My Solution for a Wiggly 6-Year-Old (and a No-Practice Piano Lesson That Actually Worked)
If you teach piano long enough, you know this lesson well.
The student arrives full of energy.
Practice didn’t happen.
Sitting still is clearly not an option.
Instead of forcing the piano bench, or nagging about counting out loud, this week I grabbed chalk and headed to my driveway.
And honestly?
It turned into a very productive activity. Not to mention her dad saw us as he came to pick her up. He was duly impressed!
A Simple Piano Hopscotch Game for Wiggly Students
I drew a hopscotch grid on the driveway and filled each square with something musical:
a simple note
a rest
or a piano key
Here’s how we played:
Finger Number Confusion? Try This Simple Piano Game for Beginners!
If your beginner piano students keep mixing up their finger numbers, try this fun and easy piano game that helps kids remember fingers through movement and play.
🎵 When Finger Numbers Just Won’t Stick…
If you’ve ever had a student mix up finger 2 with finger 4 (again), you know the struggle. 😅 You remind them, count together, even label fingers on paper—but a week later, they’re still guessing.
That’s why I love this simple, hands-on piano game that turns finger number review into an activity kids actually enjoy!
🎄 Scales and Ladders: The Piano Game That Makes Scale Practice Fun Again
If you’ve ever run a scale challenge in your studio, you know the drill.
Students work hard and race toward their goals — learning, laughing, and collecting prizes along the way.
And then… reality hits.
A few weeks later, C Major sounds like it’s never been played before. 😅
That’s when I realized: my students needed a fun, ongoing way to keep scales fresh — long after our studio-wide challenge was over.
So when my team member Kennedy O’Daniel designed a Christmas-themed game that turns scale review into a musical adventure, I knew teachers everywhere would love it.
It’s called 🎹 Scales and Ladders 🎹, and it’s as festive as it is effective.