Dogs and Birds Book 1 is a first piano/keyboard tutor for very young children that is fun yet systematic. The Dogs and Birds approach, allows very young children to learn the piano, even before they know the alphabet. The music is suitable for children between the ages of 3 and 7. The method uses animal symbols to represent the musical notes, for example Cat is C and Dog is D. The animal names are monosyllabic and children are encouraged to sing the names as they play the tunes on the piano or keyboard. This helps children develop musicality and their inner ear. As well the musical pieces, rhythm exercises are dispersed throughout the book - important for establishing a good sense of pulse and rhythm. This blank notes edition of the book is recommended for ages 6 and 7. An animal notes edition is also available, for ages 3 to 6, which is the same as this book, but with animal symbols printed in the notes, which aid the children in remembering the musical notation. The illustrations throughout the book are an important stimulus for the child. The method is designed such that parents can teach these pieces to their children. However the parents do not need to have a musical background. All musical notation necessary to play these pieces is contained in a supplementary book available separately, which also contains a set of lesson plans including many musical games. Working through the material in Dogs and Birds Book 1 can provide a good parent child bonding opportunity.

 

This book is part of a book series called Dogs And Birds .

There are 46 pages in this book. This book was published 2006 by Dogs and Birds .

Elza Lusher was born in Hungary and obtained a degree in Piano Teaching from the Liszt Academy. She taught piano for five years in Hungary before moving to England in 1991. Elza has always incorporated Kodaly principles into her piano teaching, in particular the use of singing and listening to develop musicality. As piano tutor on the Kodaly Institute of Britain's Teachers' Course run by Prof. Cecilia Vajda she helped many piano teachers to use this approach. She developed the Dogs and Birds method, together with her husband Chris, a senior lecturer in physics at Royal Holloway University of London. The Dogs and Birds approach enables very young children (ages 3 to 7) to learn to play the piano, and includes a strong emphasis on singing.

This book has the following chapters: Golden Rules; The Keyboard; Playground; By the Lake; Empty Sack; Wait until it is Dark; In the Bush; Cotton Flower; Promise to Behave; Egg and Spoon Race; Far-off Hills; Egg Rock; When the Moon is Full; The Secret Garden; Golden Rings; Rug from Morocco; The Forest Comes Alive; Desert; A Safe Path; Open Gate; Watch the Milky Way; Great Smokey Mountain; Stop Your Wondering; Trick on You; Picnic Basket; Somersault; Take Your Partner; Sunday Afternoon; Stepping Stones; Wheelbarrow; Tea Time; Forbidden City; Chinese Pagoda; Night after Night; Hands Together; Traffic Jam; Welcome to My Home; Dreamy Head; Winter Palace; Crush the Corn; Jack and His Men; Stick and Hat Stomp; Hop on My Back; Floating By; Old MacDonald; Aquarium; Transposition; Wishing Well' Jingle Bells; All Over the Universe; Notes for Teachers.