All eight weeks

Each week starts on a new page. Press print and pick your printer.

Week 1

Say hello to the keys

Find C, count your fingers, play your first song.

The piano has lots of keys, but you only need to learn a few. This week you find a very important key called C, and you play a tune with just three notes.

Find C

Look for the two black keys that sit together. C is the white key just to the left of them. The red keys above are all Cs. The one in the middle is called middle C.

Meet your fingers

1 thumb · 2 pointer · 3 middle · 4 ring · 5 pinky

Get ready

1Sit up tall, with the piano right in front of your tummy.
2Let your arms hang down, then lift your hands onto the keys. Your elbows should be a little bit higher than the keys.
3Curve your fingers, like you are holding a small ball.
4Fingers are numbered. Thumb is 1, pointer is 2, middle is 3, ring is 4, pinky is 5.

The colours of the notes:

Cred
Dorange
Eyellow
Fgreen
Gsky blue
Ablue
Bpurple

Finger exercises

Warm up your fingers

One finger, one key. Walk up the stairs, then back down.

The five-finger walk

Right hand

Put your thumb on C. One finger on each key after it.
Press the key all the way down, then let it come back up.
Make every note the same loudness, like marching.

Songs to play

Your tune

Only three notes! Yellow, orange, red. You can sing the words as you play.

Hot Cross Buns

Right hand

Say the words: hot cross buns, hot cross buns.
The little blocks in bar 3 are quick. Two of them fit in one beat.
Use fingers 3, 2 and 1. Thumb is always number 1.

Win four stars

Your quests

Find every C on the piano. Look for the two black keys, and C is just to the left of them.
Say the finger numbers out loud and wiggle each one: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
Play the five-finger walk, up and down, with no wrong notes.
Play Hot Cross Buns all the way through, without stopping.

Grown-up corner

Ten minutes a day beats an hour once a week. If the keyboard has no sticker set, you can print the colour keys on the Print page and stick them on with low-tack tape. Praise the effort, not the speed.

Plan for the week: about 10 minutes, 5 days. Warm up (2 min), scale or hard bar (3 min), the tune (3 min), then play anything you like (2 min).

Week 2

Five fingers, five keys

Every finger gets a key. Your pinky joins the party.

Last week you used three fingers. This week you use all five on your right hand. Your thumb stays on C and every finger lives on its own key.

Get ready

1Put your right thumb on C and rest the other fingers on the next four keys: D, E, F, G.
2Keep your wrist level, like a table. Do not let it sag.
3Play with the soft pads of your fingers, near the tips.

The colours of the notes:

Cred
Dorange
Eyellow
Fgreen
Gsky blue
Ablue
Bpurple

Finger exercises

Warm up your fingers

One finger, one key. Walk up the stairs, then back down.

The five-finger walk

Right hand

Put your thumb on C. One finger on each key after it.
Press the key all the way down, then let it come back up.
Make every note the same loudness, like marching.

Jump one key, step back. It is like hopscotch.

Skip steps

Right hand

Go 1 then 3, then 2 then 4, then 3 then 5.
Keep your hand still. Only your fingers move.
If you get stuck, say the numbers out loud.

Songs to play

Your tune

Five fingers, five keys. Your pinky gets to play the high green-blue note.

Mary Had a Little Lamb

Right hand

Keep your fingers curved, like you are holding a small ball.
Long blocks mean hold the key down and count in your head.
Bar 4 has a jump: yellow, then your pinky on sky blue.

Win four stars

Your quests

Play the five-finger walk three times in a row, with every note the same loudness.
Play skip steps without looking at your fingers.
Play Mary Had a Little Lamb without stopping.
Play Mary and sing the words at the same time.

Grown-up corner

Watch for a flat or collapsed pinky and a stiff wrist. Gentle reminders are plenty. Counting aloud ('1, 2, 3, 4') helps keep a steady beat.

Plan for the week: about 10 minutes, 5 days. Warm up (2 min), scale or hard bar (3 min), the tune (3 min), then play anything you like (2 min).

Week 3

Your left hand joins in

Your left hand is a mirror. Pinky on the left, thumb on the right.

Your left hand has to learn too. It is a mirror of your right hand, so the numbers go the other way. Your left pinky plays C, and your thumb plays G.

Get ready

1Find the C below middle C. It is the next red key to the left of the middle of the piano.
2Put your left pinky (5) on that C and your thumb (1) on G.
3Left hand notes sound lower. Listen for the deeper sound.

The colours of the notes:

Cred
Dorange
Eyellow
Fgreen
Gsky blue
Ablue
Bpurple

Finger exercises

Warm up your fingers

One finger, one key. Walk up the stairs, then back down.

The five-finger walk

Left hand

Put your thumb on C. One finger on each key after it.
Press the key all the way down, then let it come back up.
Make every note the same loudness, like marching.

Play each key four times with the same finger, like a tiny hammer.

Little hammers

Left hand

Tap from your knuckle, not from your whole arm.
Keep the other fingers resting on their keys.
Start slow. Speed comes later.

