Beginner violin symbols and notes game ‘Lesson 1 A Tune A Day’ Part 1

Little violinists (ie 3 year olds) aren’t often able to read words yet but they are quite clever at recognising symbols and patterns.

I use different books for different students, depending on their needs and in part, what books I have available at the time.  The music school I work for part time sprung a 3 year old on me.  While THAT wasn’t so much a problem, it was more along the lines that I wasn’t told I would be teaching such a little person the very next day.  Consequently I prepared as much as I could for a ‘normal’ lesson, and brought along the “A Tune A Day” book.

Whilst normally I would use the “Adventures in Violinland” book for my younger students, I didn’t have any available at the time so we are quite happily working through “A Tune A Day”.  It means that I do have quite a bit of preparation work each week so that my little student understands what is going on musically on each page.  Sounds tough.  It’s easy peasy with lots of games.

Here’s one I prepared for Lesson 1 – Down bows and up bows on A with symbol recognition.

I devised some more giant floor cards, which you can use on beginner students of any age (ones who can read) and some symbol flash cards.

To print out the floor cards, click here: A Tune A Day Giant Floor Flashcards

For 2-to-a-page smaller flashcards (to make play easier with the symbol cards), click here: A Tune A Day Giant Floor Flashcards 2 per page

To print out the 2-to-a-page smaller symbol cards, click here: A Tune A Day Giant Floor Card Symbols

Playing variations:-

1. Hold up a symbol card.  Student has to stand on the corresponding Giant Floor Flashcard and tell you what they’re standing on.
2. Print out two copies of the symbol cards and play ‘snap’ or ‘memory’ with them.
3. Hide the symbol cards around the room, have a look at the music, point out a symbol then ask your student to find the matching symbol somewhere in your teaching space (could be blue tacked to the walls or something obvious – point is student has to identify them).
4. If your printer will let you, print out the Giant Floor Flashcards two to a page, one copy of the Symbols cards (as they are – already two to a page) and play ‘memory’ or ‘snap’ with those.

I wrote both ‘Great Big Whole Note’ and ‘Semibreve’ on the floor cards, depending on what you’re more comfortable with using.  “Semibreve” is really hard for little ones to say so I usually get them to say “Great Big Whole Note” instead.   The bonus is that it covers all 4 beats anyway.