Here's a unique music activity for kids using an overhead projector that encourages gross motor and imaginative play. It's also a great way to work on naming piano keys and the musical alphabet.
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I recently scored an overhead projector, a projector screen, and some clear overhead transparencies at a garage sale. It was an absolutely amazing find! And if you're familiar with the blog at all, then you know that we love our light table, so I just knew that the boys would love playing with the overhead projector as well.
For the first few days, I let the boys explore the overhead projector on their own terms without any specific goal in mind. I mostly wanted them to get used to how it functions and discover, on their own, what the overhead projector can do. Once they got comfortable with how it worked, I set up our first official overhead projector activity. And it was music themed!
Simple Music Activity for Kids: Giant Piano Keyboard on the Overhead Projector
Since I have an entire box of clear overhead transparencies to use up, I don't feel too bad marking some of them up permanently. So using a ruler and a black permanent marker, I drew a piano keyboard onto the transparency sheet. That left us with a giant piano keyboard projected onto our screen (a plain wall or white sheet works just as well).
K was napping when J tried out this activity and when K did check it out, he had little interest in it. However, J loved this activity. Plus, I discovered that J is actually getting pretty awesome at identifying piano keys.
J started off this activity by slapping individual piano keys while singing a song (see first picture at the top of this post).
Next, I asked him if he wanted to help label the piano keys. He agreed so I handed him the letters of the musical alphabet (A-B-C-D-E-F-G). The letters he used are our homemade light table letters. Without any assistance from me, J correctly labeled all the piano keys. I had no idea that he knew all of the names of the keys yet, but by the end of this activity, I was confident in his note naming abilities. He just turned four and apparently, he has already mastered an useful beginner piano concept.
Once he labeled all of the keys, J went back to the screen. I talked to him about scales, where we play a series of notes in a row such as C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C. He then "played" a scale for me by slapping the piano keys.
To challenge him a bit more, I recited note names for him in a random order. He would slap the names as I said them. Due to my musical background, I also sang the notes of "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" and had him play me the song using the note names that I sang. J quickly caught onto the pattern of the song and was able to repeat most of the song back on his own.
K has been really obsessed with Beethoven's Fifth Symphony so I have showed both him and J how to play the opening notes on the piano (a real one). I physically helped them play the notes, but emphasized the note names. Out of nowhere, J surprised me again and started singing and playing the opening notes (G-G- Eb). Crazy stuff!
I then pulled the letters off the screen and quickly quizzed him to slap the note names I called out. He got every one right. I guess we'll have to move onto formal piano lessons soon. Good thing I know a great piano teacher...me!
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