Working with the Animal Notes to develop good Note Reading Skills in Young Piano Students
Since the beginning of this communication with you I have spoken of how unique each individual is and the importance of this fact in teach piano. In most cases you have the privilege of working one on one with your student and in group situations your classes are usually small. In the case of teaching the 4 to 6 year old group I strongly advise, when ever possible, working one on one with them so you can truly tailor your class to that special young individual sitting with you.
Young children tend to get distracted easily. The animal notes help so much to keep their attention. The Animals allow you to create fun in interesting stories about the notes. It is important to come up with at least one for each animal that has meaning to the young child. Many times I ask them to help me make up the story; this is such great fun for them. I make certain the story somehow ties in the location of the animal on the Grand Staff and Keyboard. What I am trying to do here is create a lasting memory for the individual child that will be an important memory clue that allows them to play the note correctly when ever seen.
I bet many of you are thinking; “How do you switch from the animal notes to regular notes.” I will discuss this in length in the future and I will soon have flash cards to help you with is task. What is important in the beginning is helping your young student conquer the difficult task of Note Reading in a fun, relaxed and memorable way.
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May 1st, 2007 at 11:23 pm
You’re methods of teaching piano to younger children has been very lucid and eye opening. I will certainly try your methods.
However, I am trying to teach a 4 year old that doesn’t know how to read yet, and can barelly recognise written numbers. Would I have to teach her how to read letters and numbers first, before I begin teaching her Piano?
May 29th, 2007 at 9:33 am
Tania, I sincerely apologize for not answering your comment weeks ago. It somehow slipped through the cracks. I truly want to help you and others who accept the challenge of teaching these little ones. The reason the Animal Notes work so well for little ones is they do not need to be able to read to begin playing the piano. The animal names start with the letters that are used to name the notes in standard music in many areas of the world so transitioning to the standard method is made easier when the child does start learning the alphabet and the sounds of the letters. The animals I have chosen to use are familiar to most children at a young age and if they are not, they are easy to introduce to the children by using a childs book that has a picture of the animal. Children love to talk about animals which also makes teaching a 4 year old something that is so strange to their world like a piano. The animal notes are easy to recognize which helps the child know what note to play. I am presently working on additional books and the set of flash cards are about ready for sale.
July 24th, 2011 at 10:55 am
I’m not wothry to be in the same forum. ROTFL