How important is timing for beginners

[elota]

Got another question... my daughter who is six is half way through Leila Fletcher Book 1. Although she can get the notes right, she still has not got the hang of the concept of timing and rhythm. Is it really important that she gets it right at this stage or should I worry about that at a later stage, considering that she's still struggling with the weight of the piano keys. Please suggest somebody, since i'm also not an accomplished player, and i can't afford tuition for her

[bleicher]

I don't have much experience teaching beginners, but I think that rhythm is as important as notes.

Does she have a problem with rhythm generally or only when she's trying to concentrate on finding the notes at the same time? If it's a problem co-ordinating both at once maybe she should play easier pieces where she can manage to do both at once. It might help to find ways of working on notes and rhythm separately, for example she could start clapping the rhythm before starting work on the notes.

If it's just that her sense of rhythm needs developing, then this could be done away from the piano with clapping games or dancing.

[mcdiddy1]

Rhythm is the skeleton of music. It should be one of the first things students learn when playing piano.

That being said it is not the end of the world if the student has trouble with notes because all children develop differently and at different rates. Now that you identify the problem it would be wise to start coming up with a solution.

Have you tried purchasing an electric keyboard? Many keyboards have unweighted keys which would make it ideal for a student who fingers are still developing. The rhythm execution will probably improve after doing that.

playing rhythm in the instrument is not so important at that age but students should be expressing themselves in a rhythmic way that can allow them to express these skills on the piano. Playing rhythmic games and echo games away from the piano and relating it to the music being learned.

[asiantraveller101]

Rhythm is the skeleton of music. It should be one of the first things students learn when playing piano.
...playing rhythm in the instrument is not so important at that age but students should be expressing themselves in a rhythmic way that can allow them to express these skills on the piano. Playing rhythmic games and echo games away from the piano and relating it to the music being learned.

Extremely important! It is never too early to train students to keep a basic rhythmic beat. Some kids have it naturally, some need training. That is why rhythm work is an integral part of all recognized early childhood music learning education, such as Orff, Kodaly, and Kindermusik.  As suggested by mcdiddy, rhythmic games can be used in nurturing that. At home, let your child play some percussion instruments, such as woodblock, tambourine, etc, to play along with music or songs being played. Make it a fun activity where she can play, sing, play in turns with you, etc. etc...
Good luck! 

[mcdiddy1]

Yes it is .

Just yesterday I was playing a duet with a student and I was tapping my foot along with us playing and she stopped and said "Can we do it again? I don't think I was on the beat." She also apparently did not like it when I stopped tapping my foot because it helped her play at the same time with me.

Even at an early age , students can appreciate the importance of playing on the beat when it is emphasized early and often. I do not necessarily do duets all the time but the first time we did it, she recognized how it helped her when she began to feel the beat.

You do not need to announce today we are going to work on rhythm because you do not get it. Just sneak it in by doing everything is reason. Start with a count off so the student is thinking of the beat before they start. Say note names in rhythm, have them shadow play (pretend to play), tap the rhythm, say the counts. If you spend the time on it now they will have the foundation to worry about other aspects of their performance later. Without the rhythm though everything eles will go down the drain.

[fleetfingers]

If your daughter is still getting used to the weight of the keys, you should teach her exercises and folk songs by rote. Get her fingers moving and used to the piano.

Even if you're not an accomplished player, can you manage to play simple pieces to play along with her? Play exactly what you've taught her, an octave higher or lower. She should learn to follow along and stay with you. By doing this, you will help establish a sense of rhythm.

When it comes to reading, note values should be taught from the very beginning and you should expect her to follow them. If she were playing wrong notes, you would correct her, right? It follows that note values should be corrected also. If it's a half note and she holds it for one count (4/4), it's wrong. If you let it slide, she'll think it doesn't matter. And she may not even know she's playing it wrong. It's easier to be strict from the beginning than trying to fix it later.

If rhythm is something she struggles with, be patient but persistent. For some students, it's harder to teach rhythm and will take longer, but keep at it. Approach the idea from different angles. You can clap the rhythm before she plays it on the piano. You can count while she plays; have her count while she plays; have her count while you play. Write the beats 1 2 3 4 under the corresponding notes in the sheet music. The beauty is that you can do several different activities without ever showing your frustration or letting on that she's "not getting it". If one thing doesn't produce results, move on to another. Eventually, something will click and she'll be just fine.

[keyboardclass]

According to Leopold Mozart it is the most important.

[celestialriceball]

In my opinion, timing is essential.

As in ESSENTIAL.

Maybe I'm not stressing it enough. I should say "vital". You don't have to practice on correct tempo/metronome marks per say. I say invest in a metronome, and time everything down by a fourth of the original tempo, or one of the SLOWEST tempos out there. If you don't have your timing down as early as possible, you won't have your timing down as easy years ahead. Plan ahead and save time by teaching tempo as much as you can.

