I’m so excited for the Paris 2024 Summer Olympic Games! The amazing breadth of sports, the stories of the athletes, the pure perseverance and triumph over adversity… the Olympics are always epic!
My students are going for gold this summer as well as they compete in the Rhythm Olympics!
I’m busting out this studio-wide multi-week game that I made for the 2020 Olympic games again this summer. And since it’s multi-level, the students who played it back in 2021 (both virtually and in-person) will be able to do it again (we’ll just level up)!
I love studio-wide activities because it provides a sense of community for the students (lots of the kids know each other and I LOVE it when I hear that they are talking about our piano lessons outside of the studio!). The studio-wide activies can serve to introduce concepts to younger students, solidify concepts more deeply with older students, and serve as a refresher for more experienced students.
And the summer is an excellent time for a themed activity… especially when the Olympic games are happening!
Each student receives their own medal chart. Each week as they try out a new rhythm sport they have a chance to earn a gold medal to add to their chart.
There are five different rhythm sporting events that students compete in:
- Rhythm Marathon: Will students be able to make it to the end as more and more rhythms are added on each round?!
- Metric Medley: Students will put their time signature knowledge to the test!
- Ear-mx Freestyle: Remind students to clean out their ears because they are going to need them in this x-treme listening challenge!
- Rhythm Gymnastics: Rhythm and coordination must come together in order to take home the gold!
- Speed Rhythms: How fast can students play the rhythm sequence?! Will it be enough to earn the gold?
The Rhythm Olympics download also comes with Microsoft PowerPoint versions of all the rhythm sporting events, which is perfect for online/virtual lessons.
Rhythm Olympics also comes with a practice log. In order to qualify for the next Rhythm Olympics sporting event, students have to practice a certain number of days during the week.
Rhythm Olympics can be an individual challenge for each student or you can use the silver and bronze medals that come in the download to turn it into a competition among all your students! Each Rhythm Olympics sporting event comes with suggestions on how to incorporate the silver and bronze medals. Keep track of how many gold, silver and bronze medals each student wins and see who can earn the most gold medals!
Included in the download is a gold Champion medal printable. At the end of Rhythm Olympics, each student can receive a Champion medal for having completed all of the rhythm sporting events!
I took the medals a step further and glued them to these wooden circles with holes and ran a strand of ribbon through the holes, turning them into actual medals my students could wear! They loved them!
Rhythm Olympics is available for purchase in the Toucan Piano store.
- Halloween Note-Reading Challenge
Every fall, when students return to lessons after summer break, I feel like we spend the first month just reviewing concepts and note-reading. The summer slide is a real thing… This studio-wide Halloween note-reading challenge gets things back on track. Only the best note-readers will survive the Zombie Pian-o-pocalypse! - Slurs & Ladders: The Recital Prep Game
If there is one game my students beg to play year after year (and sometimes when we don’t even have a recital anytime soon!) is this recital prep game. It’s a great de-stressor and it shows students how prepared they are to perform while also injecting some fun and joy back into those recital pieces that may be sounding a little tired. - Top Practice Tools Every Piano Student should Have: Curiosity
Curiosity is the catalyst that gets students to start learning the piano in the first place and can be exactly what’s needed to keep them going for the long haul. Why is it so important and how do we keep it going? What if I don’t play an instrument, but want to encourage my child in their practicing? Check out all the answers plus download a free printable for parents!
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