Back in October we released a Halloween Improv Activity… and it was a huge hit. In December we decided to release a Christmas Improv Activity and again, it was a huge hit. We kept the ball rolling last month and released a Valentine’s Day Improv Activity and… you guessed it… huge hit!
So we couldn’t just sit back and ignore St. Patrick’s Day, could we? Of course we couldn’t!
Piano teachers have been using our improv activities as cute recital pieces for little kids, as fun activities for parent participation days, as sibling duets for home practice, and as themed lesson activities.
Andrea and I hope that the St. Patrick’s Day Improv Activity we’re sharing will bring loads of foot-tappin’ fun to your studio. Check it out below.
Print (double-sided) and cut out the St. Patrick’s Day Improv Cards found here.
With your students, practice saying each St. Patrick’s Day phrase while tapping, snapping, and clapping the rhythms. Then, have your students try playing the rhythms on any one white key. We have included a blank card for students who want to make up their own rhythms.
Spread the cards out on your studio floor and have your students select two of them at random.
With their fingers in the C 5-Finger scale, have your students play the rhythms on the cards selected in Step 3 on a single key and then have them experiment with different “white key” melodies to match the two rhythms on their selected cards.
Begin playing the St. Patrick’s Day accompaniment found here. As you play, instruct your students to join in when they feel comfortable; creating melodies in the C 5-Finger position to match the rhythms on the cards selected in Step 3. Your students can play a melody to match just one card or can switch back and forth, playing a melody to match one card and then playing a melody to match the second card. Or they can play repeated melodies in whatever order they please… hey, it’s improv!
When the duet starts to come to life, encourage your students to really experiment with the melodies… adding dynamics, changing octaves, and experimenting with harmonic intervals.
Because It’s never too early to start preparing future lessons, I have included links to our Halloween, Christmas, and Valentine’s Day improv activities below. If you have the time now, print them off and put them in a handy little folder so they’re ready to roll when it’s time to go.