Description

Do your late elementary piano students need a treble and bass clef sight-reading game that they will go nuts over? They will adore this Christmas treble and bass clef sight-reading game Feed the Nutcracker!

This charming piano sight-reading game includes 30 melodies from Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker, written on the grand staff. The notes range from Bass C to Treble C, C3 to C5.

These short melodies help late elementary piano students strengthen their sight-reading and ear training as they play this interactive hands-on sight-reading activity.

Students will also strengthen their recognition of note and rest values, dynamics, tempo terms, and more!

Sight-read the melody, feed the Nutcracker, and collect a walnut card. The player with the most walnut cards at the end wins!

This Nutcracker treble and bass clef sight-reading game is fabulous for private piano lessons and group piano. It is even adaptable for online lessons!

It is also perfect for December piano parties, ice-breakers at recitals and other performance events, and more!

Feed the Nutcracker treble and bass clef sight-reading game includes:

• Range: Bass clef notes (C3 to C4) and treble clef notes (C4 to C5).
• Note Values: Eighth, dotted quarter, quarter, half, dotted half, whole, dotted eighth/sixteenth combination, triplet, and one example with grace notes.
• Rest Values: Eighth, quarter, dotted quarter, half, and whole rests.
• Keys: Key signatures up to 2 sharps and 2 flats plus additional accidentals (sharps, flats, naturals).
• Other: Single-line melodies (treble clef, bass clef, or treble and bass clef combined). Tempo markings. Ties.
• The melodies might be in different keys or octaves, or have modified rhythms to give your students opportunities to sight-read melodies in multiple keys and ranges.
• Time signatures are included.
• Dynamics are included.
• Finger numbers are not included.
• Each card is numbered and corresponds with a chart that includes titles of all melodies. 
• Includes instructions for teacher/student game and student only game.
• BONUS: Includes instructions for printing an extra-large Nutcracker onto 2 sheets of card stock and a MEGA-LARGE Nutcracker onto 4 sheets of card stock! This will be a phenomenal addition to your studio in December, and your students will love it!

How this treble and bass clef sight-reading game benefits your students

Feed the Nutcracker treble and bass clef sight-reading game is a fun piano sight-reading activity that is perfect for those last few minutes of a piano lesson.

Use this sight-reading game to help late elementary piano students continue working on their sight-reading and ear training in an engaging and interactive way.

• Helps them focus on the details of a very short piece of music (4 measures).
• Gives them the opportunity to sight-read a variety of familiar melodies from The Nutcracker.
• Provides a way for students to view sight-reading as a fun aspect of piano lessons.
• This sight-reading activity is beneficial for students in private lessons and group piano lessons.
• Feed the Nutcracker can also be used as a starting point to teach your students about music history, ballet, and more!
• Read A Merry Christmas Sight-Reading Game for Piano Lessons
• Read Your Piano Students’ Favorite Christmas Sight-Reading Games!

Using this treble and bass clef sight-reading game with your piano students

This fun and versatile late elementary piano sight-reading game can easily be used in a variety of settings with students who are classified as late elementary piano and are comfortable with the notes and rhythms listed above.

Here are a few suggestions:

• Private piano lessons
• Group piano classes or group lessons
• Music camps
• Piano parties
• As an ice-breaker activity
• A team-building activity
• In a game station after a recital
• Play this beginning piano sight-reading game instead of sight-reading from books or formal sight-reading materials
• To introduce melodies from The Nutcracker in an interactive way

Game Option #1: Teacher and Student: Ear Training

1. Place the melody cards into the second bag (the one without the nutcracker on it) and shake to shuffle.
2. The student draws 2 melody cards.
3. The teacher plays the melody on one of the cards.
4. If the student correctly chooses which melody the teacher played, the student feeds that card to the nutcracker and puts the other card back into the shuffle bag. The student collects a walnut card.
5. If the student chooses incorrectly, both cards go back into the shuffle bag. The student does not collect a walnut card.
6. Continue playing until you run out of time or all the cards have been fed to the nutcracker.
7. The player who has collected the most walnuts is the winner!

Game Option #2: Student Only: Sight-Reading

1. Place the melody cards into the second bag (the one without the nutcracker on it) and shake to shuffle.
2. The student draws a melody card and plays the melody.
3. If the student plays the melody correctly, the student feeds the card to the nutcracker. The student collects a walnut card.
4. If the student plays the card incorrectly, the card goes back into the shuffle bag. The student does not collect a walnut card.
5. The student continues playing until all the cards have been fed to the nutcracker, or until you run out of time.
6. The player who has collected the most walnuts is the winner!

More ideas for playing this treble and bass clef sight-reading game

Need some inspiration for implementing this game into weekly piano lessons?

• Learn 10 Ways to Use Sight-Reading Games in Piano Lessons.
• Learn 4 Ways to Use Feed the Music Monster Sight-Reading Games with your piano students.

❤️ Related resources you’ll love!

• Pre-Reading Beginning Piano Sight-Reading Game – Feed The Nutcracker
• Feed the Music Monster Printable Sight-Reading and Ear Training Games BUNDLE
• First Steps to Superstar Scales Piano Technique Book for Beginners – Pentascales, Arpeggios, Chords
• Christmas Music Worksheets – Treble & Bass Clef Note Naming Theory Worksheets