Just the name "Cubby" conjures up images of sweet little boys with angelic faces (and voices--You all need to get the Veinna Boys Choir singing "Messiah")! Where I teach choir, they are in that transition between sweet little boys to punkish "too big for their pants--you don't know anything" guys...LOL. Still, they boy's choir class at 1st period is my favorite(despite the awful problem of settling them down EVERY day! And of course, a few of the 'gangstas' with 'tude). Congrats on such a talented nephew, Eric.

-Josh, cute? yeah-they called me a cute kid-and don't asked what happened cuz I don't wanna talk about it, Allen

Just testing....trying to locate the posts that were made more recently in this thread.

Eric,

This is the thread with the problem that hasn't followed the rules for screw ups that seems to be guiding the other threads. I noticed that it appeared here earlier today -- there were no posts for today, but all the January posts had vanished anyway. Inconsistency even among inconsistencies!

Fortunately I had saved a copy of this thread recently since I am most interested in Cubby's progress. You last said that "Cubby is still plugging along in MUSIC FOR LITTLE MOZARTS, and his Mom says he loves coming to his lesson, although he doesn't have the focus yet to practice much at home."

I think the MFLM pictures and stories might be used with an infant or toddler since they do aim more at music appreciation than actual piano playing. The CDs read the stories and play the music and might be good for those children who want to hear the same thing over and over. The Music Discovery Book teaches about instruments of the symphony orchestra and has excerpts of classical pieces, etc. They are designed more for children whose parents or other loved ones don't have a working knowledge of music.

Cubby (having you as an uncle) is more sophisticated musically than most 5-year olds. But he still has 5-year-old size fingers so it's a real challenge to find something suited to him. Perhaps you need to do for him something like what you do for your voice students -- create a learning plan just for him. If you think the MFLM stories are too musically elementary for him, don't use them but instead give him more in-depth info on composers both you and he like. Mozart and Beethoven are used for the series since they were both child prodigies. But I'm sure he would also be fascinated with Brahms and Mendelssohn. Although the illustrations aren't very good and the information is not very in-depth, I still like the Great Composers CD-ROMs from Zane. They are multimedia presentations that play on their own and include excerpts and brief biographies of 18 composers on 6 CDs. Meet the Great Composer series from Alfred is also good.

Do you think that he doesn't focus and practice at home because of his age or because the music is too simple and unchallenging for him? I do think that the MFLM moves way too slowly and spends way too much time with off-staff notation. But then I'm not a fan of off-staff notation. Does he know his ABC's yet? If so, then translating that to reading notes on the staff may not need to be as slow a process as suggested in the MFLM series.

Some of the classical pieces in the PA Accelerated Lesson Book One are really well arranged but very simple. The Brahms "Hungarian Dance" is super easy and the only hands together sections use parallel motion. Cubby may be ready for the PA Primer books now.

Please keep us posted.

[This message has been edited by Rhapsody (edited 15 February 2001).]

Eric, if I were you (& mind you, I'm not trying to tell you what to do), I'd get Cubby out of MFLM ASAP. I'm sure that method was not intended for children like him who have had a lot of exposure to music. When you meet kids like the 10-year-old girl I taught last year who didn't have a clue what a march is (she thought I was talking about the month of March! ), you'll more readily understand why methods like MFLM are written.

Cubby's doin' a great job in MFLM. After all, the method's in the teacher, right? I guess one of my complaints about MFLM is it's assumption that Thumb Equals C. Maybe they deal with this better in the later books, but I intend on switching Cubby over to PA after he finishes Book one in a month or so.

A couple of thoughts--
I purchased MFLM and went through the books and the CD. But I chose to use it only as supplementary material. I have had great success with Faber's PA as well as Bastien's Piano Party (Invitation series). I don't like to have siblings in the same method books. So sometimes I look for alternatives. I have recently found that the Hal Leonard Book One is good, too. But no matter which method book I use, I always have the Pre-schoolers and Kindergarten students up and moving to music. I also write in their assignment that they are to move to music everyday. I send home a tape or CD from my library for them to use there. When they can march, walk, tip-toe, etc. they are finally ready to keep a steady beat.

Imcalark: WELCOME to the site!

It would appear, then, that it is commonly felt that a successful marketer of piano methods for older children does not necessarily make an excellent writer for an early childhood keyboard curriculum. Along the same lines, I am wondering if a company that produces excellent early childhood curriculums can offer quality piano pedagogy. More on that in a moment... But this led to another question: is MFLM supposed to be a group curriculum and, if so, do you think offering it in a private setting isn't doing it justice? Or, as Eric so colorfully characterized it, would it suck either way?

Musikgarten is now advertising a new early childhood group keyboard curriculum called Music Makers: At the Keyboard. The ads says it's an "aural approach, prompting improvisation and composition, and capitalizing on the child's love of group music-making." Their website offers even less info, so I've written off to the company with some specific questions. I'll share them here when I hear back! Has anyone else heard or seen anything at this juncture?

MFLM is supposed to be for either group or private instruction.

I sort of fell out with the books when a 4-year-old girl piped up & told me, "You know that Beethoven Bear & Mozart Mouse aren't real." Kids are too sophisticated these days.

Maybe I could "sell" the method better in a group setting; seems like kids do things in a group that they'd never do when by themselves because they want to fit in.