Monthly Archives: October 2016

65/100 Pentatonic Composition

Here’s an idea for call-and-response pentatonic song composition. I started by teaching the song “Hill ‘n’ Gully Ride-a” – but you can skip this step if you like. The children just need to understand the concept of call-and-response; here’s an example; … Continue reading

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64/100 The Post-It Window

I follow  the www.teachpianotoday.com site, and often use ideas that they suggest. I’m pretty sure this one came from them, but I haven’t been able to track it down. Anyway, here it is; Can you see, under the coloured pencils, … Continue reading

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63/100 Colouring-In for speedy learning

Going back to the contents of my teaching pencil-case, let’s talk about “colouring-in”. I don’t mean the mindfulness colouring books which are the current fashion! Here’s an example – the ABRSM Grade 5 piano piece, “Tarantella” At first sight, the … Continue reading

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62/100 My Piano Teaching Pack

This little bag (about A5 size) comes to all the piano lessons that I teach.  And here is what lives inside: Items: A pair of castanets – for rhythm work Some coloured pencils – for livening up notes in the … Continue reading

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61/100 The Practice Adventure Trail

Last week, a young student hadn’t done much piano practice, which was unusual for her. Eventually, she admitted that she “was scared of the pieces”. She is preparing for the current ABRSM Prep test, and I think a lot of … Continue reading

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60/100 The Rhythm Clock

A rhythm clock is a pattern of 12 rhythms arranged in a circle like the hours on a clock. Like this:   You can project this image on a whiteboard, and then start all kinds of fun learning activities. First … Continue reading

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