Songs to play

Your tunes

The same song, but on the other side of the piano. Your left pinky is number 5 and it plays red.

Hot Cross Buns (left hand)

Left hand

Left hand fingers go backwards! Thumb is 1, pinky is 5, but pinky is on the left.
Your pinky plays C. Then 4, then 3 as you go up.
Listen. It sounds lower and deeper.

A slow, dreamy French song. It is the first half, played twice.

Au Clair de la Lune

Right hand

Make it sound like a lullaby: soft and slow.
Three reds in a row, then orange, then yellow.

Win four stars

Your quests

Play the five-finger walk with your left hand, up and down.
Play Hot Cross Buns with your left hand.
Play Hot Cross Buns with your right hand, then straight away with your left hand.
Play Au Clair de la Lune softly, like a lullaby.

Grown-up corner

The left hand is usually weaker and slower at first. That is completely normal. Keep sessions short and let them play the right-hand songs they already know when they need a win.

Plan for the week: about 10 minutes, 5 days. Warm up (2 min), scale or hard bar (3 min), the tune (3 min), then play anything you like (2 min).

Week 4

Smooth like honey

Make your notes touch. Play the happy Ode to Joy.

A smooth song has no gaps, like a train with no gaps between the carriages. This week you play a tune made by Beethoven, and you make it flow.

Get ready

1Press down a new key just as the last one comes up.
2Keep your hand quiet. Only your fingers move.
3Count the long notes. Hold them for their whole time.

The colours of the notes:

Cred
Dorange
Eyellow
Fgreen
Gsky blue
Ablue
Bpurple

Finger exercises

Warm up your fingers

Two neighbours take turns. Wiggle, wiggle, then slide up.

Wiggle pairs

Right hand

Play 1, 2, 1, 2. Then move over: 2, 3, 2, 3.
Wobbly notes? Slow down until they are even.
Your pinky might be tired. That is good practice!

Your pinky is the smallest finger, so it needs the most practice.

Pinky helper

Right hand

Every second note is your pinky. Make it as strong as the rest.
Keep your pinky curved. No flat pinky!
Go slowly. Slow is how you get fast.

Songs to play

Your tune

A big happy tune by Beethoven. The notes walk up and down like stairs.

Ode to Joy

Right hand

Make your notes touch, like holding hands. No gaps.
Bar 4 has a long-short-long rhythm. Say: da-a-da, da-a.
The tune walks up the stairs, then down the stairs.

Win four stars

Your quests

Play wiggle pairs without wobbly notes.
Play pinky helper, and make your pinky as strong as your other fingers.
Play the first four bars of Ode to Joy five times with no stops.
Play all of Ode to Joy, smooth as honey.

Grown-up corner

'Legato' (smooth, connected) is a first big musical idea. Ask them to listen for gaps. Bar 4's dotted rhythm (long-short-long) is the tricky bit. Clapping it away from the piano first helps.

Plan for the week: about 10 minutes, 5 days. Warm up (2 min), scale or hard bar (3 min), the tune (3 min), then play anything you like (2 min).

Week 5

Big jumps and your first scale

Jingle all the way, and climb a whole octave.

This week you play a song that jumps around, and you learn your first scale. A scale is a staircase of eight notes, up and down. Scales make your fingers fast and strong.

Get ready

1In the scale, your thumb has to tuck under your hand after finger 3. Think of a tiny tunnel.
2Keep your wrist still. Do not twist it.
3For the jumps in Jingle Bells, look at the key you are going to, not at your hand.

The colours of the notes:

Cred
Dorange
Eyellow
Fgreen
Gsky blue
Ablue
Bpurple

Scales

Your scale

C major, right hand

Right hand

After finger 3, tuck your thumb under your hand to play F. Keep your wrist still, like carrying a glass of water.

Songs to play

Your tune

Jingle all the way! There are big jumps in this one, so watch your pinky.

Jingle Bells (chorus)

Right hand

Say: jin-gle bells, jin-gle bells, jin-gle all the way.
In bar 3 your hand jumps from yellow to sky blue, then back down to red.
Practise bar 3 on its own, ten times, slowly.

Win four stars

Your quests

Play the C major scale, up and down, with the right fingers.
Play the scale five times in a row. Make it smooth!
Say the note names as you play: C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C.
Play Jingle Bells (chorus) without stopping.

Grown-up corner

Thumb-under is the hardest idea so far. Practise just 'C D E, thumb under to F' on its own, slowly, many times. The jump in bar 3 of Jingle Bells (E to G to C) also benefits from being looped alone.

Plan for the week: about 10 minutes, 5 days. Warm up (2 min), scale or hard bar (3 min), the tune (3 min), then play anything you like (2 min).

Week 6

Hop! Moving your hand

A left-hand scale, and a song where your whole hand moves.

Until now your hand has stayed in one spot. In Twinkle, Twinkle your whole hand has to hop over one key. Your left hand also gets its own scale this week.

Get ready

1When your hand moves, move the whole hand together. Do not stretch your fingers.
2In the left-hand scale your 3rd finger steps over your thumb to play A.
3Follow the little finger numbers. They change in this song.

