The summer months are a time when we can all slow down and indulge in activities that, during any other time of the year, would be massive time wasters. For Trevor and I this means chilling out an evening or two a week with trashy summertime TV shows.
But this year the summer shows just aren’t bringing it. So instead we find ourselves surfing the internet for ridiculous Youtube videos like “boat ramp fails” and “bad lip reading”.
As it turns out, the other night our time-wasting YouTube perusing ended up being quite fruitful when we came across cup stacking competitions. Check out an example below:
As you can see, it looks like fun so Trevor and I gave it a try… and we we’re awful. Instead, we decided to turn our cup stacking into something useful and came up with a piano teaching game to reinforce rest values! Check it out below.
Stacking Cups To Reinforce Rest Values
Today’s game is designed to help piano students remember the number of beats received by quarter, half and whole rests (in 4/4 time).
To play, you will need two dice and 12 paper cups (2 labelled with whole rests, 5 labelled with half rests and 5 labelled with quarter rests).
The game is quite simple. Your student rolls the dice and then tries to build a three-tiered cup pyramid with cups labelled with rests that equal the value rolled on the dice. Note: If the value on the dice is less than six your student must roll again.
To see the game in action, check out the video below:
While You Have The Dice Out, Reinforce Sight Reading!
There is no end to the amount of fun that dice can bring to your piano studio. In fact, in July’s Piano Book of the Month from PianoBookClub, the sight-reading activity page that precedes each piano piece in the book uses dice to engage kids in game-based fun!
So, if you’re looking to reinforce sight reading on a regular basis in your studio you’re definitely going to want to check out My Sight-Reading Superpower Episode 3 here. And if you like what you see, sign up for a monthly membership to PianoBookClub and we’ll send it to you as your first book of the month! *Available until July 31, 2018 only.
Mary M. says
Thanks for helping me help my students in fun ways!
Deborah Meier says
The first picture show 7 on the dice but 8 beats with the cups. If you only had 5 cups with quarter rests, how would you build the pyramid with 6 cups?
Andrea says
Hi Deborah! That pic was taken just as a picture – I should have paid more attention to what was on the dice LOL – this is me working at home in the summer with two children underfoot 😉 The pyramid always has to be “three tiered” – so you have to roll more than 6 and then build combos that way. Does that help?
LINDA KIRKCONNELL says
This is brilliant! Another summer activity I’ll be adding to my fun list! Students will love this. Thank you much, again.
Linnea M Good says
I’m thinking having an empty might come in handy.
Andrea says
Hi Linda! Glad you’ll use it 🙂
Linnea M Good says
Simple and brilliant. Will take that to Music Camp.
Andrea says
Hi Linnea! Enjoy 🙂 Thanks for reading!
Helen Haynes says
I’m going to use this at a camp, too! And many of these kids are not taking any lessons, but would have had rests in school music class.
Andrea says
Hi Helen! Glad you can use it! Yes, things like rest values are a concept that kids can pick up quickly, even if they aren’t in piano lessons 🙂 Have fun!
Sarah C. says
I also made a set with note values too, using different colored cups. But you could mix and match them too. Thanks for the quick, fun idea!
Karen Van Sickle says
YES….I thought the same thing.
Kay says
I was looking at a beach day activity and I’ve lost the page. Could you please send it to me.
THANKS!
Andrea says
This one? https://www.teachpianotoday.com/2014/06/19/head-to-the-beach-with-this-piano-teaching-game/
Karen says
I don’t know why I never saw this before! I needed this for tomorrow’s lesson for a pre-schooler and I think I might use it next week with a group, but perhaps as bowling and they get one chance to roll a ball and then count the score.