Kodaly: Curwen Hand Sign Chart (Ng Ying Ying)
Product Specs
- Product Number: 967100038X
- Publisher: Poco
How to use the Curwen Hand Signs / Kodaly Hand Signs
Teaching sight reading to children, and adults sometimes, can be a hard task. Thankfully, there are a few tools and methods that can help you out tremendously. At this post, I want to talk to you about Curwen hand signs that were popularized by Kodaly as part of his famous methodology and, therefore, are also known as Kodaly hand signs.
Curwen Hand Signs / Kodaly Hand Signs Free PDF PosterJohn Curwen, a British Minister and scholar of music, invented the tonic sol-fa (which I will talk about in a later post) in the middle of the 19th century, and as part of his system, he developed a number of hand signs that represented the seven notes. The idea was that the hand signals would help pupils learn sight singing by acting as visual aids.
Later in the century, Zoltán Kodaly adopted Curwen’s hand signs in his system and amended them with a new set of his own gestures. Kodaly changed the orientation of the hand signs so that notes that were flat would point downwards and notes that were sharp would point upwards.
Even though they didn’t know about the different types of learners, Curwen and Kodaly created a solid method for teaching the notes and solfege to children that caters to visual, auditory, read-write, and kinesthetic learners alike.
The proper way to teach Curwen hand signs / Kodaly hand signs is to start by signaling Do at waist level. Then as you go up the scale, move your hand upwards, so that by the time you’re at Ti, your hand is at eye level.
The idea is that children will sing tones correctly and improve their sight reading skills by looking at the difference in height between the different signs. At the same time, the orientation of the signs will help them understand whether they have to sing a higher note or a lower note. Finally, the association of the sound of the note, with the image and position of the sign, and the muscle memory of actually making the sign will create a solid understanding of the scale.
FREE UK Delivery on any order over £10!
Orchestral Instruments - Delivery is FREE within Great Britain for all instruments. The price you see is the price you pay. (Instruments over £100 are always sent by our Express service, regardless of the service selected in the checkout.)
Pianos - Delivery is FREE within Great Britain for all pianos. The price you see is the price you pay. We use a courier service and aim to have most things delivered within 3 working days.
Doorstep Drop-off only. Pianos are delivered flatpack, usually on a pallet, for self assembly. Please be aware that if you choose our courier service for larger items such as digital pianos, the courier is not contracted to carry items up any steps or stairs. If there are stairs leading to the front door of the delivery address, or you live in an apartment which is not on pavement level, it is your responsibility to arrange for transportation from the pavement level to the delivery address. Please be aware that the box can weigh 60Kg to 120Kg. We recommend that that you have help to move the box to the room of your choice from two or three able-bodied persons. In this instance, the delivery driver may, at their own discretion assist you in carrying the parcels into the delivery address, but they are not contracted nor obliged to do so.
Piano deliveries in Sussex - Subject to availability, we are often able to offer a free, pre-arranged timed delivery and setup service within 50 miles of our shops. With this option pianos are delivered and assembled in your home and the piano is left ready to play.
Sheet music, accessories & gifts - We offer 5 services:
- Standard: £2.00 for all orders under £10.00 - FREE for all orders over £10.00 (usually 1-3 business days)
- Saver: £1.00 for all orders under £10.00 - FREE for all orders over £10.00 (usually 3-5 business days)
- Tracked: 2.99 for all orders under 1kg - £3.99 for all orders over 1kg.
- Express: £5.99 for all orders (usually 1 business day)
- Saturday Express: £12.99 for all orders except larger instruments
Please select your preferred option in the checkout.
Please note: Digital Sheet Music purchases do not count towards free shipping eligibility.
In Store Availability
You can call or email us to arrange a stock transfer to your preferred branch.
| Location | Stock |
|---|---|
| Warehouse | In Stock |
| Chichester | Out of Stock |
| Hove | Out of Stock |
Why Buy from Ackerman?
Leading Specialist Supplier
We are one of the top suppliers of woodwind, brass and orchestral strings across Sussex and are main agents for most of the instruments we sell. We only list instruments we normally carry in stock.
Full Workshop Facilities
Our instruments are fully checked and set up through our workshop to ensure perfect playing.
4.9 Average | 9,734 Reviews
Copyright © Ackerman Music 1994 - 2024. All rights reserved.
The cookie settings on this website are adjusted to allow all cookies so that you have the very best experience. If you continue without changing your cookie settings, we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies on our website. However, if you would like to, you can change your settings at any time using the Change cookie settings link in the Special menu.