A of the Lesson and Writing Books, there is a level B and C that follows.  Once the student has completed all three levels, they are ready to jump right into Level 1 of the regular Faber Piano Adventures method books (skipping the Primer level).

These books are so colorful and fun, I can’t imagine what young beginner wouldn’t find piano to be a blast!  I’m super excited to have (finally) discovered these and be trying them out with my students.

You can learn more about “My First Piano Adventures” on the Faber website.  The Video Lesson Guide section is fabulous — watching Nancy Faber teach in the videos is sure to get you inspired.  :)

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I used these cards with my new weekly Homeschool Music Class (just started last week, thanks to Sheryl’s recent post at her Notable Music Studio blog) and with my Piano Readiness Class.  My students LOVED making “musical alphabet snakes” in order to learn how the musical alphabet is different from the regular alphabet.  Included in the pdf is a card which outlines some other possible activities to do using the cards.  These activities work great in both group settings and private lessons.

Do you have some other activities to share that involve alphabet cards?  Share them in the comments!

To Download: visit the Printables > Other Resources page and scroll down to the M’s for Musical Alphabet Cards.

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I got the idea for this craft from Kara’s Creative Place blog (thanks for the brilliant idea, Kara!).  Ribbon Rings (Kara’s example is pictured at right) are a fun prop for movement activities with young students during group lessons, camps, or early childhood music classes.  Kids love fluttering the ribbons of these props while they do the motions to various songs.  You can buy similar ribbon rings at musicmotion.com…..or you can make your own!

These ribbon rings are made using the (non-sticky) plastic tape that is found at most hardware stores near the Caution tape.  I did consider using satin ribbon, however, plastic tape is much, much cheaper.  And actually I was pleasantly surprised at the results of using plastic tape.  I like it much better.  Because it’s so light, it flutters in the air so much better than satin ribbon would.  Definitely give it a try before you invest in satin ribbon!  

I made a set of eight ribbon rings of a medium length (18”).  I may also make a longer set for older kids and a shorter set for toddlers in the future (in which case I will definitely use plastic shower rings instead of metal craft rings).  I also found a closet organizer (meant to hold belts or ties, I think) to hold my ribbon rings and store them safely in my closet.

Here’s how I made mine:

Materials:

• Round, plastic shower curtain rings -OR- 2”-3” metal craft rings (generally cost about 50 cents each at craft stores).
• Plastic ribbon tape (located near the Caution tape in most hardware stores; costs around $3 each).  One roll makes a lot, so buy only one roll unless you want more than one color.
• yardstick/ruler
• scissors

Instructions:

1. Using the yardstick and scissors, cut the plastic tape into strips.  You can make the ribbons any length depending upon the age group you plan to use them with.  (Suggestion: Try roughly 12” for toddlers, 18-36” for ages 6-8, and 36+” for ages 12+.  Cut the strips twice the desired length.  Once knotted, three long strands will become six strands of desired length.
2. Knot the strands to each ring.  A simple loose knot (like the first half of tying your shoe) works just fine, or you can do a cow hitch anchor knot (see right).
3. Repeat with the rest of your rings.  Make as many as you need!

There are plenty of activities you can do with ribbon rings.  A few quick ideas:

• Students can move freely around the room with their ribbon rings to interpret and reflect different styles of classical music.  Even older students and adults enjoy using ribbons for interpretive movement.  Sometimes they might just need a little coaxing and encouragement!  The use of props can actually help prevent students from becoming self-conscious during movement activities.  It gives them something fun to focus on beside themselves.
• Young piano students and early childhood music toddlers can wave the ribbons as they sing and do the motions to children’s songs.  Up/down and high/low sounds are both concepts can be taught using ribbon rings.

Download the pdf instructions with illustrations here.

