First piano songs for kids: 10 tunes to play with five fingers

These ten tunes can all be played with the five fingers of the right hand on five white keys: C, D, E, F, and G. No reading is needed. The notes are written as letters. Start with “Hot Cross Buns,” which uses three keys, and work down the list.

Get set

Find middle C. Look for a group of two black keys near the middle of the piano. The white key just to the left of the pair is C.

Place the hand. Put the right thumb on middle C. Let each finger rest on the next white key.

Finger	Number	Key
Thumb	1	C
Pointer	2	D
Middle	3	E
Ring	4	F
Little	5	G

Keep the fingers curved, as if holding a small ball. Each finger stays over its own key.

Print the piano keyboard chart and stand it behind the keys.

How to read the tunes. Each letter is one note. A comma is a short pause. A dash after a letter means “hold it longer.”

The ten tunes

1. Hot Cross Buns. Three keys. For the recorder and the violin too, read Hot Cross Buns.

E D C-, E D C-, C C C C, D D D D, E D C-

2. Mary Had a Little Lamb. Four keys. Read Mary Had a Little Lamb: letter notes.

E D C D, E E E-, D D D-, E G G-

E D C D, E E E E, D D E D, C-

3. Au clair de la lune. Three keys.

C C C D, E- D-, C E D D, C-

4. Lightly Row, the first line.

G E E-, F D D-, C D E F, G G G-

5. Go Tell Aunt Rhody.

E E D C C, D D F E D C, G G F E E, C D C D E C

6. Jingle Bells, the chorus. For the verse, read Jingle Bells: letter notes.

E E E-, E E E-, E G C D, E-

F F F F, F E E E E, E D D E, D- G-

7. When the Saints Go Marching In, the first part.

C E F G-, C E F G-, C E F G, E C E D-

8. Ode to Joy, by Beethoven.

E E F G, G F E D, C C D E, E- D D-

E E F G, G F E D, C C D E, D- C C-

9. Theme from the New World Symphony, by Dvořák.

E G G-, E D C-, D E G E, D-

E G G-, E D C-, D E D C, C-

10. Spring, from The Four Seasons, by Vivaldi.

C, E E E D C, G-, G F, E E E D C, G-

How to learn a tune

1. Sing or hum it first. A child who knows how the tune goes will find the keys faster.
2. Say the letters aloud while pointing at the keys.
3. Play it at a slow speed, one group at a time.
4. Join the groups.
5. Play it three times in a row without stopping.

Five minutes a day beats half an hour once a week.

Add the left hand

When a tune is easy with the right hand, try it with the left. Put the left little finger on the C below middle C. The thumb will land on G. The letters stay the same.

Then play both hands at once, the same notes, eight keys apart.

Add a chord

For a fuller sound, hold C and G together in the left hand while the right hand plays the tune. This works under most of “Hot Cross Buns,” “Mary Had a Little Lamb,” and “Ode to Joy.”

Three of these are classical music

“Ode to Joy” comes from Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. Read Ode to Joy for kids.

The Dvořák tune comes from the slow movement of his New World Symphony. An English horn plays it. Read Dvořák for kids.

“Spring” opens the first of Vivaldi’s four violin concertos about the seasons. Read The Four Seasons listening guide.

After your child can play one, listen to the real thing together.

What comes next

• Tunes that need one more key, such as “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.” Read who wrote Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star? For the notes, read Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star: letter notes. For a birthday, read Happy Birthday on piano.
• A beginner’s method book. Read piano method books compared.
• Reading notes on the staff. Read how to read music for parents.
• Real pieces by great composers. See easy classical piano pieces for beginners.

Things to do together

Name that tune. Play the first five notes of one tune. See if your child can name it.

Echo. Play three notes. Your child plays them back.

Loud and soft. Play a tune like a giant and then like a mouse.

Make one up. Use the same five keys to make a new tune. Write it down in letters.

Print and play

Print the piano keyboard chart. For December, see easy Christmas piano songs for kids. For a plan to follow, read how to teach your child piano at home.

For more on lessons, see music lessons for kids: a parent’s guide.