An old topic perhaps but I am about to start teaching a girl piano who I'm told is going on 6 and in primary 2. What would people say are the current favourites for using with children this age? I am told she already sings in a workshop group as well.

I already have Piano Adventures Primer which has some intersting ideas, and if I get the chance I'll look at Dogs and Birds, Tunes For Ten Fingers, Schaum's green book. I don't like John Thompson and have seen less than favourable reviews of Me And My Piano, except the Monkey Puzzles part. Piano Time looks more 9/10 kind of age.

Any ideas?

For this age group I like Tunes for Ten Fingers. The Chester's Easiest Piano Course is worth a look, although I tend to try not to use music which only centres round middle C.

Some kids really like A Dozen A Day book 1. I know it's meant to be a technical exercises book, but at the early stages, kids only play sijmple 4-8 bar tunes anyway, so I don't see a problem! I get the student to learn the dozen a day tunes in their original position, which is usually a five-fingered position from C-G in each hand. Then, with a few weeks, they can try tranposing to G... later we might transpose to say, D major, and perhaps introducing an F# when or if the child notices it sounds odd with an F natural.

There are two books of short pieces called People and Animals published by Kirklees, These are amusing, and contain a few containing a little syncopation. They have descriptive titles, such as Camel Caravan, Tail Wagger etc. some use more of the keyboard than the eternal 5 notes up and down from Middle C. Many children find it hard to understand "why are the names of the letters on the lines and spaces". If it is
explained that there are 11 lines, not only 5, and that the first letter therefore is A, which comes in the first space of the ladder, Using only the two sets of 5 lines does seem confusing until this is explained. Why 11 lines in Great Stave? Because that is enough to accommodate the notes required for singers, ie. bottom A to top G. Dividing it off into two sets of five lines with the odd Middle C having only its little leger line when it is needed makes it less dazzling for the eyes. Busylizzie

Yes, I agree Piano Time is a bit 'older'. And I don't like John Thompson either.

I use and like Piano Magic (by Jane Sebba). It's imaginative, and has plenty of supplementary ideas to encourage keyboard exploration. Two tutor books and two books of pieces.

I still quite like Tunes for Ten and Me and my Piano - despite their 'middle C- itis' I find they do get children playing, and much depends on how you use them.

I use the Music Tree books a lot with this age. Usually the Time to Begin book 1st at this age, unless they're extremely quick & mature musically. Then I use the part 1 book, before branching out on to other things. I find they're brilliant for developing an aural & imaginative approach, covering the whole keyboard (not staying stuck around middle C) & introducing reading without associating a note with a particular finger (reading by number).

I like Play Piano by Alan Haughton (there's the teenage version too for 9 or 10+) and Tunes for ten fingers. There's also an inbetween book for ten fingers before book 2 which is good to use for those slower with note reading that still concentrates on the same notes but adds some sharps and flats.
I am using both for that age at the moment plus the Dozen a Day primer (pink)

sorry if this has been asked before, bevpiano, but is this a series that is only available direct from the company or publisher? I've never seen it in the music shop.

I have sometimes seen it in shops, but it usually has to be ordered. It's available from musicroom.com. & other online retailers. Some of my pupils have got it from amazon.co.uk, but they always send the American version. It is originally American (using terms such as quarter note, measure etc.), but there is an English edition, using UK terminology & spelling. There's also a teacher's guide, which is worth looking at & I seem to remember I read quite a lot about it on the internet before using it - this is quite a good idea, because it can seem quite strange if you don't appreciate the ideas behind it. It's very well thought out & they tested it extensively on children before it was published, but it is rather different from most UK methods.

If she is not yet six I would suggest Ministeps to Music by Edna Mae Burnham(cutting out the guff at the beginning of the first book) or Piano Lesson made Easy by Lina Ng, using the Theory for Little Children books alongside.

Neither of these methods is perfect - but I have yet to find one that is because all children are different. Ministeps is old fashoined, no coloured pictres - but sound and the children I have used it with colour the pictures and enjoy the very small steps to progress. The disaadvantage is the small print. Lina Ng is a bit loudly coloured and some of the tunes are too long but with intelligent adaptation I have found little children like this one too. They particularly like the theory books. With young children I tend to go for fun and motivation in the first instance. The more academic approach can come later.

I'd quite like to try the Dogs and Birds book but my pupils don't speak English so I can't. But I know a lot of teachers on here have advocated it.

I too don't think JT books are great but my students love them! I switched from JT book one to 'more tunes for 10 fingers' with a couple of students and they completely lost interest and kept on asking where the JT2 book was...I've found 'piano adventures' quite useful for playing songs that don't always begin on middle c.

I wonder if you could make it work by giving the animals names eg Dajo for Dog, Abalou for Ant, etc. I imgaine that children would learn these fairly quickly. You might like this web site:http://www.animal-services.com/sites/noms_animaux.php?N=D

Well, yes, but the problem is that the French don't use letter names for notes. They use fixed solfa names

C = di, D= ré E = mi etc so I don't think I could make it work.

Alan Haughton does a very good introduction. My pupil who uses it comes tomorrow, and I'm suffering from a senior moment, so can't for the life of me remember the exact title. Pauline Hall uses a lot of his material in her tutor books. I use the Piano Time books for 7+, and find them very accessible. The Alan Haughton book is very similar, but slower moving with lots of material to reinforce teaching points. It is colourful and has good examples of rhythm etc.

Have fun! (I am going to have a look at the other suggestions posted above, I love these threads!)

I just found she is still only 5, will be 6 by Christmas. She seems a very clever girl, and has a great ear for music (high-low etc.). We'll probably use Tunes For Ten as the main book, but thanks for the suggestions. Will definitely look into the ones I've not investigated.