Joy to the World Scale + Harmony Experiment

Practicing Scales & Chord Progressions.... What's the point????

I came up with this little seasonal exercise to help my students practice applying their scale & chord progression knowledge (I, IV, V7) to a familiar Christmas tune.  I like how it helps them to see the practical application of technical exercises in everyday music.
1.  Starting on C play the opening melody to Joy to the World with your Right Hand (Descending C Major scale). "Joy to the World, the Lord is Come"

2. Play again adding a C Major root chord in the left on each note of the melody. Does that sound good to you?

3.Experiment changing the C Major root chords to IV (F) or V7 (G) chords until the left hand chords harmonize well with the melody line.  Hint: To sound like traditional Joy to the World, choose chords that include at least one note from the melody line.  For example if you are playing C in the right hand a C chord (CEG) or F chord  2nd inversion (CFA) will sound better than G7 (BFG).

Additional Challenges:
4. Add your chord choices to the Music Ace Doodle Pad.
5. Once you've finalized your chord choices, try omitting a few of the left hand chords for a more legato sound.
6.  Transpose the opening theme of Joy to the World to the keys of G, D, A, E & F Major.
7.  Improvise the left hand chords.  Try playing open fifths, broken or arpeggiated chords.

Teaching Basic Fingering Rules

What finger do I start on?

My students who are used to method books where fingering is typically spelled out for them sometimes draw a blank when they try some supplemental music with no fingering guidelines.
Transitioning from method books where the fingering is suggested for students, to simplified hymns or supplemental piano music with no fingering guidelines can be a bit of a challenge. 

Rather than giving them fish (prescribing the best fingering), I want to be better at teaching them to fish (show them how to choose the best fingering for them for each situation.)
I like to start with Martha Beth Lewis's basic fingering Rules.
1.Thou shalt not hop.
2. In any finger crossing, thou shalt use a thumb.
Although my teachers spent a lot of time teaching proper scale, arpeggio & chord fingering, I don't remember a lot of emphasis being placed on how to apply fingering rules into my music.


Following are my step by step instructions to help my student choose appropriate fingering for a simplified version of one of my favorite Thanksgiving Hymns - "We Gather Together" .
 Steps for selecting appropriate fingering.
1. Goal: Play phrases Legato.  First identify and mark the phrases in the song.  Use the words and punctuation as your clues.
2. "Block" the Left Hand notes one phrase at a time
3. Identify phrases including notes larger than a 5 finger span.
4. Write in the fingering at the beginning of each phrase. "Floating off" (a delicate hop) to a new position between phrases is okay.
5. Remember, "Thou shalt not finger hop" (within the phrase).  Decide which fingering technique works the best - Expansion, Contraction, Finger Crossing or Finger Substitution.  Listen carefully as you play with your selected fingering to make sure it doesn't have create awkward accented notes.
Write in the fingering you have chosen and which strategy you used.

 For more helpful fingering guidelines visit the following link at key-notes.com.
7 Rules of Piano Fingering

P.S. It's hard to believe those little fingers in the picture are now big enough for my little girl to "color" all over my music now & play on the keys.

Lyric Composition Contest GMajor Music

While browsing to find one of my student's favorite Halloween pieces, "Big Bad Goblin Blues" (available at gmajormusic), I spotted this fun  "write your own lyrics" contest opportunity that has a monetary reward.  I think it will be the perfect thing for some of my students to fulfill their Creative Project on this year's "This is Your Brain on Music" incentive.

Fun Way to Review Music Concepts Online - Quizlet

I stumbled on Quizlet this morning while searching for an easy way to help students remember the order and definition of tempo terms.  My favorite element is the "Space Race" game where you can improve both your typing skills and music knowledge as you race to "kill" the term by typing in its name or definition before it slides off the screen.
In Piano there are over 600 flashcard sets, or you can create your own customized set.  Following are just a few of the concepts quizlet could be useful for:

Articulations
Key Signatures
Theory Terms
Tempos
Note Names

Certificate of Merit
Piano Composers and their Historical Periods

I have created several quizlet sets to review theory terms and also have links to others organized by level on my Piano Lab page.
Quizlet Music Theory Terms & Signs  Level 2 (Hal Leonard)
Quizlet Music Theory Terms & Signs Level 3
Quizlet Music Theory Terms  & Signs Level 4
Quizlet Music Theory Terms  & Signs Level 5

I would have loved this in grade school!  It's definitely more fun than ordinary 3x5 cards I used to study in school. Something about having the message pop up at the end that says "Good Start... now beat that score, " just makes me want to play again :).

