While group piano lessons can happen during any time of the year, the summer months are well-suited to a musical get-together. If you’re one of the many teachers organizing summer piano parties, you’re probably in the midst of planning… and you’re probably searching for multi-age and multi-level activities with minimal prep and maximum fun!
To help with your planning, today on the blog we’re sharing a rhythm-focused game that will burn off the summer energy your kids bring to the studio. Combine it with some of the previous group piano games we’ve blogged about (see the list below) and you’ve got yourself a party!
Rhythm In The Wind: How To Play
Today’s game requires two teams of mixed age piano students, a table, two “red solo cups”, drinking straws and a set of ten index cards. Each index card should contain one measure of rhythm. Follow along with the simple rules below and get ready to have a blast!
Setting It Up:
Divide your students into two teams and have them stand in two lines at one end of a table (minimum of two students per team). Give every student a straw. Place one cup upside down on the table in front of each team’s line.
How To Play:
- On the word, “Go” hold up an index card with a measure of rhythm.
- Instruct the two students at the front of each line to bend down and begin blowing through their straws in attempt to push their team’s cup across the table. But there’s a catch! They can’t simply propel the cup with long, even breaths. Instead, they must blow through their straws in a rhythm of breaths that matches the rhythm on the index card shown. For example, if the index card shows,ย “quarter, eighth, eighth, quarter, eighth, eighth” students will blow “long breath, short breath, short breath, long breath, short breath, short breath” over and over.
- Have the students continue blowing the rhythm through their straws until their cups glide all the way across the table and fall over the opposite edge. When this happens, the students retrieve their cups and race to return it to the next person in their team’s line.
- The next students repeat Steps 2 to 3 (with a new rhythm card) until every team member has had a turn. The team who finishes first (all students have returned to the line and are sitting down) wins!
More Group Piano Games:
Group Piano Games For The Win!
Did you know that our PianoGameClub games also work great for piano parties and group lessons? Simply set up several “game stations” and assign two students to each station. Set a timer for 7 minutes. Once the timer “dings”, have your pairs rotate to a new game station. Repeat this process until they have all played each game once. It’s group piano party planning at it’s finest! Find out how you can add 4 new games to your library every month for just $8 at www.pianogameclub.com.
Dorla says
Thanks! Now my piano parties are ready for next week!
Andrea says
Awesome! ๐
Dee says
Suggestions on โgame rulesโ if they donโt blow the rhythm correctly? Have to bring the cup back to starting line, maybe?
Andrea says
Hi Dee! That would work ๐ I’ve always found that if you don’t even mention cheating or come up with rules about what happens when they a mistake the kids usually don’t even think about it and try really hard and it becomes a moot point ๐
JoLynn Keller says
Love, Love, Love these group music game ideas. I am excited to use them at my last group lesson before the summer break!
Andrea says
Hi JoLynn – hope you have fun with it! ๐
Drema says
Oh this is gonna be so fun!!!! Thanks for sharing Andrea!
Heidi Neal says
What a fun idea! It might be good to include a few rests in there so they donโt pass out from blowing the straw so vigorously. I still have a vivid memory of one of my classmates doing that when we were doing a demonstration blowing with straws to learn how plants work!
Andrea says
Bahaha – yes! Totally okay to take a breath in between measure repeats ๐