The maleficent mascot of meter visited Leslie’s Music Studio this October… and stole all of our Halloween candy! (*Insert maniacal villain laugh*)

To conquer the king of counting and take back their candy, students meticulously practiced their pieces with the metronome this month. Individual metronome challenges were assigned and completed and candy bags were filled one rhythmic reward at a time.

It is amazing what can be accomplished when candy is at stake. (Yes, there is a vampire pun in that sentence!) But really, I was amazed at the progress my students made in terms of playing with the metronome because of this challenge. Since this was such a success in my studio, I’ve decided to share it with you. Music teachers, please let me know how it goes if you decide to try it!

“Count Metronome” Halloween Practice Challenge
Instructions for Private Music Teachers

Materials

1. Metronome – I hope you already have this if you are a music teacher! You will also need to make sure all of your students have access to a metronome at home.
2. Paper bags – One for each student.
3. Bowl for candy – Mine is clear so they can see the candy. You could instead use a decorative Trick-or-Treat bag or plastic jack-o-lantern bucket.
4. Candy – In September, ask students what kinds of candy they like and try to purchase some of those kinds. Beware of peanut allergies. Calculate the amount by figuring each student should earn 10-12 small candies.
5. Count Metronome (click to download PDF) – I framed mine so I can use it again year after year.
6. Optional: Halloween decorations to enhance the Halloween theme.

Directions

Before beginning the challenge in your studio, prepare the materials by writing your students’ names on the paper bags. Print the picture of Count Metronome and display it in a visible location. Pour the candy into a large candy bowl and place it near the picture of Count Metronome.

When students arrive at their lessons the first week of October, tell them what has taken place: “Count Metronome visited the studio and stole all of our Halloween candy! All of the candy bags are empty now, but you can win back your candy by completing metronome challenges each week.”

Older students won’t care so much about the story, but younger students will enjoy some embellishment. You might tell them “Matching the count’s tempo will help you sneak past the ghost that is guarding the candy in the Count’s secret vault!” Or “playing your song with the tempo the Count asks is like playing his game… if you match his tempo, you win!”

Now that they get the idea, start assigning sections of their music with a specific tempo. I used an orange highlighter to make parentheses around the sections I assigned. Write the beats per minute they must match at the beginning of each section, and next to that draw an empty checkbox so that you can check it off once it’s completed and the student has received her candy for that section.

Here’s where the pedagogy comes in: You can give students a few easy challenges (i.e. 4-8 simple measures at an easy tempo) and one difficult challenge (i.e. 12-16 difficult measures at a faster tempo). They might complete the easy challenges in 1 week, but they will work hard to complete the difficult challenge over the course of the month, making major gains in their rhythm skills.

When students come back the next week, have them play their assigned sections with the metronome. They get 3 chances to play it correctly. If they can play it without mistakes or pauses, they earn candy! I gave out one small piece of candy for every 4 measures completed. If the sections were very difficult, I gave out more candy. If a student had to work on the section for a very long time and didn’t earn any candy for a couple of weeks, I gave out more candy when they did experience success. Have the students pick out what candies they would like from the bowl and put them in their bag. They will be excited to see their bags fill up!

As metronome challenges are completed, assign new sections to give students opportunities to earn more candy each week. Adjust the difficulty of the challenges as necessary for each student. The goal is for everybody to fill up their candy bags! Celebrate even the smallest successes for a student who has great difficulty with the metronome.

Differentiating for Special Circumstances

Kids who don’t like candy: I found that even the students who don’t like candy are still motivated by the playfulness of this challenge. As an alternative, you could offer them stickers, pencils, gum, erasers, etc. I like to use practice points that students can collect and eventually exchange for prizes.

Brand new students: During the challenge, I started two new students in lessons.  I let them earn candies for each song or worksheet they completed in their lessons this month instead of doing metronome challenges. (What a way to start piano lessons!)

Learning Disability: One of my students who struggles with a learning disability blew me out of the water with her progress due solely to playing with the metronome. Before the Count Metronome challenge, I thought adding the metronome would only make reading music more complicated for her. I was dead wrong! As soon as we added the metronome, it was like the music finally made sense and her playing improved dramatically. This may not be the case for every student. Alternatives to playing sections of their music with metronome could include clapping short rhythm drills, note name flashcards, or completing music theory activities/worksheets. Use your own judgment as the teacher to adjust assignments as necessary.

It has been so rewarding to see the pride my students have in their progressing playing skills because of this practice challenge. I’ve been pleased with these results and hope “Count Metronome” brings success to you and your students as well!