Oh No! My Child Is Playing By Ear!

Is He Even Reading the Music?

In the 2nd and 3rd years of Let's Play Music, students pass off multiple repertoire pieces. You may notice that sometimes they’re playing without looking at the sheet music, which might leave you wondering if they’re reading the music at all. The truth is, their strong ear skills allow them to play by ear, often without thinking about the notation.

How We Teach Music Notation

In Let's Play Music, we emphasize ear training so students develop strong listening skills, but we also focus on teaching notation. Here's how we do it:

Simple Tunes: Expose students to easy melodies, making it fun to decode familiar music.
Note Basics: Use bells and keyboards to demonstrate note movements (up, down, step, skip).
Common Patterns: Recognizing chord and melody patterns helps with faster reading.
Anchor Notes: Students begin by learning key notes (Middle C, Treble C, Bass C) to build their reading skills.
Note-Spelling: Checking each note before a phrase ensures they start on the right note.
Early Success: Learning familiar tunes and chords from the start builds confidence and motivation.
Supportive Atmosphere: A positive emotional environment enhances learning.

The Balance: Looking at Hands vs. Notes

It’s fine for students to look at their hands occasionally when learning fingering or geography. However, too much of this can link their proprioceptive skills (sense of body movement) with visual input, which we want to avoid. Encourage them to keep their eyes on the notes instead.

A helpful technique is to cover the hands with a book or paper, making students focus on reading the music. Though challenging at first, this will train them to visualize finger movements and eventually look up at the notes while playing.

Matching Eyes to Ears

To strengthen the connection between sight and sound, have students follow the music with their eyes while playing. A fun way to do this is with a "laser beam eyes" game—imagining their eyes as lasers shining on each note as they play it. This helps them match the notes with the sounds they’re producing.

The Importance of Sight-Reading

Even if a student plays a song perfectly by ear, looking at the music while playing helps them understand how the written notes correspond to sound. Just like reading a book, where you listen and follow along, reading music requires decoding and understanding. Encourage this by playing new music with unfamiliar melodies or tricky rhythms to motivate reading skills.

Sight-Reading Practice

To boost sight-reading skills, give students new material that's easier than their regular repertoire. Focus on simplicity—either play one hand or at a slow tempo. Sight-reading games, such as jumping to random measures in a songbook, can also be effective.

Consistency and Fun

Make sight-reading enjoyable by framing it as a game. "Let’s see if you can solve the composer’s puzzle!" With regular, short practice sessions, you’ll see improvement in reading skills. Over time, your child will develop the ability to play and understand new music as they read it.

Final Thoughts

Sight-reading is a skill that takes time and practice. With strong ear training already in place, your child will continue to improve in reading notation as well.

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