Hi! I'm a high school student, and I am going to start teaching piano soon to beginners. What books do you recommend to use for teaching little kids? What do you think about the Music Tree series? I started piano on the Music Tree series. Thanks so much for your help!!

Good evening,

I have been using the "Bastien" series for about 10 years with great success. Check out their Primer level books (There are two types, A & B) . I prefer a book that gets to both hands in "C position" as quick as possible, instead of "Middle C positions (both thumbs on middle C)" It has always worked better for me to use the former.

Hope this helps,

The Music Tree is a wonderful series and I use it to supplement other methods. Sometimes the pieces sound different, which is why I use it as a supplement. What I love about the Music Tree is that it teaches the Guidepost Method of note reading, which I believe to be the best way to teach notes. I have also had great success with Faber and Faber Piano Adventures published by FJH and also Frederick Harris' new series - Celebrate Piano. Other series that I continue to use are Noona, Alfred, Beanstalk Basics, and Hal Leonard.

Your best bet is to use a multiple key method (one that gets the students all over the keyboard, not just middle C position). Don't be afraid to mix and match series. You'll find what works for you and it will keep you from becoming bored with a series. I typically have a student purchase the lesson and solo book from one series and have them use an additional solo book from another. I also have them do theory and technic, but I don't have them use the books with the methods as I believe the methods aren't adequate in that area. (I've created my own)

The Bastien series has been around for a long time and is adequate, but I find the music to be less stimulating for my students. Although their Sight Reading books are the best.

Make sure you spend time observing established teachers to learn from. There is so much to learn, and teaching is a huge responsibility. You may be the deciding factor of how a child feels about music.

Good luck

Charlene

I agree with Charlene that the Bastien series is musically less intersting. I usually switch to the adult Bastien method when I know they have a grasp for the basics. It usually accelerates their learning and gives them better songs to play. I have had great success doing this.

I am also a High School teacher, and use the Music Tree method. My teacher recommended it, and I have started out about five students on it. This method works great!