How to Give Successful Piano Lessons to Young Children
WHAT IS THE BEST AGE TO BEGIN PIANO LESSONS?
When to start piano lessons to young children can be puzzling sometimes. I would not let maturity level stand in the way of beginning lessons. However, if the child understands some basic concepts, a short lesson would be successful. These concepts include: forward/backward, up/down, hop over, “the next one beside” as in next-door neighbor. There should also be an understanding of the alphabet letters ABCDEFG and the numbers 12345.
A perfect way to begin piano lessons to young children is to let the younger sibling take a very short lesson right before or after the older sibling. By “short” I mean less than a minute to begin and gradually increasing each week. This would be for the professional teacher’s schedule, but parents could sneak in a daily lesson or two when a good opportunity arises.
There are benefits for a young student to begin piano lessons. In general, lessons could begin for a four-year-old. However, even children a few months younger will benefit. The first lessons are very short, less than a minute. Over time, the student gradually increases attention span, the ability to sit quietly, and engagement in the instruction.
WHAT IS A GOOD APPROACH TO BEGINNING PIANO LESSONS?
The student’s introduction to the keyboard should be brief, fun, and include frequent praising. If the student is reluctant to begin, he may want to just watch as a sibling or parent is given the first lesson. This will show that the lesson is not overwhelming. As a result, he will want his own turn.
THE FIRST LESSON:
I would make sure hunger is not going to be an interfering problem. If the child is particularly energetic at lesson time, much good comes from physically practicing the concept of “hop forward/backward” and “hop over” an object and “step next to” an object.
The student sits comfortably upright on the bench. He/she is shown the brand name of the piano or electric keyboard. In the Revolutionary Piano Method books, the example brand shown is Yamaha. The teacher may ask, “What is your name?” . . . Student responds.
“Here is the name of your piano. . . Yamaha.” Teacher points; student points to the brand. Teacher tells the student to close his eyes, count to three, open his eyes, and again point to the brand name.
Teacher: “See that there are black and white keys. The black keys are in groups of two and three.” Teacher plays a group of two and then three black keys with the right hand, and the student repeats using the right hand.
Teacher: “Let’s find the group of three black keys closest to the piano’s name, Yamaha.” The teacher demonstrates by pointing out the brand and playing all three closest black keys down at once. Then the student repeats, and he should like “smashing” down the three black keys.
REINFORCING THE FIRST LESSON:
The student repeats finding the brand name, the group of three closest black keys, and “smashing” them down with the right hand. In all, the student should locate the brand, the closest group of three black keys, and smash them all down – three or four times. For variety, he could be asked to smash down the black key group with his eyes closed -or after counting to five – or after saying letters ABCDEFG.
That’s the entire first lesson for the very young student. You can view a demonstration video showing the procedure.
SUBSEQUENT LESSONS:
This first lesson procedure should be repeated for one or more subsequent lessons until the student is very comfortable and confident in his ability to succeed. Itty Bitty Lesson Book 1 would be the first book to use for short lessons of less than a few minutes. The lesson time gradually increases as the student’s attention span and capabilities increase. After the first 4 or 5 lessons, the corresponding Itty Bitty Theory Book 1 should be used. If an entire page is too much to finish in one sitting, divide over two sessions. Every lesson’s assignment is written at the top of each page.
Check out Itty Bitty Lesson Book 1 for Sample Pages!
Leslie Young is the author/composer of the Revolutionary Piano Method. She co-founded a K-12th grade charter school in Texas and has been a piano teacher for about 40 years. She has had experience teaching a variety of students tackling piano for the first time or as returning student
She states: “In teaching piano to students of varying ages, what also varies is a commitment of time and the amount of dedication. Children of certain ages may do very well with a parent as teacher; others may need someone who is not family to instruct them. Some older children and adults prefer to make progress on their own, and this method is designed to act as a meticulous guide through new material. Some adults and teens insist on professional teachers, which also encourages continuity. Because these books are self-explanatory, a new or experienced professional teacher will have no trouble using the Revolutionary Piano Method with students. It is an easy way to learn piano.”
Leslie believes that “learning to play the piano is more about diligence and perseverance” – but would add that just as critical to success is the method that is used, the encouragement of critical thinking, and the instructional principles that promote immediate success.
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