Welcome to your first steps in learning piano! In this class we start from the very beginning to learn to use our fingers, identify finger numbers, and move to learning our note values and recognizing patterns in music. This fun curriculum includes songs, actions, and a lot of piano playing. We have a lot of fun in class learning to love music but also learning to organize our practice, that with hard work we can accomplish many things, and we make friends. This class will teach students how to play the piano and read rhythmic notation in preparation for level 2 where we read notes on the musical staff! 

Students will learn:
-to recognize the keys on the piano and their names.
-finger numbers and how they relate to the position on the piano.
-melodic contour
-learning songs by rote and by reading
-learn the value of practice and extension at home
-basic rhythms and how to play and clap them
-proper piano position and posture

Students will meet weekly for 30 minutes. Part of the class will focus on keyboard skills and the rest of the class with focus on theory and reading music. Homework and practice will be assigned each week.

All students will require a keyboard or piano to practice at home. Regular daily practice will be required in order to improve as with any instrument instruction. 

Week 1: Introduction to the piano: how to sit, different sounds the piano can make and our first song!
Week 2: Hand position- creating a pet rock- POST a picture of your pet rock!
Week 3: Learning our left and right hand and finger numbers
Week 4: Twinkle Twinkle Little Star- finger number practice continuation
Week 5: Black keys- learning the patterns on the piano, the groups of black keys and playing on finger tips.
Week 6: Rainbows! Learn to have flexible wrists and easily find your black key groups
Week 7: Dynamics- Forte and Piano
Week 8: The Quarter Note: Learning the beat of music and how to draw a quarter note
Week 9: The Half Note: Clapping the half note and learning to play it in music
Week 10: Bass Clef and Treble Clef, Whole note
Week 11: The Musical Alphabet and pre-learning the musical staff, learn to find the letters F and C on the keys 
Week 12: Letter names of the keys on the piano. Learn to play the keys and identify them based on the patterns of the keys
Week 13: C scale- using left and right hand separately. Play pieces using our C scale
Week 14: The measure and reviewing terminology of what we see when playing Katie's Dog Tucker and Bed on a Boat
Week 15: Graduation songs and review! This week we earn our certificate at the back of the book and learn more staff games at the back of the book.