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I am moving one of my students, who has a sibling very close in age and in skill level, from the Alfred's series to Faber & Faber PA. She would be going into Alfred's Level 4. She already has a good grasp on chords and inversions, as well as a good start in her minor keys. I just don't want to bore her with a book of everything she's already had. I was thinking the PA level 4 or possibly level 5 would be good. Any suggestions??

The question is... how good is her reading?

That's usually the main issue with kids who are in the Alfred series. They'll ask "What position am I in?" and PA doesn't really endorse that type of learning.

It sounds like she's learned the material in Book 4 (it has review, chords/inversions, minor keys, two octave scales), but have you seen the other books to make sure she's learned all the material presented in them (ie, chromatic scale, triplets, ledger lines, two octave scales, etc)?

Her reading is fine. She naturally goes into whatever position the piece is written in without thinking twice about it. We use several books outside of the Alfred's series for supplemental material, so I'm sure that has helped with that. We used the Dozen A Day series as a daily supplement as well, so she gets a lot of exposure to chromatics and triplets, etc. I wouldn't say she does chromatics perfectly without some practice or that she is completely understanding of chords and inversions, but she has had many lessons on them and is starting to grasp it. She can find the I, IV, V7 chords in most keys and knows how to recognize what inversions they're in when seeing them in the music. I have not seen any Faber books besides the Primer and Book 1 levels. I am hoping that there are other teachers out there that have used both and can help me with this. Thank you for your response!!

If your student is that far along in method books, why not just transition her to simple classical music or anthologies? There's wonderful graded literature that she should be able to handle. A couple that I use are:
The Developing Artist compiled and edited by the Fabers
Also Keith Snell has a 2 books Baroque/Classical and Romantic/20th C for each level.

Thank you. I will consider these. We have already been working through some simple classical lit. as extra practice pieces. My only concern is that she will miss learning needed theory. Would that just be up to me then? I only have one other student older and more advanced than her. I am fairly new to teaching. So, I just don't want them to miss valuable info. that the lesson books lay out.

I agree with going ahead and doing classical literature, using what was posted above. You can also use the PA Performance books that go along with the PA series, and not do the lesson book at all. Wonderful, recital-quality pieces. Check out level 3A, 3B (they're considered early intermediate), and go from there. They go up to level 5. Also, the PA Goldstar books are a good choice.

FYI, www.primamusic.com has all the Faber books at 25% off, free shipping, no sales tax.

If you use the Keith Snell books, you can also get corresponding theory books. They don't go by corresponding page numbers like method books tend to, but each level covers the important things like key signatures, chords/inversions, etc. I use these books for almost all the students that are no longer in method books and have found them very valuable.

The pieces in the Alfred and PA books are so different, that she might welcome the change! I've quit using Alfred simply because I like the pieces in other methods better. There are a few gems in the Alfred series, though, that I continue to have kids play as supplemental pieces.

I have also used the Snell theory books, but find that they often don't contain enough repetition (sorry-it's the former college theory teacher talking). I've had much success with putting theory to practical use by having students analyze chord progressions in their repertoire, write out scales, compose short pieces, etc.

Have you had the student transpose the Dozen a Day pieces into other keys? Many of them work well in all keys.

What about just continuing with the theory book? I've also had students buy the next level Lesson Book, and give them 1 or 2 pieces per week as a "sight reading" assignment. This has worked well with transfer students who have gaps in theory, technique, or are poor readers.

Some other compilations that are fun are the Encore series, Applause, Masterpieces with Flair, and Melodius Masterpieces. There are so many books out there it's hard to sift through them all, but my students have generally enjoyed the pieces in these books more than most others. If your students like Contemporary pieces, the Celebration Series books have loads of them. The books have been republished recently, though, and I haven't seen the new ones.

Good luck with your student! It's hard to have siblings who are so close to each other in skill level. They often butt heads.

I appreciate all the advice. I am definitely going to look into your suggestions. I just appreciate the help in knowing where to go from here!! Happy Teaching :o)

Personally I have been using the Faber books for quite some time and my students progress on a regular basis.
I find the Faber books more user friendly and more clear than Alfred.

As far as your question, I would suggest you first make copies of the last few pages of Faber 3 and first few pages of Faber 4 and see how your student is doing.

You might also consider looking at the Alfred Premier Piano Course as an alternative to Faber. I use Faber mostly, but have recently begun using the Premier course as an alternative and like it a lot. Perhaps it is more closely aligned to the old Alfred series.