Recital Readiness

It is time to get ready for our Christmas recital.  I have used different incentives to prepare students for a recital.  I have found having something that creates a sense of pressure or nervousness helps prepare the student to play under these conditions. 

This year I am using a game called "Candy Cadence." The students start with 5 pieces of candy.  Being that it is Christmas, I choose Christmas Hershey Kisses, but you can choose whatever candy you like.  Students will play their piece with the goal of making no mistakes.  If they play their piece perfectly they keep all their Hershey Kisses, if they make a mistake they lose a Hershey Kiss and must play it again to gain it back.  I like the motivation of this game and the simulation of the nervous feelings they may have at the recital.

Here are variations you can make:
1. If the child makes a mistake on the first try, you take away one piece of candy.  To gain the candy back, they must play that section correctly.  If they make a mistake again, you take another candy, then they must play it without mistake until they have won all their candy back.
2. More advanced students could play the game one page at a time.  If they get through the the first page, no candies are taken.  They then repeat the process for each page.
3. You could make the student earn a piece of candy with each correct performance of the piece or section of the piece.  Then if a mistake is made they don't earn the piece of candy.  This allows for more repetition, regardless of how they played it, because they would have to play the section or piece at least 5 times.