PIANO WANTS TO PLAY by Colleen Kong-Savage

An Artsy Chat with Colleen . . .

Colleen joins me for a chat about music, art, picture books, process and so much more. It's a fun and lively chat that touches on inspiration, creativity, resilience and stick-to-it-iveness. Come on in and pull up a chair and chat with us!

PIANO WANTS TO PLAY

This lovely little tome is a perfect gift for every piano lover in your world -- especially if they are also a music teacher!  It will have a special place on their shelf and in their hearts!  Pianos have feelings  -- and wishes . . . or at least if they did, this is maybe what it would be like.  Piano has a special friendship with Amy as she learns to play Piano. Eventually they make beautiful music together, but as she grows up and gets busy, Piano gets left behind.  Enter Rupert, the little brother. With his high energy and booger-covered fingers, Piano is not fond of the music they make together. What Piano didn't know was that their wish would come true in a most beautiful way.  I get a bit teary at the end every time I read it because it's so sweet and so perfect!

A Little Jam. . .(The Music Kind)

Since this song is loosely referenced in the text, it's a perfect companion. Kids will be captivated by the movement, but there are also some lovely musical elements to focus on here to use it as a teaching tool.  A great piece for calming kids down too, when they get wound up. Use it for deep breathing, stretching, or your favorite calming method. Just having students watch the mesmerizing video may help calm them down. Check the YouTube playlist coming in part 2 of the episode (links section) for more lovely piano music referenced in the book as well as more piano fun for kids.

Teacher Tips, Tricks and Topics

1. Similes -- Find them in the book; write your own.
2. Dialogue/quotation marks
3. types of sentences (declarative, interrogative, exclamatory or telling, asking, excited)
4. Write letters of appreciation to the music teacher at your school (or better still, buy them a copy of the book! :-))
5. Pair this book with MY PIANO for compare/contrast and learn about how pianos are made and played. Invite guest speakers in.
6. Partner with the music teacher and do a careers in music unit and have a piano teacher, the school music teacher and a piano tuner come in to talk about their careers.
7. Investigate the author/illustrator. Do a project or write a short report on her.
8. This book is an example of personification (giving human characteristics and actions to a non-human character.) Have students find other examples of personification in other stories/books and/or write their own story, personifying something special to them.

Tips and Topics for Music Teachers

The most obvious teaching topics for music class from this book are piano skills and activities and scales.  There are many ways to integrate those into class. Check out the YouTube playlist and the Pinterest board in the links section for other ideas and specific ways to use them. 

1. Practice scales on written keyboard worksheets or whiteboards
2. Label piano worksheets or fun labeling activities.
3. Sing scales or play scales.
4. Introduce Solfege and hand signs

You can also pull out music mentioned in the book and do activities with the musical pieces/composers:

1. Beethoven (Moonlight Sonata, Ode to Joy)
2. Ellington (Daydreams)

​The book also mentions adagios and boogie-woogies, so that would be another direction you could go.

There is also lots of musical vocabulary:

1. scales
2. adagios
3. boogie-woogie
4. sharps
5. flats
6. melodies
7. keyboard
8. keys
9. notes
10. strings

Another direction you could go using this book is to talk about careers in music represented in this book:
Piano teacher
Piano tuner
Elementary music teacher
(Those are specifically mentioned, but you could use it to talk about other careers in music as well.)

Writing Prompts from Tonnye

1. If you have a sibling, write about the differences in you and your sibling.
2. If you could learn to play any instrument, which would you play? Why?
3. Write about the relationship between Amy and Piano.
4. Write about a time you were excited about something, but then lost interest.
5. Why do you think Piano prefers Amy's playing over her brother's?
6. Write about the importance of practice when you are learning an instrument.
7. Write an acrostic poem about PIANO.
8. Make a Venn diagram about the similarities and differences in Amy and her brother.  Then use it to write about how they are similar and different.
9. Write about an experience you had in music class at school.
10. Do you think Amy is a good music teacher? Why/why not?
11. Why do you think Amy brought Piano into her music classroom?
12. Write a letter: from Amy to Piano or from Piano to Amy.
13. Make a thank you card to Amy as a music teacher from one of her students.
14. Listen to Daydreams by Duke Ellington and write whatever comes to mind.
15. Write a story personifying something special to you.
16. Write a report on Ellington or Beethoven.
17. Listen to Moonlight Sonata and write whatever comes to mind.
18. Write a report about one of the musical careers in the book: piano teacher, piano tuner, or elementary music teacher.

Writing Tips from Colleen

• Do a little writing or drawing everyday to keep yourself in touch with your kidlit power—even if it’s just 5-10 mins. Turn this small creative meditation into a habit like brushing your teeth everyday. Creativity is a muscle that gets more powerful when exercised.

• Talent is good to have. But GRIT is what carries you across the finish line. The journey to publication is a marathon. Produce as much as you can—most of it will get shot down, but occasionally you have a gem. The more “No’s” you can stomach, the more likely you will find a “Yes.”

• Stay true to your vision, but hear what your trusted readers/viewers have to say and allow your vision to evolve. Growth is uncomfortable, but exciting.

Links, More Fun, Extensions for Families and Everyone!

piano_wants_to_play_activity_guide.pdf
File Size:	15909 kb
File Type:	pdf

Download File

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Pinterest board with piano lessons, motivational thoughts, etc.

YouTube playlist full of piano pieces, lessons, teaching activities and lots more.

MY PIANO by Jen Fier Jasinski is a perfect companion book to this one.  You can find the PBJamz episode here
*Be sure to check out the YouTube playlist and the Pinterest boards for that episode too, since there are lots of crossovers.

PBJamz Snack

Peanut butter and jelly cheesecake bars are delicious enough to help you or your young one power through the most grueling piano practice session, but elegant enough to serve at a celebratory recital -- or anything in between.  Protein, tanginess, sweetness -- these bars have it all.  Wanna make some of your own?  Find the recipe here.

Guest Links and Giveaways

Below, find all of Colleen's socials and contact info.
If you'd like to purchase PIANO WANTS TO PLAY,  here's the Amazon link, but if you have an indie bookstore nearby, we'd love for you to purchase from them.
Website: https://ckongsavage.com/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/kongsavage/
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/kongsavage.bsky.social

Colleen has kindly offered a copy of PIANO WANTS TO PLAY along with some SWAG and a signed bookplate to one lucky winner!  To be entered, simply leave a comment below.