Keyboard Fly Cards
Click to purchase.
Beginning students love these Fly Keyboard Flash Cards. Use these flash cards to teach new students the names of the piano keys. Make the cards a fun game that can be played several ways.
Here are some suggestions for activities with the cards.
- You can use these to play Swat the Fly like the Fly Flash Cards I made earlier. Place the cards on a table, call out a letter, and the student swats it as quickly as possible.
- You can play hide and seek with the cards, hiding the cards around the room. Tell your student to find the fly holding the “D”, for example. Little students need the cards to be very obvious. Older children like a challenge.
- In a private lesson, have the student sit across the room from the piano. While you time him with your phone or a timer, he grabs the card, runs to the piano, and plays it. This is a variation on my favorite keyboard game. It’s easy, fast, and it works.
- In a beginning group class, pass out the cards and let students run up and play their note on the piano.
- In a group, students sit in a circle and pass the cards while music plays. When the music stops you call out a letter. The student with that cards runs up and “swats the key” by dropping a braced 3rd finger into the key.
I hope some of you will leave a comment here for other ways to use these cards because I know how creative piano teachers are.
There used to be a time when some of my students had trouble learning the names of the keys. I am happy to say that by using some games and a few worksheets at the beginning lessons, all of my students learn their piano key names quickly now and can identify them with speed. While learning sentences and ideas such as the Back yard where the Cat and Dog Eat and the Front door, where Granny and Auntie live are helpful to introduce the keys, I also needed some way for the student to identify them quickly and not have to count up from C. That is my objective with these games.
Hi Susan,
re: other ideas for flashcard use – at Christmas time I punch holes in flash cards and hang them from our studio christmas tree. Kids have a ball doing a “scavenger” hunt on the tree for the notes I call out – either on a keyboard like these, or on a staff like your other ones. It’s a good idea if you have a small studio space.
I LOVED the fly swatter game and so did the students. Had to be sure we did it at the end of the lesson as it caused hysterical giggles!
I was just thinking – I have a couple of students with learning difficulties who have trouble matching up the note on the staff with where they are on the piano. Lots of game revision for that keeps things fresh even though I could be repeating the same concept over and over.
What about teaming these fly cards up with the other large sized fly cards and play ‘memory/concentration’ or snap. When the student turns over a card they have to tell you what the note it, and play it for you on the piano.
You could get trickier and play – (I think it might be Old Maid??) The aim of the game is that students have to match up pairs.
I’m going to call it “Bug Match Up”
Preparation: Print out one copy of the large fly flash cards on the stave and two copies of the colourful fly flash cards on the piano.
How to play:
Give each player 4-6 cards each. Place the rest of the cards face down in the middle.
The aim is to match up the cards. ie Player One is trying to match up a staff/stave card ‘g’, they would ask the person to their right “Do you have a ‘g’? If player to the right has the matching piano card ‘g’, they hand it over. If not, Player One picks up a card from the middle.
Next person’s turn.
Once players match up a card, they put them both out in front of them.
First player to get rid of all their cards wins.
Blank piano fly card can be a ‘joker’ card.
Hope that helps.
Di
Thanks so much for the game idea! I really like the title! I hope I get to try it soon.
Oh Susan, they are just too cute 😀
I’m going to force my colour printer to co-operate (bribes, threatening, whatever it takes) and give my laminator a workout.
Thanks so much for these 😀
Di
Susan,
Thank you for posting these! Just yesterday I was wishing for fly flashcards like these. I love your game ideas.
When I download the PDF, it shows two pages that are exactly the same–with only keys G, A, B, & C. It’s not showing the page with the blank card.
Thanks for letting me know. It should be fixed now.
Susan,
I used these with a student this morning. She really enjoyed it. Thanks so much for making these! 🙂
Jennifer
I’m happy to hear that, Jennifer. Keep posting your group lesson ideas on your blog. I think they will help a lot of teachers!