I have a confession to make...I realized this past week that my being careful with our piano has almost made me miss the opportunity of letting my boys develop a love for playing it. I had finally loosened up a bit to let the boys "play" on the piano as long as they had washed their hands with soap and did not pound on the keys. This playing usually included banging away with the Veggie Tales music book open in front of them and singing along.
The other day Isaac was "playing," and in a moment of inspiration I asked him if he wanted to learn a song. I showed him how to hold his hands, numbered his fingerings, and wrote out the numberings for "Mary Had a Little Lamb." After playing through it multiple times with help, he has mastered the song and is so proud to pull out his "music" and play it.
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| Yep, that's a vintage Arctic Cat sweater from the early 80's! |
We pulled out the beginning piano book so he could start learning some other songs. He loved having his own real music and pointed out all the musical things that he has learned in music class (grand staff, treble and bass clefs). I never intended to teach him piano and am still unsure that I have the patience to do so, but for now we are going to try some low-pressure playing as long as he is enjoying it. We will see how long this lasts before I find him another piano teacher.
