Intro — a little prelude
Imagine practising like you are stirring something delicious: slow, attentive, and with joy. This plan uses the Piano Adventures Scale and Chord books across three terms and follows the ACE teaching spirit — assess where you are, connect every exercise to real music, and engage with creative, performance and practice habits. It is written for a 13-year-old, so it respects growing technical ability while keeping things playful and musical.
Big-picture goals for the year
- Build clean, confident one- and two-octave major and minor scales and arpeggios.
- Establish secure triads and seventh chords in root position and simple inversions, and use them in cadences and progressions.
- Develop rhythmic accuracy, evenness, hand independence, and tasteful tone.
- Grow musicianship: sight-reading, ear training, basic transposition, improvisation and short compositions using scales and chords.
- Perform a short, polished program each term to celebrate progress.
Practice rhythm and length
Recommended daily practice: 30 to 45 minutes, 5–6 days per week. Structure each session like a mini-recipe:
- Warm-up 5–8 minutes: gentle finger exercises, Hanon-like patterns or broken chords.
- Scales & technique 10–15 minutes: focused work on the term's scales and arpeggios.
- Repertoire & application 10–15 minutes: apply scales/chords in pieces, etudes, or improvisations.
- Musicianship 5–10 minutes: sight-reading, ear training, or composition exercises.
Term 1 — Scale and Chord Book 1 (10–12 weeks)
Goals: establish posture and hand shape, one-octave major scales hands separately, basic triads (I, IV, V), simple arpeggios, and comfortable fingering.
Weekly snapshot
- Week 1: Assessment, posture, hand position, relaxed wrist. Play C major scale one octave, hands separately, slow and even. Decide starting tempos and metronome goals.
- Week 2: Solidify C major scale, add simple broken chord patterns in C. Begin simple I-IV-V triads in root position. Fingerings consistent.
- Week 3: Introduce G major scale (one sharp). Work hands separately, then short hands-together attempts for short segments.
- Week 4: D major or A major added depending on comfort. Start simple scale-arpeggio connections and brief chord progressions (I-V-I).
- Week 5: Focus on smooth scale joining across fingers; practice rhythmic variations (staccato, legato, dotted rhythm) to improve control.
- Week 6: Begin simple cadences (I-V-I), practice changing chords cleanly. Add short improvisation: improv for 1 minute over I-IV-V in C or G.
- Week 7: Work on one or two pieces that use term skills. Record and listen back once per week to notice tone and steadiness.
- Week 8: Combine arpeggios with scale runs; start simple transposition exercises up or down a step.
- Week 9: Practice sight-reading short new pieces that use the term scales/chords; ear training: identify tonic and dominant by ear.
- Week 10: Performance week: prepare a 3–5 minute mini-recital including a scale display, a chord progression demonstration, and 1 piece.
Daily technical targets for Term 1
- Scales: C, G, and one other major; one octave, hands separately at 60–80 bpm for quarter notes, gradually increasing speed once even.
- Chords: root position triads I, IV, V; practice hands together and broken forms. Aim for clear attack, even release.
- Arpeggios: broken triads across one octave; focus on evenness and steady pulse.
Term 2 — Scale and Chord Book 2 (10–12 weeks)
Goals: extend to two-octave scales for some keys, add minor scales (natural or harmonic as appropriate), begin simple inversions, and introduce seventh chords and more varied chord progressions.
Weekly snapshot
- Week 1: Review Term 1 material briefly and assess which keys are solid. Introduce two-octave scales for easiest keys (C, G).
- Week 2: Add A minor and E minor scales (one- or two-octave depending on comfort). Hands separately then short hands-together segments.
- Week 3: Begin first inversions for triads; practice moving between root and first inversion to smooth voice leading.
- Week 4: Introduce dominant seventh chords (V7) and practice resolving to I. Use short progressions that reveal the function of the seventh.
- Week 5: Arpeggio expansion: two-octave broken triads and simple arpeggio patterns that fit repertoire pieces.
- Week 6: Rhythmic control: practice scales with swings, syncopation, and small accent patterns to develop control.
- Week 7: Improvisation: improv 2–3 minutes over I-vi-IV-V or ii-V-I; keep ideas short and musical.
- Week 8: Sight-reading and transposition challenges: move a short melody up a step or into a different key using scale knowledge.
- Week 9: Focus on dynamics and tone production during scale and chord practice; use quiet-loud contrasts to sculpt phrases.
