A piano teacher recently wrote to us with a question: “I have a 9-year-old piano student who just doesn’t seem to hear his mistakes. He happily continues on through missed notes, missed sharps, wrong notes… even if one hand is in a completely different key! Because he doesn’t hear his mistakes, he doesn’t stop to correct himself, so I feel as though I’m constantly interrupting him and I really don’t want to discourage him. Any ideas?
Developing Piano Kids’ Listening Skills
For some students, the piano is all visual… and you can’t really blame them! We make a big deal about what’s on their page; we say things like “eyes on your music” and we point to their score when a correction needs to be made. Piano kids are so busy watching what they are playing that they forget to listen to what they’re playing. There is a disconnect between eyes and ears, and it results in these students being completely oblivious to the sounds they are making.
Piano students who need to work on their listening skills are those students who:
1) Play wrong notes, miss notes, or omit accidentals and don’t notice.
2) Continually play incorrect or modified rhythms, even after you have worked through it and corrected it with them.
3) Play extremely fast or extremely slow even when you talk about adjusting their tempo.
4) Have difficulties with dynamics, phrasing, and the idea of rubato.
Often we assume that these piano kids aren’t understanding certain concepts (or that they’re not practicing) and therefore these mistakes continue to happen. Sometimes this is the case, but sometimes these piano students simply need to be taught how to listen to their own piano playing.
Ears On Your Hands!
Instead of “eyes on your music”, with these types of piano students, you want to instead encourage “ears on your hands”; and what I mean by that is the ability to simultaneously listen and play. This ability is simply a skill they need to develop (some more than others) and, as their piano teacher, it falls on you to help!
So the next time you encounter a piano student who needs listening help, try these 5 fun activities.
1. The Ear Police – Switch places with your piano students and have them close their eyes. While you play their current piece, insert “mistakes” at random (take away sharps, add extra notes, play wrong notes, etc.). Every time your students hear you make a mistake they get to hold up a hand and say “Stop!” (like the Ear Police would do of course). You then discuss together what the mistake was… based only on what they heard (so answers like “it sounded sad there” or “you went too fast” are perfectly legit answers.)
2. Freeze on the Keys! – Explain to your students that while they play you are going to randomly whisper “Freeze!” Your students need to immediately freeze on the keys they have just played and hum the note that comes next in the melody line. In order to do this, their ears need to be engaged This activity also helps your students to learn to predict what “should” come next, which helps with sight-reading and fluency.
3. Half an Octopus – It’s not 8 hands… but it will be 4! Sit beside your students on the bench and play along with them (in a different octave). Having your part layered on top of theirs forces them to use their ears as they make adjustments to their tempo, articulation, and rhythms to match up with yours. If you give it this silly name it takes away any perception that you are “testing them”… it’s fun… and it works!
4. Woah Nelly – Once your piano students are comfortable with the Half an Octopus activity above, then they can start to play Woah Nelly. With this activity, you also play along with your students, but you make changes to your tempo as you play by speeding up or slowing down without saying a word. Your students need to adjust their own tempo to match you. This can be really fun if you vary your tempo drastically and often. Make it a “wild ride” and your kiddos will be excited to play this game. I suggest using only the right hand for this activity for the most benefit.
5. Whoop There it Is – Haha… how many of you now have that song stuck in your head 😉 This activity teaches your piano students to be self-aware as they play. Together you choose a point in their piano piece that is the “Whoop”. This can be anything – a single note, a chord, a 5th… anything. Your student then needs to play through their piece from start to finish. While they play, once they reach the “Whoop” they pause, hold it for a few seconds, and then continue on.
Even though your piano students are using their music and eyes to find the “Whoop”, they are also engaging their ears as they “halt” part-way through their piece. Make it more challenging by adding several “Whoops” to their page. These silly “Whoops” are a more positive focus than actual mistakes, but they will have the same effect as a mistake. These interrupting moments will give your students the skills they need to hear something that is out of the ordinary, act on the fact that it is different, and then carry on.
Creating Self-Aware Piano Kids
With these 5 activities, your piano kids’ ears will be tuned into what they are playing. We all want our students to develop a sense of fluency and the ability to continue on when mistakes do happen – but we also want our students to be self-aware while playing. Finding a balance between being hindered by mistakes vs. being completely ignorant of them is important… but it can also be fun!
Jamila Sahar says
Great ideas as always! Drives me nuts when someone is trying to rush through a piece like it is a race and even when I keep asking them to stop they keep playing faster and faster like they have to hurry (for some reason) and get to the end of the piece. They also make the same mistakes every week even though every week we correct them by working on small sections slowly. Then when I see them next week it is an exact repeat of the previous week. (Sigh) even after discussing it with the parents they said ‘Well, I want them to have ‘fun’ and enjoy their piano lesson’ (double-sigh)
Barbara says
What great ideas. I really like the “Whoop” which acts like an interruption without ME having to do the interrupting. “Freeze on the Keys” is another great, great idea. I love how all of these involve the students more and take the “you’re doing it wrong” teacher factor out of it. Ask always, Thank you, Thank you, Thank you, for more ideas to make me look like a great piano teacher:)
Barbara says
Oops, a teacher whose fingers get tangled: Should have said “As always…”
Drema says
Thanks so much for those ideas! They are really helpful. When you talk about half an octopus, do you mean play the same things they are playing or an accompaniment part? As I play more accompaniment or teacher duet parts with some of my students who struggled with their listening or reading, they have grown to listen and play better over time as well.
The names of the ideas sounds so fun that it makes me really want to play them with my students. Now I look forward to mistakes in a way because it gives the student an opportunity to learn & build useful and creative skills in playing, listening and practising. I have been finding that I am becoming more aware of my own weaknesses too (whether it ‘s in areas of listening, practising, technique or theory) as I correct students or think of ways to help them. I feel that I am becoming a better “student” at learning as I become better in my teaching. Joys of teaching – we never stop learning!
Thanks for these great ideas- can’t wait to try them out!!
Emily says
Such great ideas! I also like to play the song and have my student follow along in the music. I randomly stop and they have to point to where I am. It helps with note reading and hearing how the song should sound. 🙂
Anita E Kohli / Eliza says
Nice ideas!
Joan Craft says
I use my iPad to record student performances at almost every lesson. I ask students to follow the score as they listen to the playback, and make their own notations on the score for improving their performances. Of course, I guide them through the correction process. I loved the comments yesterday about sending e-mails to parents. Maybe forwarding a video to parents with verbal suggestions for improvment could help.
Kathy Richards says
Great ideas! Hanks!