Using SM sheet music to supplement playing-based learning
Found in: Playing-Based Methodology, Reading, Students with Prior Experience
Karen C., Oregon
I have a piano student who has already been introduced to sight reading from a former teacher. Is there any reason they can’t learn the song via pattern playing first, then switch over to the sheet music instead of waiting until level 4 or 5? Also I have an 8-year-old voice student who is learning solfege (sight reading/ear training for voice). On SM Foundation 1, she was having a hard time with Fur Elise, so I put the sheet music in front of her and she read it perfectly! It seemed to clear up the mistakes she was making via pattern playing. Why wait until they have been playing this method over a year…not to mention I watched a video on the teacher intranet in which some students depend on their ears so much they can’t learn how to read music, so I perceive there can be an imbalance either way. So learning the pattern followed by a brief review of the sheet music seems like a good idea to me. What are the pitfalls of doing this?
Becc S. Australia
I agree. Always point out patterns, and the reading skills they already have will only be improved. If you leave it for a year they may lose that skill and that seems like a waste. By the way, the Jazz, Blues, and Accompaniment are skills that are not reading based, so spending time on that will make sure they won’t become dependent on the notation.
Bonnie T., Oklahoma
Some of my students are learning to read in school and are in Levels 4, 5, or 7, and one in particular would rather use her music after we have learned via patterns. The problem to me seems to be then she cannot remember how to play the song or use correct fingering. I keep talking about how important it s to trust the method but I don’t always feel that is received. I do think that learning rhythms first and then intervals gives them a better foundation for reading notes and will make them better readers in the long run. But – I am only in Level 7 myself so I still have many things to learn and process as well.
Rochelle G., California
I have several students that have previous reading experience. I don’t show them any music until we start reading rhythm. If they need the sheet music in order to get it right, then they really aren’t learning a playing-based approach. It takes a bit for them to transition from reading based to playing based. But once they do and then we add the SM reading program,it comes together in a beautiful way.
Laurie Richards, Nebraska
I agree 100% with Rochelle. If a student learns a song playing-based but then goes immediately to the music, the playing-based skills will not be retained. They may not even process them fully knowing they will be allowed to use the music anyway. It defeats the purpose and doesn’t give the student the opportunity to actually apply the playing-based tools.
The purpose of teaching the songs using only a playing-based approach is not simply for students to learn a bunch of songs; it is to teach students a new way of learning, a new way of processing and relating to the music which will help them immensely in the long run, even when learning songs from the page later on.
There is nothing wrong with a student who reads already playing from other written music on their own time. But in the Simply Music curriculum, stick to the training and to the program. It works. It’s not necessarily for everyone, but the majority will experience great freedom at the piano and learn more skills than in any other program, by just following the curriculum. Many people are simply stuck in a mindset about the importance the written music plays in the beginning stages.
I highly recommend listening to Neil’s ausio recording called “alking to Students with Prior Experience” in the Curriculum Support section of your Library.
Robin Keehn, Washington
I agree with Rochelle and Laurie, and further, there have been times where I’ve waited well beyond Level 4 to introduce reading to students with previous experience. I had two adult students with strong reading skills and waited until Level 7 to introduce reading because I knew that it would be so tempting for them to rely on reading and not really fully embrace the playing-based skills. I’m not suggesting that is what you should do–only that you really want to develop the playing-based skills because it will make reading a completely different experience. When those two students completed the SM Reading Program, they were completely astonished and thrilled to see that their playing-based tools changed the way they processed music. Instead of reading note-by-note, they see the music holistically. They see patterns, shapes, sentences, chords, progressions, maps, etc. It is well worth the wait to collect all those tools.