The colours of the notes:

Cred
Dorange
Eyellow
Fgreen
Gsky blue
Ablue
Bpurple

Scales

Your scales

C major, left hand

Left hand

After your thumb plays G, your 3rd finger steps over the top to play A.

C major, right hand

Right hand

After finger 3, tuck your thumb under your hand to play F. Keep your wrist still, like carrying a glass of water.

Songs to play

Your tune

Your whole hand has to move over one key. It is a bit like a hop.

Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

Right hand

After the first red, slide your whole hand one key to the right. Do not stretch.
Finger numbers change in this one. Follow the little numbers.
Sing it. The song tells you where to go.

Win four stars

Your quests

Play the C major scale with your left hand, up and down.
Play the scale with your right hand, then your left hand, with no stop in between.
Play the first line of Twinkle with the right finger numbers.
Play all of Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.

Grown-up corner

In Twinkle the thumb slides back down one key at the end of each phrase (D to C). Slow, looped practice of 'hop, hop, hop' works well. Left-hand crossing over is easiest taken one slow step at a time.

Plan for the week: about 10 minutes, 5 days. Warm up (2 min), scale or hard bar (3 min), the tune (3 min), then play anything you like (2 min).

Week 7

A new home: G major

The same star song, in a brand new place.

You can play the same pattern starting on different keys. This week you start on G and meet your first black key, F sharp. Then you play Twinkle again, and it sounds different!

Get ready

1The G scale has the same fingers as the C scale. Only the notes are different.
2The black key is F sharp. It is the second-to-last note going up.
3Twinkle in G uses the same finger pattern as last week.

The colours of the notes:

Cred
Dorange
Eyellow
Fgreen
Gsky blue
Ablue
Bpurple

Scales

Your scales

G major, right hand

Right hand

F♯4

The black key is the second-to-last note going up. Your 4th finger plays it.

G major, left hand

Left hand

F♯2

Same fingers as C major with the left hand. Watch for the black key, F sharp.

Songs to play

Your tune

The same star song, played in a new place on the piano. It sounds a little brighter.

Twinkle in G

Right hand

Start on sky blue (G). It is the same pattern, just moved over.
Listen for the difference. Does it sound happier?
The fingers are the same as last week: 1, 4, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

Win four stars

Your quests

Play the G major scale with your right hand, up and down.
Find the black key F sharp and point to it on three different octaves.
Play Twinkle in G, and listen to how it is different from Twinkle in C.
Play the G major scale with your left hand.

Grown-up corner

Moving a tune to a new key is called transposing. Hearing the same tune higher and 'brighter' is a lovely early taste of how music is built. The left-hand G scale is optional if they are tired.

Plan for the week: about 10 minutes, 5 days. Warm up (2 min), scale or hard bar (3 min), the tune (3 min), then play anything you like (2 min).

Week 8

Show time!

Nothing new this week. Just play your best songs and be proud.

You did it! This week there is nothing new to learn. You pick your favourite songs, make them speedy and smooth, and put on a little concert for someone.

Get ready

1Pick three songs you love to play.
2Play each one slowly first, then a little faster. Faster is only good if it stays smooth.
3Tell someone you are about to give a concert!

The colours of the notes:

Cred
Dorange
Eyellow
Fgreen
Gsky blue
Ablue
Bpurple

Scales

Your scales

C major, right hand

Right hand

After finger 3, tuck your thumb under your hand to play F. Keep your wrist still, like carrying a glass of water.

C major, left hand

Left hand

After your thumb plays G, your 3rd finger steps over the top to play A.

Songs to play

Your tunes

A big happy tune by Beethoven. The notes walk up and down like stairs.

Ode to Joy

Right hand

Make your notes touch, like holding hands. No gaps.
Bar 4 has a long-short-long rhythm. Say: da-a-da, da-a.
The tune walks up the stairs, then down the stairs.

Your whole hand has to move over one key. It is a bit like a hop.

Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

Right hand

After the first red, slide your whole hand one key to the right. Do not stretch.
Finger numbers change in this one. Follow the little numbers.
Sing it. The song tells you where to go.

Jingle all the way! There are big jumps in this one, so watch your pinky.

Jingle Bells (chorus)

Right hand

Say: jin-gle bells, jin-gle bells, jin-gle all the way.
In bar 3 your hand jumps from yellow to sky blue, then back down to red.
Practise bar 3 on its own, ten times, slowly.

Win four stars

Your quests

Play Ode to Joy slowly, then a bit faster, then a bit faster again, with no mistakes.
Play both C major scales, right hand and then left hand.
Play three songs in a row for a grown-up, like a real concert.
Take a bow! Then pick a new song to learn next.

Grown-up corner

A mini-concert is a wonderful finish: make a programme, clap loudly, and take a photo. Good next steps are a first chord (C major: C, E, G), playing with both hands together, or learning to read the notes on a staff.

Plan for the week: about 10 minutes, 5 days. Warm up (2 min), scale or hard bar (3 min), the tune (3 min), then play anything you like (2 min).