7 Fall Music Activities your piano students will love to do again and again!
Back to school season is usually a blur of busyness and new routines. I find that once everything is settled (September into October), it’s time to review and get back into music theory.
If you’re a piano teacher, you know what I’m talking about! Theory can take a backseat when there is too much going on or you have a lot of new students, or a new schedule.
That is why I’m sharing these fall music activities…both you and your students will be motivated to actually learn and review music theory concepts! Because, frankly, they don’t feel like theory assignments–they feel like GAME TIME!
The fall music activities I’ll share in this post are products I’ve created. They are for sale for a few dollars each on my Teachers Pay Teachers store. If you end up purchasing any of my products, I thank you so much for your support! Every little purchase helps me keep this blog and the YouTube channel going.
Or if you’re the creative DIY type, feel free to use this page for inspiration. (I just ask that you avoid recreating my music activity ideas for sale. Thank you!)
And I’ll also be sharing a FREEBIE–a fun composition activity that covers so many theory concepts.
If you’d like to skip all the chit chat, and shop all of my fall music activities right now, here ya go…
Fall Rhythm Bingo
Our first of seven fall music activities is Fall Rhythm Bingo.
This is a fall-themed version of my bestselling music game: Rhythm Bingo.
The game works just like traditional bingo, but the teacher will call out rhythms. Students will then need to match the rhythm they heard to the corresponding rhythm on the board.
I love this game because it helps link the note and rest values students see in their method books with the musical rhythms they hear every day. After all, what good is music theory if you can’t apply it to what you’re playing?
The game includes three levels, each progressively harder:
- Level 1 shows the rhythm + picture + words
- Level 2 shows the rhythm + picture
- Level 3 shows the rhythm only
This helps teachers to work with groups of various ages, even combined age groups.
Plus, there are endless ways to use these bingo pages as a rhythm teaching tool!
Check out Fall Rhythm Bingo. and other bingo variations in my TPT store.
Fall Squirrel Note Board Game
Our second fall music activity is a note naming board game: “Find the Acorns!“
This adorable printable board game set includes four levels so you can use it with all of your students! (Yes, big kids like games, too!)
- Level 1 Pre-reading: Identify piano keys
- Level 2 Primary: Identify notes on the staff – Middle C Position notes only
- Level 3 Elementary: Identify notes on the staff – all staff notes (bottom line of the bass clef to top line of the treble clef)
- Level 4 Intermediate: Identify notes on the staff – ledger lines only
The best part about this game is the rules are super simple and it can be played pretty quickly so you can squeeze it in at the end of a lesson or play multiple times!
This game can actually work with just one player, but is most fun with 2-3 players.
Here’s how the game works:
- Print the one-page game board in the level you desire.
- Find game pieces for each player and a single die.
- Players take turns rolling a die, moving to the appropriate space and naming the note.
- Some spaces have special instructions.
- First player to reach the last space is the winner.
Check out the Find the Acorns board game set in my TPT Store here.
Fall Music Composition Activity
Our next of the fall music activities is Fall Compose With Dice.
I came up with the Compose With Dice activity as I was brainstorming ways to make music composition more fun and approachable for beginning piano students.
My students love to do anything with dice. How do those magic little $0.60 cubes make everything more fun?!
I have a whole blog post dedicated to how to use Compose With Dice if you’d like to really dive in. But in summary, students are given a shell of a song (lyrics, left hand, and rhythm done for them), and they roll the dice to determine what each right hand melody note will be.
The benefits of this activity are endless! Students are reviewing so much more than just composing. Here are just some of the music theory concepts involved in Compose With Dice:
- 5-finger major scales
- Identifying notes on the treble clef
- Drawing notes on the staff
- Stem direction
- Note and rest values in 3/4 and 4/4 time
- Ear training
- and so much more
Choose from these pentascales (5-finger hand positions): C, G, D, A, and F Major
And each song has a cute picture and engaging lyrics related to the autumn season.
Also included: a “cheat sheet” showing all of the scales and extra worksheets for practice drawing notes on the staff.
Grab this Fun Music Composition Activity for a few bucks in my TPT store.
Free Music Composition Printable
As promised, a free sample of the above Compose With Dice activity to try out!
Note that this is just one song to try out the activity. For the full activity with eight songs, scale chart, and all of the note writing practice sheets, check out the full version for just a few bucks (link in the previous section).
Grab this Free Fall Compose With Dice Sample here.
Pumpkin Pie Time Signature Rhythm Puzzles
The fourth of seven fall music activities is Pumpkin Pie Rhythm Puzzles.
Maybe you’re like me and you like to use the analogy of a yummy pie to introduce note values. After all, it is the easiest way to comprehend why a “quarter” note is one beat and why a “whole” note takes up a whole measure. It’s fractions!
