Reindeer and Elves Keyboard Race Game

Reindeer and Elves Keyboard Race Game

When I made my first Keyboard Race game, I really had no idea that it was going to be the first in a series of games for every season. I’ve always used the snowflake version for this time of year, but my students wanted a Christmas version, so I drew one for them. The elves are students in my studio and each one is special to me! I hope you enjoy the diversity of elves from around the globe!

For Hanukkah or with older students, use the Snowflake Keyboard Race.

Notice I have cards for F# and Bb. That has proved to be a bonus for my average age beginners, because they learn the terms and how to use them early on. However, I remove those cards for my youngest students. I like to teach new concepts informally like this, rather than waiting for it in the method book. There is no reason students can’t learn something before they actually play it in their music.

Objective

• To quickly identify piano keys.
• To enjoy a seasonal game.
• To identify middle C.
• Optional: to identify B flat and F sharp.

Ages

• Beginners of all ages enjoy the keyboard race games, but with your older beginners, I suggest the Snowflake Keyboard Race.

Materials

• Piano or a music keyboard
• Keyboard Race Cards
• Two tokens (Inexpensive erasers will not damage your keyboard.)

Directions

• The game is played with two players, usually the teacher and student.
• The teacher sits on the right side and the students sits on the left side of the piano bench, at each end of the piano. The students chooses if he/she wants to play with the “Elves” or “Reindeer” cards.
• Each player has one set of cards and one token, and places the cards on the piano book rack. The cards should be well shuffled.
• The first player turns a card and moves his token to that piano key, the closest to his end of the piano.  The second player does the same.
• Play continues with each player drawing a card and moving his token toward the middle of the keyboard.
• The game is over when one player passes the middle of the keyboard. I like to use middle C with my young students.
• Note: The player on the right side (treble end) usually loses, so that’s where I sit. Games are more fun for students if they win.

Why I like this game

• My students love it and want to play it over and over.
• It is the fastest and most fun way to learn keyboard names.

A List of Christmas and Seasonal Printables

Ornament Bingo

I have a new student who is learning the letter names of piano keys. I was looking at my website trying to find something, and I found this game I posted last year. Last year I used green and red M&M’s as the bingo tokens. You can use the alphabet letters from my last post as calling cards.

I’m sorry I don’t have anything new for you today. But I thought I’d list some of my holiday season games here to make it easier for you to find something you might be able to use.  These printables include games for individuals or groups, composing activities for beginners, and worksheets. Some of the links below take you to the original blog post with a link to my website, and some take you directly to my website. Once on my website, click preview to download the item. Directions to the games are found by searching on this blog. Everything is free, but donations to help with running the site are greatly appreciated!  I want to thank from the bottom of my heart all of you who are supporting the site to keep it going as a resource for teachers all over the world. My only goal is to make piano lessons and music theory so much fun that children will love coming to lessons; that they will put their own children in piano so the legacy we love so much will continue.

In addition to the seasonal  games  and worksheets on my website, there are also 16 elementary Christmas songs and carols. I am working on some more carols and adding some more games, so check back.

Christmas Worksheet

Ornament Notes mixed up

Color the Chanukah Gift

Peppermint Notes

Ornament notes

Musical Christmas Lights

Draw the Ornaments

Gingerboy Keys

Light up the Tree

Christmas Musical Symbols Vocabulary

Make your own worksheet

Christmas Train Composing Activity

Christmas Note Bingo

Christmas Tree Vocabulary

Christmas Tune Game

Golden Menorah composing activity

Silly Sentences for Christmas

(be sure to download the cards that go with this)

Rhythm Menagerie™ – a Review

Rhythm Menagerie™ Book 1 by Wendy Stevens

How would you like your music students to be proficient in playing and counting rhythm patterns, and have fun doing it?

Wendy Stevens has written and recently published the resource Rhythm Menagerie™, Reproducible Rhythm Explorations, a book to sequentially learn how to be an independent rhythm reader. Recently she sent me the book to give it a look-over and try out with my students.

I think as music teachers we want our students to be able to work out rhythms on their own and not rely on copying or learning by rote. Not only is this book very attractive with an easy to follow layout, but it is so comprehensive that students who use it diligently will certainly become independent rhythmically.

Rhythm Menagerie is 92 pages long, with 8 chapters. Each chapter features a new rhythm problem, starting with quarter and half notes and going all the way to dotted quarter notes. The book will have students enjoying themselves as they play rhythms in a fun and imaginative way. Students will also like the attractive graphics of unusual animals, with interesting information about each one. The graphics are suitable for all ages of piano students, good news for those of use with older beginners.

Have you ever noticed that some students are so concerned about the notes that their rhythm and steady beat is all over the place, and not in a good way? Wendy says that students will learn to read rhythms easier and be more successful if they are not also trying to play notes at the same time.

Rhythm Menagerie is an excellent resource to use along with a regular lesson book at a private lesson, but it can also be adapted for groups, such as a summer music camp. Home school families who want to introduce some music into their curriculum might also find this book useful.

After downloading the book, Wendy suggests printing out one page a week to use at the lesson and gradually work on rhythm skills throughout the year. I think that if you use the book with an older beginner, you can speed up the pace considerably.

Wendy’s book can be purchased and printed directly from her website. Once you have purchased the book, you can print it on your computer to use with your students again and again, and of course adapt it for your needs.

If you order the book before Sept. 20, you will receive a discount. Take a look at her the inside of her book here, and don’t forget to watch the cute video she made showing some of her students having fun with Rhythm Menagerie.

School Is Starting Back – a pre-reading piece with duet

School is Starting Back

I composed this little solo for a beginning student who has taken long enough to play on the white keys. In order to avoid skipping fingers I tried to make all the notes seconds. Sometimes that leaves a little to be desired when it comes to melody. Although Beethoven was able to produce the greatest 5-finger melody ever written using only seconds and a couple of skips,  I don’t have that ability by any means! However, I added a teacher duet you can play along to spice this up.

The most difficult spot may be the fourth finger in the right hand of the last phrase. That is not a strong finger so I plan to do a little spot practicing there.

As usual, my teaching suggestion is to teach the song first without piano (transpose, because it is in a register too low for children), tap out the rhythm like a drum on the fall board, repeat using the correct hands,  practice playing in the air with the correct fingers, play using fingers on the fall board, and finally try it on the piano. Usually if I do all that, the student is successful and very proud of himself! Of course, older students won’t need all those steps, usually.