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I’d like to suggest that there are three components to having and developing what we so loosely refer to as a “good sense of rhythm”:

1. A sense of beat. This means the ability to maintain a steady beat/pulse.  This is probably the most common and most basic problem that students encounter when it comes to rhythm issues in their piece.  The inability to maintain a steady beat/pulse is crucial for developing #’s 2 and 3 below.
2. A sense of rhythm (i.e., note values).  This involves being able to accurately identify and execute the various note values within a variety of tempi.  Beginner students may struggle with placing eighth notes within a quarter note beat, while more advanced students may struggle with syncopated rhythms or playing 2 against 3.  It is nearly impossible to develop a sense of rhythm without first developing a sense of beat (#1 above).
3. A sense of meter.  This may very well be the most elusive component of the three.  At the most basic level, issues with proper sense of meter will evidence themselves when, for example, a student fails to maintain 3/4 time by extending the third beat so that they are actually in 4/4 time (a common issue among beginners).  At more advanced levels, issues with proper sense of meter will evidence themselves when, for example, a student feels cut time (2/2) as common time (4/4), or feels 4/4 or 3/4 time as more like 1/4 (not uncommon in Bach’s contrapuntal pieces).  Losing sight of the meter is like failing to see (or feel) the big picture.

When student has a rhythmic issue in one of their pieces, it can be really beneficial to further identify which of the three components above may be lacking and causing the issue in this case.  An issue in understanding what a half note means is quite different from an issue with keeping a steady beat, for example!  The teacher would solve these issues quite differently.

On a bit of a tangent — all this talk about rhythm is one of the reasons why I’d love to be able to offer pre-piano / early childhood music group classes someday (once set up a studio in my own home rather than teaching on campus).  Offering these kinds of classes allows  the students a chance at musical development before they may be ready for private lessons with a teacher.  And these classes are a perfect opportunity to begin developing good senses of rhythm!  Developing a sense of beat (#1 above) can be done with activities involving tapping, clapping, or walking the beat while singing and moving.  Soon after, students can begin echoing and creating various rhythms within the steady tempo to begin absorbing how note values (#2 above) work.  And, of course, the teacher will present these rhythm activities within certain meters/time signatures (#3).  Although the students may not yet be at the point where they can understand what a time signature means, they can at least begin absorbing and feeling what these meters sound and feel like.  All these things are great foundations for taking lessons later on!

These kinds of activities are not only for early childhood, though.  They would also work well for monthly group lessons with students ages 5-7 (but probably not any older, depending on the activity) who are already taking private lessons.

There are many ways to develop a good sense of rhythm in students!  The most important thing?  Showing students that rhythm can be fun!  =)

Photo Credit: Denzil~ | CC 2.0

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Human infants are born to dance, researchers report online today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Psychologists from the United Kingdom and Finland played an assortment of classical and children’s songs, drumbeats, baby talk, and regular speech for 120 infants ages 5 to 24 months. Speech inspired little motion, but music consistently got the babies into the groove. They moved to music with a clear rhythm and adjusted their movements as the beat varied. And the better the babies matched their motion to the music, the more they smiled. So while it remains a mystery how humans evolved our musical wiring, it’s now clear we enjoy it and always did.  (news.sciencemag.org)

Also see the corresponding video here.

Whether you believe that humans evolved their “musical wiring” or were created with it, this research confirms that humans have some sort of natural inclination towards music, apparent even at the youngest of ages.  It confirms what we as teachers have always known — humans should be developing their musical ability when they are young!

Isn’t it kind of amazing how well those babies in the video have a natural sense of beat?  I wish some of my students could keep a steady beat half as well as the babies in the video!  =D

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Look what I found!  TONS of great links:

Songs / Sheet Music

• MakingMusicFun.com – free printable sheet music with lyrics of all kinds of children’s songs
• Kididdles.com – free printable sheet music, lyrics, with corresponding coloring pages and other activities
• BusSongs.com – lyrics & words for children’s nursery rhymes & songs
• kodaly.hnu.com – a database of American folk songs; songs can be sorted by “Pre-K” level
• FreeKidsMusic.com – free downloadable mp3s of children’s folk songs as well as other contemporary songs by various artists
• PreschoolExpress.com – lyrics to familiar folk songs as well as piggyback songs (songs with new words put to familiar tunes) – all organized by theme
• lds.org – sheet music for children’s Bible songs and hymns
• JudyandDavid.com – lyrics of children’s songs, many with corresponding activity sheets (pdfs)
• NancyMusic.com – tons of newly composed children’s songs, with free downloadable mp3s and corresponding activities and coloring sheets (pdfs)
• MamaLisa.com – lyrics, midi files, and sheet music for various songs from around the world (includes translations)

Printables

• LessonSense.com – free printable flashcards of all the instruments
• WeeSing.com – free printables that correspond with various songs from the Wee Sing books; changes daily.

