RIGHT FROM THE STARTSally Cathcart

Teaching children aged 5 - 6 Childrens brains are

amazing! Learning music has lots

of benefits Developing active

listening skills is critical Singing is central to

developing musical understanding

Sing!singing is useful because it helps to establish a correct mental model that can guide children as they translate what has been memorised into the instrumental fingerings needed to perform it on an instrument.Singing should be a common and natural part of all early lessons. MacPherson and Gabrielsson p. 110

First Piano lessons

Should aim to:

Nurture musical independence

Use singing as the starting point

Use aural and creative approaches alongside sequenced route to note-reading

Establish secure technical foundations

What to develop?

Musical concepts

Musical skills

Pianistic skills

Musical concepts and skills

Keeping a steady pulse

Musical comparatives

Recognising and tapping rhythm patterns

Sensing and showing pitch movement

Sally C

athcart

The Piano C

urriculum

Pianistic skills

Moving across the keyboard with freedom and ease

Finger numbers Playing with a clear and focussed

sound Keyboard layout and geography

First lessons

Jelly on a plate Louder and quieter Feeling the pulse Exploring the piano Making music

Something to take home

Jelly on a plateJelly on a plateWibble wobble, wibble wobbleJelly on a plate

Sausage in a panSausage in a panSizzle sizzle, sizzle sizzle,Sausage in a pan

Jelly on a plate I CAN...

Say the words aloud

Say the words aloud and tap the pattern of the words on my fingers

Choose a black key on the piano and play the pattern of the words on it with finger 3 of my right hand

Choose a black key on the piano and play the pattern of the words on it with finger 3 of my left hand

CHALLENGE!Choose any 2 black keys and play the pattern of the words on them with right hand and left hand playing at the same time

Cobbler, cobbler

Cobbler, cobbler, mend my shoe

Get it done by half-past two.

Half-past two is much too late,

Get it done by half-past eight!

Cobbler, cobbler I CAN...

Say the words aloud

Say the words aloud and pretend to tap my

foot with a hammer

Say the words aloud and tap the pattern

of the words on my fingers

Choose a black key on the piano and play

the pattern of the words on it with finger

3 of my rh

Choose a black key on the piano and play

the pattern of the words on it with finger

3 of my rh

CHALLENGE!

Choose any 2 black keys and play the

pattern of the words on them with rh and

lh playing at the same time

Tutor books

How does the book develop musical concepts? How does it develop pianistic skills? What is the book's approach to developing

reading skills? How are pupils' expressive responses to music

encouraged? What opportunities are provided for the pupil to

engage in making music?

The Piano CurriculumMAIN

CONCEPTS/SKILLS

Sub-divisions Level A Level B

RHYTHM 1 Pulse

2 Rhythm values - simple

3 Rhythm values - compound

4 Triplets and duplets

5 Dots and ties

6 Time signatures

MELODY 7 Pitch, Singing and internalising

pulse

faster/slower

pulse/rhythm

crotchets and quavers crotchet rest

minims minim rest

semibreves semibreve rest

dotted minims ties

strong beat 2/4

bars and barlines 3/4

metre; 2, 3, 4 4/4

singing voice doh hexachord

different starting pitches l - d - r -m

recognising aurally higher/lower l - d -m

The Piano Curriculum - Beginners

The Piano Curriculum Sally Cathcart 2013

The Piano Curriculum

MAIN CONCEPTS/

SKILLSSub-divisions Level A Level B

17 Articulation

18 Keyboard geography

EXPRESSIVE 19 dynamics

20 Phrases

21 Tempo

22 Pedal

23 Ornaments

HARMONY 24 Triads

25 Chords

simple dynamic contrasts

legato

piano sounds

keyboard layout

repeated patterns

names of white notes

forte mf

piano mp

start and end melodic journeys

slurs

faster ritenuto

slower the pause

exploring the effects of both pedals

triad of C

home and away

tonic and dominant

I in C

V7 in C

The Piano Curriculum - Beginners

The Piano Curriculum Sally Cathcart 2013

The Big Picture

All pupils need to know where they are going

They should feel ownership of their own musical journey

Learning Ladders

I can keep a steady beat

I know where the high notes live on

the piano

I know where the low notes live on the

piano

I can number my piano fingers

correctly

I can sing I, I me oh my using soh-

mi

I can say the musical alphabet

I can find all the Ds on the piano

I can find all the ___

on the piano

I can play with light, rainbow

fingers

I can play Rain is falling down on the black notes

I can play Rain is falling down on the white notes

I can play with quiet sounds

I can play with loud sounds

__________ music learning ladder

Summer 2013

Bells in the steeple

Bells in the steeple

Sally Cathcart March 2012

d

m

s

Lessons that flow have:

purpose energy real engagement with music sensitivity discussions lots of giggles

......whatever the age of the pupil!

For more resources...

www.thecuriouspianoteacher.org