JazzEdge ~ Easy Piano Basics ~ Review

Music has always been a big interest to my daughters. My oldest plays the guitar and my youngest has really been wanting to learn how to play the piano. When I found out that we were chosen to review Easy Piano Basics from the wonderful company, JazzEdge, I was pretty excited. I received  access to a lifetime subscription of lessons. What a blessing to our family!

What is Easy Piano Basics?

Easy Piano Basics is a step-by-step online program that teaches beginners how to play the piano. The course is taught by a wonderful gentleman, Willie Myette. The program consists of 32 online video lessons. In these lessons my youngest daughter learned wonderful techniques that began to help her become a beginning piano player. It is recommended to try to practice 5-10 minutes per day, 5 days a week. While, I'd love to be able to say that we indeed practice 5 days a week, I can't. However my daughter did practice multiply times a week and it was really paying off. 

Signing up and logging into Easy Piano Basics is super easy. After logging in, we were brought to a dashboard. The dashboard contains the 32 video lessons and a place to download and print sheet music that accompany the lessons. 

No special equipment is needed.  However you will need a keyboard or piano. Thankfully, any keyboard or piano will be fine for practice. You can view the videos on any phone, tablet or computer. My daughter and I were very thankful to be able to access the lessons using a tablet. From the tablet we were able to sync the content to our television. We absolutely loved that. Doing that allowed my daughter to view the lessons easier while having the keyboard in front of her. 

What we loved about Easy Piano Basics

While my daughter loved learning some great piano basics, I truly loved watching her practice. It's a great feeling knowing that my daughter was learning something that would benefit her now and in the future. Throughout the time she did the lessons she was able to learn the notes of the piano, how to properly sit at the piano, the five finger scale, half and whole steps, and so much more. She isn't quite done with the lessons and still has so much to learn. We are excited to continue on. One thing that I loved about the program, was the fact that my daughter could watch the lessons as many times as she needed. She also liked the fact that she could pause and start the videos when she needed to. Being able to do so helped her immensely.

Willie does an amazing job at teaching. He has a true gift. Each video was under 10 minutes and some where only a couple minutes long. They each had the perfect amount of information to keep my daughter interested and learning.  We loved that each video shows the keyboard and what keys were being pushed. This was very helpful and a wonderful way to learn. 

Another wonderful thing, is that this program can be used with multiple children. Also, I too feel like I was learning so much. This program is not just for children but for everyone and I loved being able to learn alongside my daughter. 

While all of the above are indeed great things about the program, I have to say that my all time favorite part was not having to leave the house to bring her to lessons. Yes! Seriously friends, this was wonderful. It's great to have a child be able to learn so much without the need to rush around and leave the house.  Being able to learn in the comfort of our own home was fantastic. I can't say it enough. During the time we were reviewing, we took a family vacation. I was worried that she may not be able to practice. I was wrong. Being able to access the lessons from our smartphone proved to be very useful as well. Even though she wasn't able to use the piano for those lessons, she was still able to view them and then watch them again at home with her piano. 

Final Thought

My daughter went into this program with absolutely no piano knowledge whatsoever, so I was excited when she started learning some pretty valuable piano basics. I'm very thankful for Easy Piano Basics. We both love it. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for basic piano lessons. As I said before, it's also great for the person who would like to learn in the comfort of their own home. 

Do you have prior piano experience? Perhaps you would be interested in PianoWithWillie.

PianoWithWillie offers piano instruction at many different levels. 

Do you or your child have a drum set and eager to learn how to use it? DrumsWithWillie would be a great course to check out. 

What does Easy Piano Basics cost?

Right now you can get Easy Piano Basics for only $59.00

It's a one-time fee, no subscription, and no auto-renewal. A great deal in my opinion.

Also, there is a 30-Day, No Hassle Guarantee.  So, if after 30 days you feel Easy Piano Basics is not right for you, simply contact them for a full refund. Although, I personally think you will love the program. 

Want to Connect with JazzEdge?

