I like to think that I teach pretty well-rounded piano lessons. In any given week my students will have run the gamut of musical experiences from technical work to repertoire to ear training to composing to piano games.
But there is one area where I drop the ball…. music history.
So, to be honest, today’s post is a “two birds with one stone” kind of article. I get to share another great piano printable with all of you, and, in creating this printable, I also get to alleviate a little “music history guilt” by using it with my own students!
Does music history play second fiddle in your studio as well? Read on…
Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh …. and Bach! Composer Trading Cards
Today’s activity plays on the passion children have for trading cards. While in my day it used to be all about baseball and hockey, the trading card frenzy now includes Pokemon, Yu-Gi-OH! and Magic The Gathering (oh the things you learn when you work entirely with kids!)
Now let’s add one more category to the list… Composer Trading Cards!
Starting today, every few weeks, Trevor and I will send you a new pack of Composer Trading Cards. The pack will include nine printable cards with an image of a composer (selected form various musical eras) and a blank statistics page on the back.
These cards are meant to serve as a jumping-off-point into music history exploration. Simply send one card home with your students and have them do a little research to complete the statistics page on the back.
When your students return the following week, you can review what they discovered about the composer, preview some of his or her music and even share some more interesting facts about the composer with your students.
I am going to purchase some plastic trading card folders that my students can clip into their lesson binders and use to keep track of their growing composer collection. If you are planning on doing the same, know that we will be creating card packs based on era – so my folders will be set up to include a “Baroque Collection”, a “Classical Collection”, a “Romantic Collection” and a “20th Century Collection”. I’m going to get my kiddos excited about adding cards to each collection until they have a full page of each!… because who doesn’t love collecting?!
You can download the Bach Composer Pack here.
We suggest sending these to a print shop like Staples for printing on glossy card stock so they look and feel just like trading cards 🙂 Hope you and your students have a blast!
Looking for More Piano Printables To Use This Week?
Here are three recent printables that Teach Piano Today readers have been implementing with great success in their studios:
Each Piano Piece Should Begin With This Printable
Use These 6 Printable Photo Props To Recognize Student Achievement and Grow Your Studio
Fun with Practice Pegs… A “Too Cute” Piano Practice Motivator
