You asked for this! New Reading and Rote Piano Piece!

Does the thought of a “rote piano piece” scare you? I completely understand if it does. The truth is:

  • Good piano teachers want their students to know how to read music!
  • Good piano students want to learn how to read music!

Right? If you bristle at the thought of a rote piano piece, it’s probably because of that. But alongside those truths, are these other facts:

  • Kids get frustrated when their music makes them sound like a baby! Children have the physical ability to play much more difficult music than they can read.
  • Beginners are frustrated when the music they are reading makes them sound “like a baby.”
  • Kids learn to speak long before they learn to read. Therefore it makes sense that we can also help piano students “speak” (play) the music without reading.
Kids get frustrated when their music makes them sound like a baby! Use a rote piano piece to help!

Kids don’t like it when their music makes them sound like a baby!

Just as in the way kids learn to hear words, then speak words, then read words, we can also pattern our piano instruction so that they learn to hear music, speak music (play without reading), and then read music.

We wonder sometimes why so many of us are good readers, but not good at playing by ear. Part of this may be because there has been an obsession with teaching kids to read music (definitely a primary thing) at the expense of also teaching kids to play music that is more appropriate to their abilities.

But let’s not go overboard with rote piano pieces!

Please don’t think I’m saying that we should only teach by rote. That is definitely not true! I think that a good balance of teaching kids to read music as well as teaching them to play more advanced music by rote is a good way to start kids. Eventually…if they have a teacher like YOU who is concerned that they learn to read music, they will be able to read all the music that they’ve learned to play. But, you can also yield so many other wonderful results when they learn to play some pieces by rote!

Here’s my challenge to you:

Just try using one rote piano piece to start. See what happens and then supplement your teaching with more rote pieces. Here’s what you have to look forward to:

  • Your students will love that they can sound mature even when they just start!
  • Students will start to recognize form and patterns in music in new ways.
  • You can concentrate more easily on good technique when you are introducing a piece.
  • Your students will be better at playing by ear.
  • Parents will be impressed by what their child is playing.
  • You can show them the score after they have learned the patterns to further enhance their note reading skills

The Rote Piano Piece You Asked For!

I wrote “African Safari” as a rote piano piece for the Piano Safari method book a number of years ago. This series is taking off like wildfire and many teachers have requested that I make “African Safari” available as a stand along purchase. You can use this as a rote piece OR a reading piece and it’s great for elementary level students (not quite beginners, but almost!). [We’re going to roll out another one for beginners soon!]

African Safari

African Safari has been delighting young and old students in the Piano Safari method book for years! Now African Safari, a favorite rote piano piece that can easily be taught by rote OR reading, is available as a studio license. You only have to buy it only once and then use it for hundreds of students in the future!

2 thoughts on “You asked for this! New Reading and Rote Piano Piece!”

  1. Wonderful post Wendy. I’ve been experimenting with teaching backwards… Learn by rote, play, clap, sing and write it out. And also do traditional teaching with other pieces. A tight fit getting time for all things 1 hour. Struggling with time management during class still, despite working in rotation with different topics. Am finding that it’s well worth the effort.

  2. Great post and very timely for me. I recently bought Piano Safari. I’m using it with my 3 year old daughter right now, and I can really see the benefit of teaching pieces by rote.

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