7 Simple Piano Songs for Kids

It is never too late to learn to play the piano! You may own a grand piano, or a funky, electronic keyboard –  either way, it can serve as encouragement to play and enjoy music. Learning the fundamentals of music can help children in several ways. There is a relation between music and language skills. New scales, chords, and songs are like learning new words, sentences, and sounds! The formative years of children make it a perfect time to start learning the basics of music, to instill a strong base. There are plenty of piano tunes that are simple and easy to learn. And, adults can learn alongside children!

How Can Kids Begin to Learn the Piano?

A piano is an accessible instrument, and can be used to play simple melodies. Easy piano songs for toddlers can be learned without any specific technique or training. You do not need any formal education yourself. Just follow these tips with your child to get them to start playing!

1. Learn about the instrument.

You have gifted the first piano, keyboard, or xylophone to your child. Before giving any instructions, let your child experiment. Let him feel the keys, and hear their sounds and pitches. Do not force him to start learning. Let him feel secure with the instrument. If he knows a tune or even part of a song, then let him play it over and over again.

2. Locate the keys.

Your child needs to locate the place of the notes. Help your child by placing stickers on every key. Name them with the corresponding letters (C, D, E, F, G, A, B – for the first white key that is direct to the left). A “C” can be located on the piano or the keyboard as it is the white key by the left of the two black keys. “F” is the white key to the left of the group of three black keys. You need to count them. If your child is young and does not know letters, use different colored stickers, and match the color to the music sheet.

3. Start with a simple song.

Start with short musical tunes, like Itsy-Bitsy Spider, which has only five notes. Remember, a child that gets frustrated will give up learning.

Kid-Friendly Piano Songs with Letters

These seven simple piano songs for kids with tutorials will make learning easy and fun!

1. Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

A beginner piano song for kids, it has a simple and catchy tune that your kid can sing along to. Most notes are played twice in a row, making it easy to locate.

Notes

Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star,

E  E   B B C# C#  B

How I wonder what you are

A  A G# G#   F# F# E

Up above the world so high

B B  A  A G# G# F#

Like a diamond in the sky

B    B  A     A    G#  G#  F#

Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star,

E  E   B B  C# C#  B

How I wonder what you are

A  A G# G#   F# F# E

2. Itsy-Bitsy Spider

Another classic, this is a piano song for kids that you can mime along as your kids play.

Notes

The itsy-bitsy spider

G C C D D  E  E

Climbed up the water spout

E  D   C   D  E  C

Down came the rain

E  E   F  G

And washed the spider out

G  F   E  F  G E

Out came the sun

C C  D E

And dried up all the rain

E  D C D E C

And the itsy-bitsy spider

G  G   C  C  CD     E  E

Climbed up the spout again

E   D  C  D   E  C

3. Row, Row, Row, Your Boat

A fun piano songs for kids for all to hum!

Notes

Row, row, row your boat,

D  D   D   E  F#

Gently down the stream

F#  E  F# G  A

Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily,

D D D  A  A   A    F# F# F#  D D D

Life is but a dream

A  G  F#   E    D

4. If You’re Happy and You Know It

This is one of the best piano songs for preschoolers, once they are comfortable with the keys.

Notes 

If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands

C C F F F F F F E F G

If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands

C C G G G G G G F G A

If you’re happy and you know it

AA Bb Bb Bb Bb D D

Then your face will surely show it

Bb Bb A A A G F F

If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands

A A G G G F E E D E F

5. Old Macdonald Had a Farm

Another classic that your kid will play over and over again.

Notes

Old MacDonald had a farm

G G G D E E D

E-i-e-i-o

B B A A G

And on that farm, he had a cow

D G G G D E E D

E-i-e-i-o

B B A A G

With a moo-moo here and a moo moo there

D D G G G D D G G G

Here a moo, there a moo

G G G G G G

Everywhere a moo moo

G G G G G G

Old MacDonald had a farm

G G G D E E D

E-i-e-i-o

B B A A G

6. Mary Had a Little Lamb

This is one of the first children’s piano songs that instructors teach kids.

Notes

Mary had a little lamb

E D C D E E E

Little lamb, little lamb

D D D E G G

Mary had a little lamb

E D C D E E E

Its fleece was white as snow

E D D E D C

7. Happy Birthday to You

Your child could be the official orchestrator at birthday parties with this one!

Notes

Happy birthday to you

A  A  B A  D C#

Happy birthday to you

A  A   B  A   E  D

Happy birthday my darling

A  A  A  F# D C# B

Happy birthday to you

G  G  F#   D  E  D

May the good Lord bless You

A  A    B   A   D   C#

May the good Lord bless yo-ou

A  A    A     F#     D       C#   B

Happy Birthday to you

G  G   F#   D   E   D

Irrespective of whether you want your child to be the next Beethoven, or just develop his cognitive abilities, these simple piano songs are for beginners, and are a great place to start. As he will grow, these music fundamentals can be a foundation for a life that enjoys and finds comfort in music.

Also Read:

Action Songs for Children
Dance Songs for Children
Good Morning Songs for Children

Our Editorial Policy

Parenting is a huge responsibility, for you as a caregiver, but also for us as a parenting content platform. We understand that and take our responsibility of creating credible content seriously. FirstCry Parenting articles are written and published only after extensive research using factually sound references to deliver quality content that is accurate, validated by experts, and completely reliable. To understand how we go about creating content that is credible, read our editorial policy here.