Teaching Inner Pulse to a Young student

[carmstro64]

Alright, so I am a college student who is teaching my neighboors daughter how to play piano. She is my third student who I have had so far, but is also the youngest. She is in 1st grade and is 7 years of age. She is great at discerning that eighth notes are faster than quarter and half notes are held longer than quarter and eigth but she has no inner pulse.
I've tried showing her the difference by using a metronome and she can play the notes along with the metronome as well as counting aloud but sometimes she gets mixed up.

Also, in the last few minutes of every lesson we do a rythym game which she likes very much.

I've been teaching her for about 3 months now. It's difficult to teach her that the notes are 1/2 of the value, 1/4th etc because she hasn't encountered it yet in school.

To the contrary though, she has a great ear for the music she plays and plays songs i teach her very well and very close to the music

[ajspiano]

working with an actual piece of music may be more effective than a metronome.. since pretty much everyone 'feels the beat' when a pop song is played..  where as a metronome is likely just perceived as a ticking sound, not the 'beat'.   You'd have to choose the piece carefully, and consider the students tendancies, but as an example..

If you had an audio example of a drum beat on its own you may find its easy for her to discern the beat, as well as that the snare plays only on some beats, and the high hats play on 8th pulses...

I typically test out new younger students inner rhythm by getting them to tap along with my playing in a variety of time signatures...    then ta-ah, ta, ti-ti, tika-tika etc. helps too

[pianoplayjl]

The most simple thing you can do is get them to clap out aloud the time signature and get them to count. Next get them to count and clap the rhythm.

JL

[quantum]

Make the pulse a whole-body experience.  Have your student walk or march, each step equating to a beat.  While they are walking have them clap rhythms and count out loud.  Most people, including children, are able to sustain a steady and regular walking pattern.  It actually takes quite a bit of effort to limp. 

[sidewinder_7]

I first have them clap and COUNT ALOUD, the time signature of a given piece or example--using just quarter notes--4/4 time= 1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4; 3/4=1-2-3-1-2-3; 2/4= 1-2-1-2 etc. etc.
Unless they're atypically uncoordinated, they can usually do this, while they tap their foot. I encourage EVERY STUDENT, be it a 7 year-old child or a senior citizen, to tap his/her foot as they play. This helps to internalize meter/pulse, or, to "feel" the beat. *(see note at the end)*

At the next lesson, after I'm assured they're secure with clapping/counting the overall rhythm of the piece, I then get them to tap the rhythm played by each hand separately (w/their hands, either on their knees or on the piano above the keys ), as written in their music.

They then conclude with tapping the rhythms played by both hands as it appears in their music. This helps them to understand the rhythm, attain the elements of left and right hand independence, without the "worry" of having to decipher which note is "which"/which finger goes "where".

*I'M FULLY CONVINCED, that the persnickety practice of REQUIRING the student to sit perfectly still, like a "stiff immobile bump on a log", while chastising him/her for tapping their foot, is an OUT-MODED ULTIMATELY INEFFECTIVE methodology, of yesteryear.
It's ineffective because the student then learns to play with fear, and his/her playing reflects the above description! Equally as important is, the student learns NOTHING about internalizing rhythm. If he/she accomplishes it, despite the odds, it's never through THAT so-called "teacher"!

[mcdiddy1]

I first have them clap and COUNT ALOUD, the time signature of a given piece or example--using just quarter notes--4/4 time= 1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4; 3/4=1-2-3-1-2-3; 2/4= 1-2-1-2 etc. etc.
Unless they're atypically uncoordinated, they can usually do this, while they tap their foot. I encourage EVERY STUDENT, be it a 7 year-old child or a senior citizen, to tap his/her foot as they play. This helps to internalize meter/pulse, or, to "feel" the beat. *(see note at the end)*

At the next lesson, after I'm assured they're secure with clapping/counting the overall rhythm of the piece, I then get them to tap the rhythm played by each hand separately (w/their hands, either on their knees or on the piano above the keys ), as written in their music.

They then conclude with tapping the rhythms played by both hands as it appears in their music. This helps them to understand the rhythm, attain the elements of left and right hand independence, without the "worry" of having to decipher which note is "which"/which finger goes "where".

*I'M FULLY CONVINCED, that the persnickety practice of REQUIRING the student to sit perfectly still, like a "stiff immobile bump on a log", while chastising him/her for tapping their foot, is an OUT-MODED ULTIMATELY INEFFECTIVE methodology, of yesteryear.
It's ineffective because the student then learns to play with fear, and his/her playing reflects the above description! Equally as important is, the student learns NOTHING about internalizing rhythm. If he/she accomplishes it, despite the odds, it's never through THAT so-called "teacher"!

Interesting method. Couldn't this be accomplished in one lesson? Also when teaching piano, the foot is intended for pedaling so teaching foot tapping and then pedaling could get confusing. I was told it is better to count with the mouth, especially because the mouth is closer to brain than the foot is.

[cjp_piano]

Inner pulse problem for young student? Forget counting, forget 1/2, 1/4 etc.

As Quantum said, it needs to be a WHOLE BODY experience. Don't try to teach them how to figure out eight notes related to quarter notes related to half notes. They need to EXPERIENCE it and FEEL it.

Do lots of games and exercises where you're movement is big and exaggerated. Big arm movements, walking, stomping, etc. Are you familiar with Dalcroze Eurhythmics? Clapping should always have circles involved. A long note is a big circle, short notes are small circles.

(For this example, BIG is half note or any long-ish note, small is quarter note, or whatever is twice as fast as the long note:)
BIG   BIG
small small BIG
BIG  small small BIG BIG

You can have the student repeat after you, you can also do them at the same time. This is how to internalize rhythms without worrying about counting them and trying to figure it out that way.

[lostinidlewonder]

From my experience not many students enjoy counting while they play. Often it confuses them more so than anything else. Even if the teacher counts for them, or a metronome, I find it generally ineffective teaching a natural "inner pulse" (it is usually ok for solving small sections).

Accompanying the teacher is what I have found works fastest when trying to get a student to become more natural with the timing (and it can be very educational for beginners who get confused when they have to play with someone, pushing them to be able to focus on what they play and not get distracted by the other sounds is playing with them). Sometimes I will merely ask them to play one hand while I play the other, if they have too many difficulties often I will play the same parts as them and get them to stay in time with me as I play. Even experienced students I teach who play at an advaned level shun counting and prefer to deal with the sound.

Early beginners are a problem child when it comes to sensing timing. Often they will always play with some kind of uneveness and as teachers we cringe when we hear it in their simple pieces, however I have found it important not to force the student into eveness if it evades them naturally. Push them towards it however you like but don't think that you have to constantly push until they finally play completely evenly. I have found through learning multiple pieces they gain a more natural understanding, rather that forcing them to play evenly with few pieces. It is also helpful to teach young students the foundations of music by getting them to study nursery rhymes, studying rhythm and beat through these by tapping sticks while the teacher plays. There are many musical games you can play with young students which does not require them to play the piano and which will increase their musical experience state to be able to deal with piano playing more effectively.