- Week 10: Performance week: prepare a 5–8 minute program showcasing major/minor scales, a chord/ear demo, and two pieces or one piece plus improvisation.
Daily technical targets for Term 2
- Scales: two-octave major scales in at least two keys; one- and two-octave minors as assigned. Target tempos 70–100 bpm for steady practice; increase when even.
- Chords: triad inversions and V7 chords; progressions including ii-V-I or I-vi-IV-V in several keys.
- Arpeggios: two-octave broken arpeggios, simple right/left hand rolls and hand coordination patterns.
Term 3 — Scale and Chord Book 3 (10–12 weeks)
Goals: broaden key repertoire, consolidate two-octave fluency, introduce more complex harmonic colours (secondary dominants, modal mixtures), refine technique, and prepare for a confident term-end performance.
Weekly snapshot
- Week 1: Review and benchmark two-octave scales in several keys. Identify weaker keys to prioritize.
- Week 2: Add melodic minor or harmonic minor practice where appropriate. Work on smooth scale transitions and finger crossings.
- Week 3: Introduce secondary dominants or simple chromatic neighbor chords in progressions, showing how they add colour.
- Week 4: Practice seventh chord inversions and voice-leading exercises connecting chords smoothly across the hands.
- Week 5: Arpeggios with larger spans and broken-sustained patterns to build hand stretch and control.
- Week 6: Rhythmic control and rubato: practice measured rubato and phrase shaping over scales and chordal accompaniment.
- Week 7: Composition/arrangement: create a short 8–16 bar piece using two or three chords and a scale you know well.
- Week 8: Refine repertoire pieces: polish dynamics, articulation, and bring performance elements together.
- Week 9: Dress rehearsals: full run-throughs recorded; identify final fixes.
- Week 10: End-of-term performance: 8–12 minute program including scale demonstration, chord improvisation, composed short piece, and polished repertoire.
Daily technical targets for Term 3
- Scales: confident two-octave majors in 4–6 keys, melodic/harmonic minors as assigned; goal tempos depend on comfort but focus on musical evenness rather than speed.
- Chords: seventh-chord inversions, secondary dominants, and smooth voice-leading across harmonic patterns.
- Expressive targets: dynamics, phrasing, articulation and tone control throughout scales and chords.
Practice details and teaching cues (ACE approach in action)
Assess: At the start of each term, take 10 minutes to play through key scales and a short chord progression so teacher and student can agree on targets.
Connect: Always connect scales and chords to music. When practising C major scale, play a short melody or improvise using only those notes. Show how the same notes appear in pieces they are learning.
Engage: Make practice playful. Use short improvisation prompts, chord-quiz games, and weekly mini-challenges. Encourage self-recording once a week to build listening skills.
Specific practice techniques and tips
- Slow practice: take scales at 50% speed focusing on relaxation, then increase by 3–5 bpm when perfect.
- Rhythmic variation: practice scales in dotted rhythm or with accent patterns to fix evenness and finger independence.
- Chunking: practise scales and passages in 4-bar or even 2-note chunks and then link them.
- Hands separately then together: only attempt hands together when both hands are comfortable separately.
- Metronome use: use it as your friendly seasoning — start steady, never let it push sloppiness.
- Tone focus: invite a singing sound; imagine each note like a small taste you want to linger on.
Mini assessments and performance criteria
Use these simple rubrics for each term-end performance: accuracy (notes and rhythm), evenness/steady pulse, tone and dynamics, expression (phrasing), and preparation (memory or secure score reading). A passing mini-recital means steady pulse, clear triads and scales, and an evident musical idea in at least one short piece or improvisation.
Suggested repertoire and creative tasks
- Term 1: short classical or contemporary pieces that use C and G major; simple chordal accompaniments to pop songs for ear connection.
- Term 2: pieces that involve two-octave scales and simple left-hand patterns; short jazz/blues exercises for 12-bar form to practice chords.
- Term 3: a polished classical short piece or a contemporary arrangement, a short original piece or arrangement by the student, and a chord-based improvisation.
Final notes — seasoning to taste
Keep the atmosphere warm and encouraging. Celebrate small victories: the first steady two-octave scale, a neat cadence, a confident improvised 8 bars. Encourage musical curiosity — listening to different styles and trying to hum or play short motifs by ear. With steady, mindful practice and small, delightful challenges, this year will be a tasteful journey from confident basics to creative independence.
If you want, I can turn this into a printable weekly planner, create specific warm-up exercises for each week, or write short improvisation prompts tailored to pieces the student already knows.