I find that my beginning students who really grasp the correlation of the names of the note values to 4/4 time signature remember these for life and usually embrace future time signatures easier as well!
I bring these tasty puzzles out every fall. They help me with new students as well as advancing students who need a refresher or are just encountering eighth rests or dotted quarter notes for the first time.
Here are some examples of how I use these puzzles:
As a VISUAL TEACHING TOOL:
- Introducing basic note/rest values to a beginner
- Students in their second book who somehow forgets what a “quarter note” is!
- When eighth notes are first introduced
- When SINGLE eighth notes and rests show up in a song
- The first time we encounter the dotted quarter note / eighth note combo
- Students who, at any time, are not feeling a 4/4 rhythm correctly
As an INDEPENDENT ACTIVITY:
- I may hand a student a stack of puzzles to sort out into piles that equal 4 beats while their sibling has their lesson
As a COMPOSITION TOOL:
- Sometimes I use this as a fun way to start the music composition process. Students can put together a 4/4 rhythm and then come up with a melody that fits for their first measure. Repeat for the second measure and beyond.
As a COMPETITIVE GAME:
- Occasionally two partner students will enjoy a race to put together a “pie.” Then they’ll each tap their rhythm to the other and check each other’s accuracy.
I find that most people love a good slice of pumpkin pie anytime between August and November, so this resource goes a long way. I also have a Blueberry Pie version of this resource for the non-fall months!
Check out the Pumpkin Pie Rhythm Puzzles here in my TPT store!
Fall Leaf Flash Card Puzzles
The fifth of seven fall music activities is Fall Leaf Flashcard Puzzles.
I call these little puzzles “flashcard puzzles” because of how they function as a more fun way to review notes, intervals, and music symbols. These can replace flashcards and, in my experience, are more successful in getting students to review their music theory at home.
These printable puzzles cover piano keys for very beginning piano students. They cover notes, from that very first Middle C learned on the staff to ledger lines on treble and bass staff. Intervals and a few dynamics and music symbols are covered as well.
Here’s an overview of what you get in this printable puzzle pack:
- Piano Keys
- Notes on the Staff (all of them, ledger lines included)
- Intervals 2nds – 7ths (harmonic and melodic)
- Dynamics and their meaning
- Common music symbols and their meaning
Print only the pages that are relevant for your students, and use and reuse these printable puzzles for years to come!
Shop Fall Maple Leaf Flashcard Puzzles in my TPT Store here.
Fall Music Coloring Pages
Okay, so the sixth of our fall music activities is not a game per se. But, c’mon…coloring!
Little kids and big kids (myself included) love coloring! Even the most anti-theory students will usually smile at the prospect of completing a music theory coloring assignment.
One of my favorite ways to use music coloring pages is when I have two siblings that arrive together. I can easily send one sibling to the desk with a box of markers while I work with the other. No explanation needed–every kid understands color-by-code!
This color-by-code set comes with three levels included:
- Level 1 (Easy)
- Level 2 (Medium)
- Level 3 (Challenging)
Beginning students can complete a picture with just the notes of the Middle C Position or C Pentascale. While advancing students can complete the same picture, but their version will challenge them to identify ledger line notes!
You just can’t lose with coloring pages for music theory review!
Shop for Fall Music Coloring Pages in my TPT store
Fall Music Theory Worksheets
And the final of our music activities is a variety of Fall Music Worksheets.
These worksheets are a good balance of solid music theory review and student-friendly autumn fun.
Once again, clicking the image will bring you to the fall music worksheet bundle (save 25%), but there are 6 worksheet packs to choose from!
Customize based on the music theory concept you want to work on:
- Piano Key Names
- Finger Numbers
- Musical Alphabet
- Note & Rest Values (music math)
- Notes on the Staff
- Intervals
- Color By Note
Notice if you do purchase the Fall Music Worksheet Bundle, you also get the COLORING pack mentioned above as well!
Click here to check out the worksheet bundle or any of the worksheet packs.
More Fall Music Activities?
I hope you found something interesting listed here that your piano students will enjoy this fall!
I couldn’t include all of my fall music activities in this post, so if you want some more fun ideas…
And I also have a big bundle of all of my Fall activities and worksheets. You’ll save 25% today if you purchase the bundle (and just between you and me…if I add more resources in the future, you’ll get them for free if you purchase today!).
This bundle includes ALL resources mentioned in this post!
Love Free Music Theory Printables??
I send my email list freebie on the regular! If you’re not already on the list, go ahead and join here for a free set of animal coloring pages, and lots of future freebies and deals!
One Response
Great post. I am facing a couple of these problems.