Before we start playing guitar today, let’s play a game!
- Sit like you are going to play the guitar.
- Give your guitar to someone, so your hands are free.
- Now stand up without using your hands.
- It might help to lean forward on your way up.
- When you stand up, say, “No Hands”!
Now sit back down with your guitar and do 1-2-3-wave.
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The goal in this exercise is to get the student in the proper playing position. It requires them to be at the edge of their seat and to have their feet firmly planted. If you are using a step or stool, you can move it to the side when you do this exercise.
Once the student is seated again after standing you can put the stool back. Take turns doing this exercise so they can visualize how it looks.
This would be a great time to purposefully make a mistake and see if they can tell you what you need to do. For example: start far back in your seat and use your hands to help you get up. When they catch you cheating, ask them what you need to do to keep it from happening again.
Continue to check for proper posture during the 1-2-3-wave exercise. Keep practicing so that proper playing position becomes a habit. If you notice that your student’s posture is starting to get sloppy during practice sessions, pause to do this exercise before returning to the lesson.
Put your right hand thumb on the top string—remember, it’s the leash.
Now let's walk the dogs!
Now let's walk the dogs!
- Walk the dogs across the tops of the strings-don’t be afraid to get a BIG sound.
- Try using just your pointer finger.
- Then use just your middle finger.
- Now try switching between the pointer and middle fingers.
- Make sure you are using your resting strings.
- Try playing different strings by themselves.
- How do they sound? Which strings sound higher?
- Which strings sound lower?
- Now try playing two strings at the same time. Try a few different combinations of strings.
Do some strings sound good when played together?
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This is a continuation of our exploration of the rest stroke. Two things to watch for are that the thumb is anchored on the top string and the fingers are raking over the tops of the strings. Once the string has been sounded the finger should rest on the string above the one that was plucked (so if you’re playing the B string, your finger rests on the G string). If you hear a snapping sound, it is likely that the student is putting his or her finger underneath the string and pulling it away from the guitar. This is not the way you want to pluck the strings. It can be helpful to think of it as pressing down and in rather than up and away. Others find it helpful to imagine that they are pinching towards the thumb.
As you do this exercise, have your student take some time to explore how different strings sound.
A few discussion questions for this lesson are:
-How does the way the strings sound relate to how they feel?
-How do the differences in sound relate to where the strings are?
-Do thick strings sound higher or lower than thin strings?
-Are the strings at the bottom of the guitar higher or lower sounding than the strings at the top?
This lesson is a great opportunity to get used to how different strings sound and the tactile feeling of playing the guitar.
As you do this exercise, have your student take some time to explore how different strings sound.
A few discussion questions for this lesson are:
-How does the way the strings sound relate to how they feel?
-How do the differences in sound relate to where the strings are?
-Do thick strings sound higher or lower than thin strings?
-Are the strings at the bottom of the guitar higher or lower sounding than the strings at the top?
This lesson is a great opportunity to get used to how different strings sound and the tactile feeling of playing the guitar.
Remember Pep-per-o-ni Piz-za on the G string? Let’s play a game with it.
- Put your thumb on the top string.
- Find the G string (three up from the bottom)
- Walk your pointer and middle fingers over the G string.
- Make the string say “Pep-per-o-ni Piz-za”
- Play it one more time!
- Now choose a different pizza (cheese, sausage, pineapple).
- Play and say the rhythm of your new pizza
on the G string. - Then try it on the B string.
Now try adding other ingredients! For Example: (Cheese-piz-za-with-ol-ives)
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This is a creative exercise to help build the student’s skills.
Each pizza will have a slightly different rhythm. The goal is not to get these rhythms perfect, but to experiment with the relationship between language and rhythm.
Have fun with this exercise making up the craziest pizzas imaginable—there really is no right or wrong here.
As you do the exercise, keep checking for our right hand keys:
- The thumb is anchored on the top string, keeping the dogs on a leash.
- The finger that plucks the string rests on the string above it.
- The fingers are passing over the tops of the strings, not snapping them.
Make a rectangle to remind you where your left hand thumb goes when you play.
Use painter’s tape to put a rectangle behind the second fret.
By keeping your thumb inside the tape, you know your hand is in the right place.
Now try this:
- No Hands Stand
- 1-2-3 Wave
- Left hand thumb finds the thumb rectangle.
- Now play the note A—2nd fret on the G string.
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Use masking or painter’s tape to make a rectangle on the back of the neck, centered behind the 2nd fret. Don’t worry, guitar necks have glossy finishes and the tape will come off without damaging the neck. In fact, I usually leave the thumb square on until it starts coming off on its own. Typically at that point, the student no longer needs it, and an alcohol wipe can be used to clean off any leftover adhesive.
Once you have added the thumb square, have the student do the no hands stand, then sit and do 1-2-3-wave, then put the thumb in the rectangle—this routine will put the student in perfect playing position. Remember to check for good left hand form:
- The thumb is on the other side of the neck behind the middle finger with space between the neck and the palm of the hand.
- The finger is pressing down close to the left hand side of the fret (if you are too far back to the left in the fret you will hear a buzzing sound).
- The student is pressing with the center of their fingertips.
Remember the song “Jelly”? Let’s play it a different way.
Play the first part three times.
