Articles · Lessons and practice
Practice games for young music students: 15 to try this week
Updated 2026-11-12
A practice game turns a dull task, such as playing two bars five times, into something a young child wants to do. The game changes how the task feels. The task itself stays the same, and it comes from the teacher’s notes. Pick one or two games per practice, keep each under five minutes, and let your child choose which one.
Three rules for practice games
The task comes first. Decide what to practice from the teacher’s assignment. Then choose a game for it.
Count correct repeats. Agree on what “correct” means before the game starts, such as right notes and a steady beat.
Stop while it is fun. End the game before your child tires of it.
Games for repeats
1. The penny game. Put five pennies on the left side of the music stand. Each correct repeat moves one penny to the right. A slip moves one penny back. The game ends when all five are on the right.
2. Roll the dice. Your child rolls one die. The number is how many times to play the passage. A parent rolls for the next passage.
3. Tic-tac-toe. Draw a grid. Your child earns an X for each correct repeat. The parent earns an O for each slip. Three in a row wins.
4. Build a tower. Add one block for each correct repeat. See how tall the tower is at the end of the week.
5. Feed the jar. Drop a bead or a dry bean into a jar for each correct repeat. When the jar is full, your child picks a family activity.
Games for hard spots
6. Add a note. Play the first two notes of a hard bar. Then the first three. Then four. Add one note at a time until the whole bar is done.
7. Backward bars. Play the last bar of the piece. Then the last two bars. Then the last three. The ending gets the most repeats, so it becomes the strongest part.
8. Snail, walk, run. Play the passage at snail speed, then walking speed, then running speed. Move up only after a clean try. Use the metronome for kids to set each speed.
9. Red light, green light. Your child plays. When the parent says “red light,” the child freezes on that note. Check the hand shape or the bow. “Green light” starts the music again.
Games for whole pieces
10. Lucky dip. Write the names of review pieces on slips of paper. Draw one from a cup and play it.
11. Play it this way. Draw a card from the tempo and dynamics word cards. Play the piece the way the card says, such as soft, loud, or slow.
12. Concert for the animals. Line up stuffed animals. Announce the piece, bow, and play it with no stops.
13. Be the teacher. Your child teaches a parent the first line of the piece. Explaining it shows what the child understands.
Games for listening and posture
14. Spot my mistake. The parent claps or sings a short line from the piece with one slip in it. Your child finds the slip. Then switch.
15. Statue check. Before the first note, your child freezes in playing position. The parent checks three things the teacher has named, such as feet, back, and wrists. Three out of three earns the first penny.
Match the game to the task
| Task from the teacher | Games that fit |
|---|---|
| Play a passage five times | Penny game, dice, tic-tac-toe, tower |
| Fix a hard bar | Add a note, backward bars |
| Speed up a piece | Snail, walk, run |
| Review old pieces | Lucky dip, play it this way |
| Get ready for a recital | Concert for the animals |
| Fix posture | Statue check, red light, green light |
What you need
- Five pennies
- One die
- Paper and a pencil
- A cup and slips of paper
- A few stuffed animals
- A jar and some beads or dry beans
Keep them in a box beside the instrument.
When games stop working
A game may wear out after a week or two. Switch to another one. Let your child make up a game and name it.
As children grow, the games change into plain goals. A ten-year-old may like a timer and a checklist better than pennies. See how to get kids to practice music without a fight for more ways to set up practice.
A note on prizes
The games above reward a correct repeat with a mark, a bead, or a block. Keep rewards that small. The point is to make each repeat count.
Print and play
Track the week on a weekly practice chart or build your own with the practice chart maker. Color one box a day on the 100 days of practice chart. For how much time to plan, read how long kids should practice each day. For the wider picture, see the parent’s guide to music lessons.
More from this guide
This article is part of Music lessons for kids: a parent's guide to starting, choosing, and practicing.
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Use it with your kids
Print a listening page, a practice chart, or a composer fact sheet. Or try a tool, such as the composer timeline or the piece picker.