[sucom]

It's extremely common for young children to have problems with rhythm and timing.  Playing with a metronome can be really hard for them and in some ways a little discouraging if problems are found keeping with it, so I wouldn't recommend using a metronome in the early stages. Many children aren't even aware if they are keeping up with the beat or not!

Having said this, I do believe that acquiring rhythmic skills is rather important, right from the outset of learning an instrument and I believe it is something that can be acquired over a period of time.  Some children seem to have a natural aptitude for keeping a steady beat and playing various rhythms over the top.  For others it is much more difficult.

I have found that some children accept ta, ta-te, ta, ta much more easily than 1, 2 and 3 4 so I tend to use this whenever children have problems with quavers.  In the same way, ta-fe-te-fi works well when using semiquavers rather than 1 e and e for example.  And using ta --ti, ta --ti, ta --ti ta can bring some smiles!  Persistence and patience is the key, saying the rhythms while students are playing may help to keep them in the student's mind while they are practising. 

[kitty on the keys]

Lots of great suggestion! You can not do enough activities with kids to develop rhythmic skills. Also add listening skills along with visual skills. The sooner a student develops listening skills.....the doors of discovering music begin to open. I use the Suzuki approach......no its not a rote method if done correctly......like any method......my young students read both notes and rhythm patterns.  Students love activities that motivate and educate!

Kitty on the Keys

[elota]

Thanks all. Am getting her to clap or tap the song before playing. and yes, the weight of the keyboard is a problem as her fingers are so dainty... thanks for all you suggestions. And for reinforcing the importance of rhythm

[tonalharmony]

Got another question... my daughter who is six is half way through Leila Fletcher Book 1. Although she can get the notes right, she still has not got the hang of the concept of timing and rhythm. Is it really important that she gets it right at this stage or should I worry about that at a later stage, considering that she's still struggling with the weight of the piano keys. Please suggest somebody, since i'm also not an accomplished player, and i can't afford tuition for her

Definitely work on the rhythm. To me it is just as important as notes. Especially since she is at the beginning stage, it is important for her to learn this.

[cjp_piano]

rhythm is everything! If my student does not get the rhythm of a piece, we stop playing notes and fingers and just do the rhythm (tapping, clapping, speaking, whatever).

[sarah_antoinette]

Great suggestions from other teachers! Yes rhythm is important. She should be working towards clapping a steady rhythm. That said, it is often a lot to transfer that to playing since they also are working to remember finger numbers, notes, etc. Make sure she at least pauses for half notes. Counting out loud when they hold a note can be helpful too. (Ex: saying 2-3-4 after playing a whole note). Do some rhythm games aside from piano practice to reinforce and it will catch up in her playing too. Here are some games my students enjoy:

-"Copy Cat" rhythms. I clap a rhythm and they clap it back. Then we switch, and they clap for me and I try to clap it back. Sometimes I mess up on purpose to see if they can "catch" me. They LOVE it (especially when I "mess up" and it helps their rhythm a lot.
-Clapping the piano music, or using a rhythm instrument to beat it out (rhythm sticks, castanets, etc).
-Clapping in time to a recorded piece of music. We'll clap quarter notes for one verse, half notes for the second, and so on.

Hope that helps a little!

[lukebar]

Some students have a natural sense of rhythm, while others are a bit deficient in this area. I firmly believe that, just like learning to sing on pitch (I don't believe in tone deafness), rhythm is a skill that can be learned. Like many skills, it is more easily acquired at an early age, but it's never too late to work on improving in this area.

I wholeheartedly agree with the earlier post that rudimentary rhythmic work can, and even should, be done away from the keyboard. When I was teaching group classes, weeks before we introduced a new rhythm in a new piece (such as dotted quarter-eighth), we would sing songs with it, play it on rhythm instruments, dance to it... By the time we got to the piece that used the rhythm, they would have the sound of it firmly in their ears. All that would be left would be showing them the notation that represents it.

It's true that, one day, we want them to be fluent enough in notation that they can start with the notation and figure out rhythms that they may have never heard before. We shouldn't always be spoon-feeding them the sound first and then showing the notation. But in the early stages, I think it is more helpful to start with the ears and then go on to the eyes.

And by all means, try to engage the student in as many rhythmic activities as possible that don't involve playing. In this case, since we are talking about your own child, you can do things like tapping the beat whenever you are both listening to music together. Or practice moving around the room, taking steps on each beat while reciting a rhyme or singing a song. Some students very much link movement to learning, and the key to their rhythmic understanding is provided through movement activities.

Be patient, but be persistent. Progress will come in its time.