The drum kit for kids: how it works and first steps

A drum kit is a set of drums and cymbals arranged so that one person can play them all. The player uses two sticks and both feet. The kit is the engine of rock, pop, and jazz bands. A child can start with a pair of sticks and a practice pad, long before a full kit comes into the house.

Quick facts

• Family: percussion
• Played with: two sticks and two foot pedals
• A standard kit: five drums, a hi-hat, and two more cymbals
• Also called: a drum set
• Grew up in: the United States, around 1900
• Where it plays: rock, pop, and jazz bands, and school jazz bands

The parts of the kit

Part	Where it is	What it does
Bass drum	On the floor, facing out	The low thump. The right foot plays it with a pedal.
Snare drum	Between the knees	The sharp crack. Wires under the drum rattle.
High tom and middle tom	Mounted above the bass drum	Rolling sounds, used in fills
Floor tom	On legs, to the player’s right	The lowest tom
Hi-hat	To the player’s left	Two cymbals on a stand. The left foot opens and closes them.
Ride cymbal	To the right	A steady “ting” to keep time
Crash cymbal	Above the toms	A loud accent

The player sits on a stool called a throne.

How one person plays it all

Before 1900, a band needed several drummers: one for the bass drum, one for the snare, and one for the cymbals. Then drummers in theaters and dance halls began to play several drums at once. A foot pedal for the bass drum made it possible, and the drum kit was born.

Each of the player’s four limbs has its own job. The hard part is making them work apart from each other.

The first beat

Most rock and pop songs use some form of this beat. Count “1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and.”

Count	1	and	2	and	3	and	4	and
Hi-hat	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Snare			x				x
Bass drum	x				x

The hi-hat plays every count. The bass drum plays on 1 and 3. The snare plays on 2 and 4.

Try it with no drums. Tap the right hand on the right knee for the hi-hat. Tap the left hand on the left knee for the snare. Stamp the right foot for the bass drum.

Starting with sticks and a pad

A beginner does not need a kit. A pair of sticks and a rubber practice pad are enough for the first months. An upturned bucket works too. Read bucket drumming for kids.

1. Hold the sticks. Grip each one between the thumb and the first finger, a third of the way up from the thick end. The other fingers wrap around it without squeezing.
2. Let the stick bounce. Drop the tip onto the pad and let it come back up.
3. Play single strokes. Right, left, right, left, slow and even.
4. Play double strokes. Right, right, left, left.
5. Mix them. Right, left, right, right. Then left, right, left, left. Drummers call this a paradiddle.
6. Use a metronome. Start slow, and speed up a little each week.

Try the metronome for kids.

The noise

A drum kit is loud, and that is the first thing parents ask about.

• Protect the ears. A drummer sits right on top of the sound. Ear protection is part of the kit, for the player and for anyone in the room.
• Electronic kits. The pads make little sound, and the drummer hears the kit through headphones.
• Quiet gear. Mesh drum heads and low-volume cymbals cut the sound of a regular kit.
• Practice pads. Much of a drummer’s practice can be done on a pad.
• Set hours. Agree on practice times with the family and the neighbors.

When to start

Teachers often suggest seven or eight for the full kit, when a child can reach the pedals and sit with good balance. Small kits are made for younger players. Rhythm games, hand drums, and stick work on a pad can begin years earlier.

Reading drum music

Drum music uses the same five lines as other music. Each line or space stands for a drum, not for a note. Cymbals are written with an “x” in place of a round notehead.

Read note values explained.

Drums in the orchestra

An orchestra does not have a drum kit. Its percussion section has several players, and each one moves between the snare drum, the bass drum, the cymbals, the timpani, and more. Read percussion instruments for kids and the snare drum, the bass drum, and the cymbals.

Things to do together

Knee kit. Play the first beat on your knees and the floor, as shown above. Play along with a favorite song.

Copy cat. Tap a four-beat rhythm. Your child taps it back.

Find the snare. Play a pop song. Clap each time you hear the snare.

Soft and loud. Play single strokes as soft as you can, and then as loud as you can, with no change in speed.

Name the part. Watch a video of a drummer. Call out each drum and cymbal as it is hit.

Print and play

Clap through the rhythm cards, and test your ear with the rhythm match game. Read rhythm games for kids and the jazz band for kids.