I was grateful to be sidetracked, although I didn't find the answer to my original search.  Does anyone have a great acronym, story, etc. to help students remember the order of tempo terms?

The best I can come up with involves a
Grandfather (Grave)
L (Largo)
L (Larghetto)
L (Lento)
A (Adagio)
A (Andante)

A (Andantino)
M (Moderato)
A (Allegretto)
A (Allegro)
(llama)
 aspiring to be the
Vice (Vivace)
President (Presto)
P (Prestissimo)

Favorite Piano Teaching Tips from Helen Marlais Workshop

I love picking up fresh ideas and important reminders from any piano teaching workshop I have the privilege of attending.  Following are a few ideas from my notes at Dr. Marlais seminar:

Technique

• Remember to focus on the entire playing mechanism (fingers, wrists, forearm, shoulders).  Just as a runner uses more than just their feet to run, a pianist plays with more than just their fingers. Continually reiterate the importance of arm weight (relaxed shoulders) weight transfer (flexible wrists).
• Prescription for fixing 'finger dents' - Tap rhythms with a curved hand instead of clapping or do finger pushups against the wall for warmups.
• For  appropriate balance  in pieces with Left Hand melody stand behind the student and ghost-play on their shoulders with exaggerated arm weight in the left hand so they can FEEL the weight emphasis as they play.
• To teach 2-note slurs wrist motion analogy- pull a tissue from a tissue box.
• To help students focus on wrist motion at phrase endings (2 note slurs or "rainbows" across several octaves) add a pony tail holder with a ball on top & have them watch the bunny tail hop up at the end of each phrase.  I thought some of my girl students would like this better than my airplane wings wrist movement tool
• To focus on arm leading while playing ascending scales imagine a string attached to your right elbow pulling it slightly ahead of your hand.
• Variations of Staccato - For a crisper sound use  a "kick-off" wrist where arm and wrist stay as one unit.  Rebound staccato is more like a bouncing a basketball with a flexible "push-off" wrist.

Theory

• Tonic (I) is Home where "I" live, Dominant (V) is a "V" for vacation, Leading Tone (visualize a road) leading back to Home (I)
• Intervallic Reading + Rhythmic Awareness - Line up interval flashcards and have students name them to the beat of the metromone (Up- 2nd, Down-4th, Down-3rd, Up-5th, etc.)

Rhythm

• When introducing 6/8 time have student sway on the strong beats while chanting the words to the song (1,2,3,   4,5,6,)

Performance Anxiety

• To reduce perfectionistic tendencies, don't focus too closely or get anxious over small imperfections.  Even a garden that looks great from afar may have small holes in the leaves from bugs but it still leaves a beautiful impression :)

Dr. Marlais showcased her new method series "Succeeding at the Piano." Following are a few of my favorite aspects of this new series.

• Emphasis on intervallic reading & guide notes
• Technique concepts introduced through multiple analogies
• Books come with accompanying CD's including practice tips, performance speeds and orchestration 

A few of her other publications that I enjoy are:

In Recital with Jazz, Blues & Rags  - The pieces in the early level books are so fun for students and make a great introduction to jazz styles.  I also love the accompanying CDs.
Succeeding with the Masters Series  (Baroque, Classical, Romantic affiliate links). I find the Practice Strategies & Historical & stylistic information accompanying each piece to be very helpful which sets them apart from some other collections of classical repertoire I was instructed with.  The supporting CD helps to clarify concepts so the student can hear examples of the skills applying to each piece. It's like bringing your piano teacher home with you to demonstrate appropriate practice :)
Currently one of the most viewed post on my blog is the Lab Assignment I created to go with In Recital with Classical Themes Volume 1, so obviously some other teachers are a fan of this series as well.


Some of the products linked in my posts may be affiliate links, earning me a small commission on any products purchased via that link.

