I cheated a little and ordered a bunch from the United States, because these books aren’t even going to be published in Canada for another few weeks, but I really couldn’t wait. So I now have a little glossy pile of Primers waiting for their owners, with a copy having already gone to 6-yr-old Alex. And as I was recently able to confirm with the creator of this series, Andrea Dow of British Columbia, Alex is officially the first kid in all of Canada to be taught from this book. So congratulations to Alex!

But really, why AM I so excited about a Wunderkeys Primer?

It’s exciting because it’s the first piano primer to target kids younger than six as well as those who are six and up. Before, Wunderkeys kids were graduating the program knowing and counting quarter, half and whole notes, and being able to read a bit directionally as well, yet traditional primers were starting them back from scratch, not even identifying quarter notes for weeks or months. As well, traditional primers assume the students can write and maybe read a little, but a child of four generally will not have the fine muscle control or knowledge to complete the workbook exercises that accompany a primer.

Wunderkeys, on the other hand, takes this into account and has developed a primer that is age-appropriate for the youngest preschool graduates, that is also engaging for older students. Over the course of 10 to 12 weeks, primer students can go from no keyboard knowledge to sightreading short pieces on the Grand Staff. That’s real piano music, in a very short time, and my favourite part of teaching–the moment when a student realizes they can now play any song they want with a little practice. It’s an amazing thing, well worth sharing.