Old Joe ClarkOld Joe Clark is a great kids' guitar piece. It doesn't move too fast, and the notes don't jump around. There are lots of open strings.It does straddle three strings, however, so I probably wouldn't give it to a child who is a brand-new beginner, the first week or two. The melody is not familiar enough to motivate them to keep working if they get frustrated with the string-crossing...they'll just become baffled. Here's a nice (though complicated) version of Old Joe Clark -- I couldn't find any simple renditions!
Kids like the funny words of Old Joe Clark, and it is easy to sing! Easy chords, too; play it as a duet with them, or talk their friend, brother or sister into doing chords or melody on another guitar or on the piano while the other one plays guitar. Here are a couple of boys doing just that:
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Why teach Old Joe Clark wrong?
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Peter:Thanks for a great web site and a very useful tool for us teaching guitar.
Christine:
Thank you so much for this site! I have just started teaching some really keen Y6 boys who want to play Scarborough Fair, and your version is perfect. I will now go and look at what other goodies you have!
Matt:
THIS SITE IS AMAZING!!I've been teaching guitar for about 5 years now, and I've only just found your website! (I could really have used it 5 years ago) :-)I teach at primary schools every week day for about 4 hours, so the beginner tabs you have are ideal. Thank you so much for your hard work getting these on the web, you have made many children very happy!!
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Lori, homeschool mom, songwriter/musician and private music teacher:
Just wanted to say "thank you" for this site and for allof your dedication and hard work! I have literally combed the internet for months on end to find free and "doable" resources for my young students and for my own children, whom I have homeschooled for nine years. I will be returning to this site over and over again from here on out and am excited to presentsome of the tools I found today on here to my voice and piano students later this week! My thirteen-year old son is happily, as I type, working with the guitar chord sheets I just printed for him! Wish I'd found you earlier! Thanks a million, and God bless--
Dylan:
Just wanted to express my overwhelming joy in findingyour web site! :D Lots of good info!! My wife and I own our own teaching studio in Texas and I am always looking for new songs to teach my beginner guitar students. You've done a wonderful job of providing great tunes with ACCURATE sheet music/TAB! Your web site is wonderful! Thank you so much!! Many blessings...
Bob:
I am a "retiree" and brand new guitar student. I have used your guitar tabs for Shenandoah and Amazing Grace, and find it exciting to hear real music coming out of my guitar for the first time.
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Becky:
A thousand thanks for your beginning piano and guitar songs. I've already printed several for my children, including the Pretty Little Horses TAB and Carol of the Bells for piano. What a wonderful resource!
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Lin:
Thank you for a most excellent site. I am a classical guitar teacher, who endeavors to cover chords and fingerstyle as well.I especially liked the printable Celtic music, as some of my teenage students enjoy it!Thank you, again.
Sylvain:
Stumbled across your website by accident-slash-chance and it instantly became helpful... I sort of have to prove myself as a primary music teacher. Hasn't been easy, but I love the work. I found great ideas for my guitar unit on your site, as I didn't know where to begin. Thanks to you I will survive my next 6 weeks. I also teach choir to middle school, and I love your little morning warmups. Looking forward to more of that in the future. Keep up the great work, it is very inspirational for us beginner teachers.
Joy:
I am a missionary wife living in Spain... I also am teaching guitar to 2 adults, and have run across the same problem. The Spanish material is all very complicated very quickly so many of my students would become discouraged. So, just writing to say thank you for all the work you´ve put into this and I´ll be using some of your pieces and certainly the advice to keep improving my teaching skills.