Good Things:

Adding new teaching tricks to my bag
Browsing through new music
My Amazing Husband who took the day off and took our 6 kids to the zoo I could attend this!
Sunny Summer Days

Piano Lab Free Online Resources- Level 1

 In addition to the music software programs I've purchased for my lab (Music Ace, Midisaurus, Ear Training Expedition,  PBJ, etc.) the following free online resources add a fun variety of activities for my elementary music students to do independently during piano lab time.
SP-Susan Paradis
CC-Compose Create (Teaching Resources & Students Web Rewards Tabs)
CIMP- Color in My Piano
MLC- Music Learning Community (Free Games)
Piano Discoveries
MMB- Music Matters Blog
Tonic Tutor
Theta
Happy Note
Classics for Kids (I typically have students listen to "This Week's Show")


Following is a list organized by concept. Do you have any other favorites to add to the list for this level?

Concept	Activity
LH/RH  & Finger Numbers	SP Colorful Fingers printable
	Tonic Tutor Finger Puppets
Same/Diff. Melodies	MLC Smiley & Friends
Going Up/Down	MLC Storm Chasers
	Tonic Tutor Stick People
Note Names QH	MLC Meteor Match
Note Names QHW	Happy Note Space
Rhythm QHWqr	CC Note Value printable
	SP Drawing Notes printable
Ear Training Rhythm	Tonic Tutor Dancing Jelly Beans
White Key Names	Tonic Tutor Piano Keys
	YouTube Frog Video
	MLC Letter Fly CDE
	MLC Letter Fly FGAB
	SP Hide the Pumpkin printable
	CC White Key Notes printable
	Emusictheory.com Piano Keys Quiz
Up/Down on Staff	WPS Moving Up and Down worksheet
	SP ABC;s on Staff Worksheet
Bass Clef F &G	Happy Note Bass Clef F & G
	Candy Corn Note Puzzle Bass FGAB
	CIMP Bass Clef Dot to Dot printable
Bass & Treble Clefs	CC Drawing Clefs printable
	Piano Discoveries Barnyard Video/Wkst/Online Games
	CIMP Treble Clef Dot to Dot printable
	SP Guide Notes Worksheet in order
	SP Guide Notes Worksheet random
Staff Treble CDEFG	Happy Note Treble Clef CDEFG MLC Page Turner Treb CDEFG play 2x
Treble Staff	MLC Page Turner Treble FACE play 2x
	Pedaplus.com Treblebeg
Guidenotes	Tonic Tutor Lasers
	CC Landmark Notes Crossword printable
Notes on Staff	Tonic Tutor Note Bird
Steps and Skips	Tonic Tutor Jungle Journey
	CC Steps and Skips Worksheet
	Theta Chord Spells Level 1 (40)
E.T Melody	Tonic Tutor Robot
Rhythm Recognition	Tonic Tutor Piggybank
Theory Terms	Tonic Tutor Boxing Glove
Hearing Steps/Skips	Big ears Intervals-:P1(repeat), M2(st), M3(sk)
	Theta Paddle Pitch Level 1 (40)
Hearing W H Qt	emusictheory.com easy whole,quarter,half
	Theta Flash Rhythms Level 1 (40)
Half Steps Whole Steps	CC Half Steps/Whole Steps Printable
	MMB Half/Whole Step/Skip Printable
Review	Level 1 Practice Test (for purchase on Compose Create)
	CIMP Review Test A
	CIMP Review Test B
	CC Web Rewards Level 1

Organizing Piano Games

Piano Studio organization is a work in progress. 
I've tried several different methods to organize my games & this is the best I've come up with for now.

I store my gamecards in these small plastic totes, inside of a larger plastic tub with a lid.

Labels on the top of each box help me remember the contents of each box.

Thanks to a helpful tip from another blogger, I purchased these expandable files to store my flat gameboards  in.  I originally tried to add the gamecards too so they could all be in one place, but I didn't like the bulkiness it created.

I printed  tiny images of the contents on one sheet of paper so I can see at a glance which games are stored inside.

The games fit snugly inside this old tv cabinet beside my piano for easy access during lessons.  