Props / Instruments

• PreKinders.com – list of props and homemade instruments for early childhood music classes
• FamilyCorner.com – a list of 9 make-your own instruments with instructions
• dsokids.com – more ideas for making your own instruments
• familyfun.go.com – more homemade instruments, plus music games for children

Lesson Plans / Activities

• ChildrensMusicWorkshop.com – a list of children’s books with musical subject matter
• NellieEdge.com – printable kid-sized “little books” containing lyrics and illustrations to familiar nursery rhymes and songs
• LessonSense.com – music-related arts and crafts activities
• menc.org – a position statement by the National Association for Music Education, regarding early childhood music education
• PreKinders.com (again) – list of fun activities for children to do while listening to specific classical works

Methodologies / Early Childhood Certification

• allianceamm.org – four articles to read summarizing the Gordon, Dalcroze, Kodaly, and Orff-Schulwork methodologies
• ecmma.org – Early Childhood Music & Movement Association certification
• rcmusic.ca – The Royal Conservatory of Music’s Advanced Certificate in Early Childhood Music
• giml.org – Gordon certification
• MusicTogether.com – Music Together teacher certification
• MYC.com – Music For Young Children teacher certification
• Musikgarten.org – Musikgarten
• HarmonyRoadMusic.com – Harmony Road Music course
• Kindermusik – Kindermusik teacher certification
• Let’s Play Music – another preschool children music program

Teaching Tips

• SuperSimpleSongs.com – teaching tips

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/19646481@N06/ / CC BY 2.0

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To tell you the truth, I have not needed to teach 2 against 3 very often so far, and when I have, it’s been in private piano lesson settings.  In the past, I’ve used a purely theoretical approach (similar to the method described in this article and this article) to teaching the concept, using tapping of the RH and LH, and have been only mildly successful.

However, I have experienced another method that works.  During my undergrad, I took a Dalcroze Eurhythmics course, and we went over a number of different meter and rhythm concepts, including the issue of 2 against 3.  Although I already understood the concept of 2 against 3 prior to that class, it was quite revealing to look at it from the perspective of movement.  

My teacher first handed out tennis balls.  We were instructed to step in three and bounce in two, as he demonstrated for us.  Then we switched: we stepped in two and bounced in three.  What a difference it makes to feel 2 against 3 with your whole body — rather than try to wrap your mind around it from merely a mental standpoint!

But now we address the problem: how do we teach 2 against 3 to younger children who may not have the coordination to bounce and catch tennis balls while walking in time?  =)  Some ideas:

1. Instruct the students sit on the floor with their legs extended front of them.
2. Divide the class in half.  Count in 6/8 time, and instruct half of the class to gently bounce their tennis balls in front of them on beats 1, 3, and 5, and the other half on beats 1 and 4.  The resulting rhythm is 2 against 3.  Now switch, so each student has the opportunity to try both parts.
3. If the students seem ready, go a step farther.  Now that they’ve experienced the sound and feel of two against three, see if they can reproduce it themselves by tapping three’s in the LH and two’s in the RH.  Not all of the students may be ready to do this at this point, but at least they’ve been introduced to the concept and have experienced it.  This lays the groundwork for later work with the concept.

Two against three is no easy concept!  I’d love to hear any further ideas you may have.

Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/shawnzlea/ / CC BY 2.0

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Besides, movement is fun!  =)

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kwanie/ / CC BY 2.0

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I’m excited to think about starting up these classes someday.  Here’s some things I’m been thinking about…

Things to consider:

1. Location/space – large, open room.
2. Parents’ presence – required or not?
3. Materials – songbooks, musical instruments, colored scarves, rugs, cd player, etc.
4. Class size – six to ten, perhaps?
5. Ages – 0-18 mo., 18 mo.-3 yrs, 3-5 yrs.
6. Class duration – 30, 45, 50, or 55 minutes.
7. Sessions – 7- or 14-week sessions.
8. Goals – music literacy; musical experience; aural development; building the parents’ & children’s repertoire of music to share in the home; music as expression; building of pre-piano skills; etc.

Types of Activities:

• Songs with motions
• Listening & responding with movement (classical, folk, jazz, pop, etc.)
• Fingerplays
• Chants
• Musical games
• Other activities

I think these classes will be fun!  And I’m hoping that introducing  such classes will give my beginner piano students a head start once they begin private lessons.  Has anyone offered similar classes in their piano studios before?  I’d love to hear about it.

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/89186997@N00/ / CC BY 2.0

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