Crew Review: KinderBach at Home

Supergirl just came up to me and said “KinderBach is my most favorite thing ever!”  This is not the first time we’ve used KinderBach Piano at Home music lessons online.  I was first introduced to KinderBach in early 2011 during my first year with the Crew. 

What is KinderBach? It is a fun, engaging and interactive way to teach music lessons to young children. Karri, the developer and teacher, is enthusiastic and encouraging as she teaches a variety of foundational music skills.  Piano Lessons with KinderBach uses “playful characters to teach note reading, rhythm, singing, and composition” to children ages 3-7.

Lessons are taught using videos.  We received the online version but there is also an app version as well as a DVD format.  When we first used the program, these online video lessons would not work on devices such as smart phones or tablets.  Now the videos will stream for tables, smart phones, and iPads. 

In addition to the ability to stream to more devices, the improved video format also allows a FULL Screen option.  When we reviewed this in early 2011, this was not an option and it was difficult to see the videos.  Earlier in 2012 when I was using the program (I loved it so much I purchased a subscription at the end of my review period!) some of the levels/lessons had been updated but not all.  I am happy to report that ALL 6 levels have been transferred to the new format.

There are currently 6 levels.  Each level has 10 “weeks” of lessons.  Each week is broken into 4 sessions. As a member of the Review Crew, I’ve been given a sneak peak at a level 7 that is currently in production,though there is no release date yet.

In addition to the videos, each level has a printable activity book.  You can download the whole book or print out each page as needed from the session site.

One feature that I love about the new format is that the lesson “pops up” in a separate window. Let me show you:

In the lower left corner you can see the Activity Book Icon. That will allow you to download the entire activity book for this level. In the smaller window you can see green arrows on either side. With those arrows you can move backward or forward through the different lessons. There is a small printer icon so you can print the single page activity sheet for this particular session. You can maximize the window and you can use the video tool bar for FULL Screen. Did I mention already that I loved that feature?

How we’ve used KinderBach: This time I tried something different. Supergirl is developmentally around age 6 but in the past has not been quite so independent. She is now much more independent so I used a discovery approach to KinderBach. I let her set the pace and let her watch as many videos as time permitted and let her watch them again and again. Before I tried to be more structured. I tried to cover about a week’s worth of material in a week and I was hesitant to let her watch too much at one time. I was afraid she would not absorb the material. I have no doubt that she truly connected this time.

She took the time to what she was learning. She would grab an oatmeal container or a bucket and tap out a steady ‘walking” beat. She also started singing “stay on step” or “stepping up.” Many days I would hear her at the piano hunting for Dodi’s house or picking out the train station. She has very weak fine motor skills but KinderBach motivated her to practice using three fingers together to play all three black “train station” keys at the same time. She delighted in explaining to me about Carla and eagerly pointed out where her key was. She lives next to Dodi. In addition to learning about such things as rhythm and note reading, young children, or developmentally young children such as Supergirl, also learn things like left and right. KinderBach has an article that preschool moms may find fascinating an article explaining how KinderBach helps preschoolers prepare for learning the three R’s.  You may also be interested in how KinderBach lines up with the Common Core standards.

Like her sisters Supergirl loves music. Unlike her sisters she is unable to take traditional piano lessons. KinderBach is the perfect solution for us! You can try the first two weeks for FREE to see if it would be a good fit for you.  The online subscription can be as low as $7.99 per month when you purchase a year long subscription.  A monthly subscription option as well as a day pass are also available.

Click on the banner below to read what other Crew Members had to say about KinderBach.  Some of us reviewed the Online Membership and others reviewed the iPad App.

All information is correct and accurate as of the date of this review.

Disclaimer: As a TOS Crew member, I received a 6 month online subscription free of charge to review. I am required to write a review but I am not required to write a positive review. This review contains my and/or my daughters’ honest opinion with, hopefully, enough detail as to why I/ we liked or did not like a product so that my readers can make an informed decision. I received no compensation.

You can read my other Schoolhouse Review Crew Reviews by clicking here.