G A B G A B G A B
Now the second part three times.
B A G B A G B A G
And then the ending three times.
A A B A G A A B A G A A B A G
Now try playing the whole thing.
Play the first part three times.
G A B G A B G A B
Now the second part three times.
B A G B A G B A G
And then the ending three times.
A A B A G A A B A G A A B A G
Now try playing the whole thing.
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It will take the student time to learn this song. They likely won’t play it perfectly the first, second, or third time. As musicians we are always looking for how to do things better.
An effective way to practice a song is to work in small sections. Take the first three notes and play them three times. Then do the next three notes (second line). Then the last five (third line).
Finish by playing the song all the way through. As always, celebrate effort and keep moving forward, even if they make a mistake here or there.
When practicing songs, the goal is to get through the song fluently. Focusing on refining technique while trying to learn a new song is overwhelming. We do a lot of exercises to work on producing a sound and fretting notes, which is when we focus on technique.
We've posted the recording of "Jelly" below so that your learner can play along or listen to refresh their memory.
An effective way to practice a song is to work in small sections. Take the first three notes and play them three times. Then do the next three notes (second line). Then the last five (third line).
Finish by playing the song all the way through. As always, celebrate effort and keep moving forward, even if they make a mistake here or there.
When practicing songs, the goal is to get through the song fluently. Focusing on refining technique while trying to learn a new song is overwhelming. We do a lot of exercises to work on producing a sound and fretting notes, which is when we focus on technique.
We've posted the recording of "Jelly" below so that your learner can play along or listen to refresh their memory.
Let’s move around.
Stand up and start marching in time.
Count: 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4
Now try clapping with each step and saying “Ta”.
Then try clapping with the first step and holding your hands together for the second step and saying “Too”.
Now try these three patterns:
Stand up and start marching in time.
Count: 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4
Now try clapping with each step and saying “Ta”.
Then try clapping with the first step and holding your hands together for the second step and saying “Too”.
Now try these three patterns:
1)
Ta
Ta
Too
(Hold)
2)
Too
(Hold)
Ta
Ta
3)
Ta
Too
(Hold)
Ta
Step
Step
Step
Step
Now sit down and play each pattern on the guitar.
Be sure to say the Ta’s and Too’s while you do.
Be sure to say the Ta’s and Too’s while you do.
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These two rhythms, 'Ta' and 'Too', will be the main rhythms we use when we start reading music.
When working on rhythms it is important to keep a steady pulse. Marching provides this pulse. 'Too' should be held through the second step; clasping the hands after clapping helps the student remember to give a 'Too" two counts. Some children have trouble maintaining balance when marching. They may find it helpful to think of pushing the heels of their feet to the ground. Children that struggle with balance can put one hand on a chair or table to balance and use their other hand to pat their leg for the rhythm. Try to keep them marching whenever possible because this keeps the pulse going in the student’s head.
After clapping the rhythms, ask the student to try playing them on any open string on their instrument. Continue to say Ta-Ta-Too, etc. and make sure your Too’s are twice as long as your Ta’s.
When working on rhythms it is important to keep a steady pulse. Marching provides this pulse. 'Too' should be held through the second step; clasping the hands after clapping helps the student remember to give a 'Too" two counts. Some children have trouble maintaining balance when marching. They may find it helpful to think of pushing the heels of their feet to the ground. Children that struggle with balance can put one hand on a chair or table to balance and use their other hand to pat their leg for the rhythm. Try to keep them marching whenever possible because this keeps the pulse going in the student’s head.
After clapping the rhythms, ask the student to try playing them on any open string on their instrument. Continue to say Ta-Ta-Too, etc. and make sure your Too’s are twice as long as your Ta’s.
Now that you know some notes, you can start writing songs.
Really, try it!
Really, try it!
- Write down the first words that pop into your head.
- Now put notes with them.
You may find some words can have more than one note (like pep-per-o-ni or piz-za).
I know you're thinking, “I only know three notes!”
No worries! That will make a great song!
I know you're thinking, “I only know three notes!”
No worries! That will make a great song!
Words:
I
on-ly
know
three
notes
Pitches:
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G-A
B
A
G
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A great way to get comfortable on your instrument is to write your own songs. Songs can have any words you want. Limiting them to one sentence helps make the song more memorable. You will also notice that songs that end on the note G sound more complete. This is because our ear thinks of G as the tonic or home pitch, so you might experiment with making a rule that the last note is always G. You will notice that some words are able to take more notes than others. This is because of the number of syllables in the word. This would be a great opportunity to review the concept of syllables and practice finding the number and placement of syllables in a word.
Have the student practice their one sentence songs until they can play them with confidence. They may be a little hesitant at first, so you can present it as a sort of choose your own adventure. For example: “Let’s start on G and go to A (that’s two notes already), now should we go up to B or back to G?” and so on. This can help them get in the spirit. Remember, so long as they use G, A, & B, and are sure to end on the note G, their song will sound great!
Have the student practice their one sentence songs until they can play them with confidence. They may be a little hesitant at first, so you can present it as a sort of choose your own adventure. For example: “Let’s start on G and go to A (that’s two notes already), now should we go up to B or back to G?” and so on. This can help them get in the spirit. Remember, so long as they use G, A, & B, and are sure to end on the note G, their song will sound great!