Which Piano Lesson Books Should Children Use?
Piano lesson books should be chosen by the teacher. A good piano method will:
- Include correlated music theory
- Hold the student’s interest with familiar music and attractive pages
- Progress at an age-appropriate speed
Below is a list of the most popular piano methods and their supplementary materials. These piano lesson books have many things in common. They all have interesting pages with captivating illustrations. Most are so self-explanatory; they do not require Teacher’s Guides, although some offer them anyway. They all use familiar songs that the student will enjoy learning to play, along with original compositions.
| Name |
For Ages |
Theory |
Technic |
Flashcards |
Ear Training |
CD/MIDI |
Teacher's Guide |
| Alfred Prep Course |
5 & up |
yes |
yes |
yes |
yes |
yes |
yes |
| Batien Young Beginner |
5-7 |
yes |
yes |
yes |
no |
no |
no |
| Music for Little Mozarts |
4-6 |
yes |
no |
yes |
yes |
yes |
yes |
| Alfred's Basic |
|
yes |
yes |
yes |
yes |
yes |
yes |
| Bastien Basics |
7-11 |
yes |
yes |
yes |
no |
yes |
no |
| Piano Adventures |
|
yes |
yes |
yes |
included in Theory Book
|
yes |
no |
All of these piano lesson books are correlated with their various supplementary books. For instance, the bottom of page 5 in a Lesson Book might read “Theory p. 3, Technique, p. 5.” This tells the teacher that page 3 of the Theory Book and page 5 of the Technique Book use the same concepts being taught on page 5 of the Lesson Book. The teacher is able to make lesson assignments that focus on the same new concept, which provides an excellent amount of review during the student’s practice time.
Materials needed:
- Piano Lesson Book
- Piano Theory Book
- Piano Solo Repertoire (at least one)
- CD/MIDI Accompaniment Disks (if student is able to practice with them at home)
- Lesson Assignment Book
Materials to add as needed and as time allows:
- Ear Training
- Flash Cards
- “Fun” Repertoire (music the student likes to play)
- Piano Technic Book (Technic is developed as the student learns to play, but a Technic Book can focus on explaining the proper technique.)
- Notespeller (if additional review of notes is needed)
- Sight Reading Book (Sight reading skills are developed as the student learns to play, but some students require additional sight reading practice.)
Obviously, no student will use ALL of these materials at one time. The teacher should use his/her discretion in choosing which materials each student needs.
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