 I also keep my teaching binders, most often used piano books for checkout inside.  I love having it close by but behind closed doors.

My own children's piano bags are stored right next to the piano.

But soon all of my games and music library materials will be happily moving to a new home that is almost 3x larger! We have a large tv armoire (a great Craig's list find)  that I plan to put a few shelves in.  Then I can store all of my music in the large space for the tv and put all of the games and other tools underneath in the video storage area.
For more piano games organization tips check out this "Game Materials Organization"post by Joy ... (the inspiration for this post:)

Piano Lab Assignment Sheets

Creating and organizing my piano lab curriculum has been a long ongoing process. After going to a local piano teacher's seminar by Renee Lacey (creator of Ear Training Expedition), I decided to organize my own list Computer Lab Activities to directly correlate with the order of concepts introduced in the method books I typically use.
Renee has a booklet for sale with lab lesson plans utilizing various software programs and organized by rotating weekly themes (see more under Leveled/Topical Approach in this post). For my friend who has a large studio this has been a great asset. I chose to come up with my own curriculum instead so that I could more flexibly implement other online resources, avoid the cost of new software and cater to my students specific needs.
I have a durable plastic colored folder for each of my students that includes their Piano Lab Assignment Tracking Sheet. Following is a small sample of my Level 1 Activities. To the right of the activity there is a column for "Date Assigned," "Score,"(recorded by student) and "Done"(checked off by teacher). By color-coding the activities (Green-online, Black-lab binder w/ dry erase markers, Red-Music Ace, etc.) I can more easily prep for lessons. Before or after lessons it only takes me a minute or two to scan each students checklist, check progress & move the highlighter tape to the activities I'd like them to complete next. If they have mastered a concept (like white key names) before completing all the activities, I skip to the next concept. It is helpful for me to have them all listed for students who need the extra reinforcement

Concept	Activity
LH/RH & Finger Numbers	SP Colorful Fingers worksheet
	Tonic Tutor Blue Finger Puppets
High/Low	Midisaurus Sounds Around Us
	Midisaurus High and Low
	Ear Training Exped.P1 Level 1-Unit 1
	Music Ace Lesson 2 Intro to Keyboard
	Music Ace Game 2
Same/Diff. Melodies	MLC Smiley & Friends play 2x
Going Up/Down	MLC Storm Chasers play 2x
	Ear Training Exped P1 Level 1 Unit 2
Note Names QH	MLC Meteor Match play 2x
Note Names QHW	Happy Note Space
Rhythm QHWqr	WPS Note Value Worksheet
Draw qr 4/4 measure	Theory pg 10-14 (draw rests, measures)
Adagio Allegro	Midisaurus Fast and Slow
Rhythm Steady Beat	Music Ace Lesson 3 Beat and Tempo
	Music Ace Game 3
White Key Names	Midisaurus Music Alphabet
	MLC Letter Fly CDE
	MLC Letter Fly FGAB
	Tonic Tutor Piano Keys
	Alfred Name That Key
	SP Hide the Pumpkin Worksheet
	WPS White Key Notes Worksheet
	Emusictheory.com Piano Keys Quiz
	Music Ace Lesson 5 ABC’s of Keyboard
	Music Ace Game 5
	Music Ace Lesson 7 More Piano ABC’s
	Music Ace Lesson 7
Piano/forte	Midisaurus Loud and Soft
	Theory pgs 22-25 f/p complete measure

I also typically have them start lab by listening to the weekly Classics for Kids program (about 5 min).

Sometimes if a student is making fast progress, I allow them to choose their own activities from the link list on my blog, beat their own high scores or just create their own songs on the Music Ace Doodle Pad.
After they are familiar with the analysis process I also assign them listening & analysis tasks specific to the song they are learning, but I don't track this on their assignment sheet.

Organizing My Teaching Tools: Piano Teaching Binders

After several years of finding a treasure trove of online piano teaching resources, I decided to compile my most often used on the bench teaching aids into a couple of binders with tabbed dividers w/ sheet protectors. It's so convenient to have my note naming, sightreading & rhythm drills all in one place as students work to compete in the Piano Summer Olympics Events.

