How to use a metronome with a child

A metronome is a device that clicks a steady beat. A child uses it to check that the beat stays even, to learn a hard passage at a slow speed, and to bring a piece up to speed a little at a time. Used for a few minutes a day, it helps. Left on for a whole practice, it gets in the way.

You can use our free metronome for kids for everything on this page.

What the number means

The number on a metronome is beats in a minute. Musicians write it as BPM.

• 60 is one click each second.
• 120 is two clicks each second.

Composers put a number at the top of some pieces. A quarter note followed by “= 100” means 100 quarter-note beats in a minute.

Tempo words and their numbers

Word	Meaning	Beats in a minute
Largo	Slow and broad	40 to 59
Adagio	Slow and calm	60 to 75
Andante	At a walking speed	76 to 107
Moderato	At a medium speed	108 to 119
Allegro	Fast and bright	120 to 167
Presto	Faster than allegro	168 to 208

Read tempo words in music.

Start without the instrument

A child has to feel the click before playing with it.

1. Listen. Set it to 80 and sit still for ten clicks.
2. Clap. Clap on each click. The goal is to make the click vanish under the clap.
3. Walk. Step on each click around the room.
4. Count. Say “1, 2, 3, 4” over and over with the clicks.
5. Change the speed. Try 60, then 120. Ask which is harder. Slow is often the harder one.

Find the right speed

The right speed for practice is the fastest speed at which your child can play the passage with no mistakes. It is often much slower than the child expects.

1. Have your child play the passage with no metronome.
2. Tap along and find the number that matches.
3. Turn it down by 10 to 20.
4. Play the passage with the click. If it is clean, that is today’s speed.

Six ways to practice with the click

1. One hard bar. Use the metronome on the hard spot only. Loop it five times.
2. Up a notch. Play at today’s speed three times clean. Go up by four to eight. Repeat. Stop when it falls apart, and go back one step.
3. Click the small notes. For a tricky rhythm, set the click to the eighth notes. Later, set it back to the quarter notes.
4. Click half the beats. Set the metronome to half the number, so it clicks on beats 1 and 3 only. The child has to fill in beats 2 and 4.
5. Check the pulse. Start the piece with the click, turn it off for eight bars, and turn it on again. Did the two still line up?
6. Scales. One note to each click, then two, then four. Read how to practice scales with kids.

Problems and fixes

Problem	Fix
The child races ahead of the click	Slow it down by 10. Clap the passage first.
The child cannot hear it over the instrument	Turn up the volume, use a light that flashes, or use one earbud
The child stops at every mistake	Make a rule: the click keeps going, and so do we
The child hates it	Use it for two minutes only, as a game, and stop
The music sounds stiff	Turn it off. The metronome checks the beat. It does not play the music.

When not to use it

• While learning the notes. Get the notes and fingering right first.
• For the whole practice. Players often slow down a little at the end of a phrase, and a metronome does not allow that.
• In slow, songful pieces. Check the tempo, then turn it off.
• When a child is tired or upset. The click adds pressure.

What age?

A young child can start by clapping to a click. Playing with one is harder. A teacher may bring it in after the first year or so, for short tasks. Follow the teacher’s lead.

Kinds of metronome

• A phone app or a website. Free and fine for home.
• A small digital one. It clips to a stand and often has a tuner.
• A wind-up one with a swinging arm. The arm shows the beat as it clicks. It needs a flat surface.

A bit of history

A German inventor named Johann Maelzel patented the metronome in 1815. Beethoven was one of the first composers to put metronome numbers in his music. The letters “M.M.” at the top of old scores stand for “Maelzel’s metronome.”

For more ways to build a steady beat, read rhythm games for kids. For note lengths, read note values explained.