Fun animated elementary music videos

Major/minor





Treble Clef (Piano Discoveries)


The Cool Bass Clef





Quarter Note Song

Piano Keyboard ABC's Fun Learning Video

I just came across this fun short video on Youtube to teach about white key letter names.  I love the clever animation!

Free Staff Notes Game Online - Staff Wars

If you haven't played Staff Wars - watch out! You might get addicted :) Over the past few days I've discovered how engaging (and addictive) this free downloadable game can be for kids.  Its a great addition to my piano lab. One element of my studio summer piano incentive "Music Olympics" is for students to track their scores on Staff Wars (from The Music Interactive-Classroom Apps ).  My son is determined to stay in the lead in this particular event and is willing to clean his room, do his chores and practice piano so he can try and advance past level 8.    I'm loving his motivation and improved note reading skills!
In this game the notes slide across the staff and as the student clicks on the correct letter name the note explodes.  After each set of 10 correct answers you advance a level and the notes (and background music) increase in speed.  You can select Treble, Bass or Alto Clef.

Piano Lab: Listening & Analysis Activities Hal Leonard Book 4

In addition to the online music games, music software and (rarely used) theory books in my piano lab, for late elementary students, I put together a list of analysis tasks specific to the music in their lesson books.

I begin analysis activities with my students very early by having them color various elements of their music (see this post "Hand Over the Pencil - Actively Engaging Music Students").

As they become more familiar with this process, I assign them analysis/ear training tasks to work on independently during Piano Lab Time to go along with the specific pieces in their lesson book. With this approach, the theory, ear training and analysis activities are more meaningful because they are directly relevant to the music they are currently learning to play.

I store the printout of these lesson book lab assignments in a correlating color coded 3 ring binder with other related theory worksheets corresponding with the lesson book concepts.  Sheet protectors & dry erase markers save me a ton in printing costs!

For example, following are the Lab Activities I have outlined for Hal Leonard Lesson Book 4 (with  CD):

Piano Music Storage Bags

As a practical minded piano teacher, I prefer to come up with unique yet useful rewards for our annual piano studio Achievement in Music Program.  Partly this is due to the fact that we have accumulated a lot of participation trophies from our children's involvement in various sports, which collect dust on the shelf and eventually end up having to be stored in a box on a different shelf.  Last year my students were excited to get a grand piano shaped pencil sharpener with keys that move as you sharpen.
After reading this fabulous tutorial on how to  "Make Your Own Piano Bag"  post by Anne,  I was inspired to make some individualized bags for students who earned superior marks.   I selected some free images online and let the students pick their choice of image and font. 

I picked up some multi-packs of canvas totes & iron on inkjet transfer paper from Walmart and here are a few of the results.
My favorite image was this free printable quote from my sister Kara's blog.

 In addition to ironing this on one of my student's bags, I  printed and framed the bright yellow version of this and placed it on the window ledge above my kitchen sink.  As a mom of 6, it provides perspective for me on days when the dishes and laundry piles seem endless or when my kids are less than enthusiastic about practicing the piano and I start to feel a little discouraged.  I love reading this optimistic reminder!

So even though my children still don't jump at the chance to practice, at least they always know where to find their books( in the wicker "piano bag" basket next to the piano) and my house is one step closer to clutter free :)

Wrestling to Teach Proper Technique

Despite a lot of repetition and various analogies, some students still struggle to play with proper hand position - curved fingers, thumb on side tip in slide position.  As I was reviewing this concept with one of my sons this week a wrestling analogy finally helped it sink in for him.  He loves wrestling a whole lot more for him so this explanation really struck a chord for him!

1-Wrestling is a sport that requires quick thinking, strength and properly executed moves. Piano involves finger strength, and proper positions as well.
2- Before wrestling its good to do some practice workouts.  In piano you can "work out" your fingers by forming finger doughnuts and checking for rounded (not collapsed) knuckles.
3- If you ever get caught flat on the mat... you know you're likely to get pinned unless you can quickly turn and "build your base" (get on your hands and knees and arch or curve your back).  In piano flat fingers are a sign of trouble too.   Imagine that your thumb is like your coach or referee.  Its okay for him to get low on the mat to "check" to see if your other fingers (imaginary wrestlers) are building their base (curved and on tips).