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PianoWithWillie

Twitter: https://twitter.com/PianoWithWillie

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/jazzedge

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/JazzEDge

Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/jazzedge

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Happy Kids Songs ~ Review

Hello friends, My daughters and I recently had the opportunity to review some wonderful songs and a workbook from Happy Kids Songs. We received three song sets via download.

Friends & Sharing 

Happiness & Attitude 

Manners & Character 

The wonderful workbook is called Happy Kids Songs Workbook: Hands-on Activities to Build Character, Social & Emotional Skills.

We were thrilled to do this review because our family loves music. I especially love music that teaches.

What is Happy Kids Songs?

Happy Kids Songs are up-beat and entertaining songs that help children learn good character, social and emotional skills. A gentleman named Dr. Mac and his team have produced eight Happy Kids Songs albums that are all professionally recorded. Dr. Mac. is a child psychologist, song writer, and music director for the PBS series Jay Jay the Jet Plane. 

As a child I absolutely loved learning with songs. I was able to retain much more when I did learn using songs. I think most people can relate. I mean, we all learned our ABC's from singing a song. I was really excited about reviewing Happy Kids Songs because of this reason. I knew it would be a great resource for my children. As a parent, I want my children to have good character, social and emotional skills. These songs are helping do just that. They are instilling these values through wonderfully fun and highly entertaining songs.

What are the Happy Kids Songs albums like?

Each album contains 5 songs and each song teaches a different skill.

Friends & Sharing album includes the song titles: 

Sailing on the Seven Cs - This song teaches about the ingredients of friendship. I felt like it instilled the values I really want my children to understand about how friendship works.

Everybody Wants to Find a Friend- This song teaches about the importance of reaching out to others.

Sharing Friends - In my opinion, every child needs to learning about sharing and this song is great about teaching how to include others in play.

Happy as Happy Can Be - Another great song about being happy with a friend.

Together - This song teaches about the importance of sharing time and saying goodbye.

Happiness & Attitude album includes the song titles:

Shake It Out and Dance - This song teaches children to turn their "can’t" into "I can"

Who Knows What’s a Kudo? - A fun song that reinforces the importance of giving compliments.

I Don’t Understand - Teaches children about handling limitations.

Be Good to Yourself - A song about the being good to yourself and the pathways to happiness.

Better Together - A great song about being together and being apart.

Manners & Character album includes the song titles:

H-o-n-e-s-t-y - Being honest is a must and this song is wonderful at teaching the value of honesty.

The Magic Word - A catchy song about learning manners.

Quirks - We were all made wonderful and different and this song teaches the importance of appreciating those differences.

The Golden Rule - A song about teaching consideration for others.

Six Little Kids - We don't all have the same perspectives and I loved how this song taught about honoring other perspectives.

How did we use Happy Kids Songs?

After downloading the songs to my computer, I decided to put them onto a CD. Putting them on a CD made the songs more accessible to my daughters. They were able to listen to the songs not only at home, but also in the car.

The Cd was played a bunch while doing chores around the house. Other times, when listening to the songs, they would dance and sing. They used the workbook to find the lyrics to follow along. I enjoyed the times they would sing the songs without the music even playing. I knew that it was something that was sticking with them. I felt that listening to the songs also presented me with the opportunity to talk and teach more about certain character skills. 

The workbook is a wonderful compliment to the songs. I loved how it shares the lyrics for each song along with activities that reinforce the values that the songs teach. My daughters enjoyed completing the worksheet activities. 

Final Thoughts

When looking for resources for teaching character skills, I would have never originally thought about looking for music. I'm thankful to have been able to review Happy Kids Songs. The songs and workbook were absolutely a perfect fit for our family and we will enjoy it for years to come in the form of continuing to listen to the songs and in watching the character growth of our daughters. I believe the songs would be a great addition to any character study.

Friends, How I wish I was able to play the songs for you. They are so fun and catchy. However, don't just take my word for it. Do check them out for yourselves. I think you will be very pleased with the amount of passion and dedication that has went into each song.

What does Happy Kids Songs cost?

You can currently purchase each album for $4.95

If you are only interested in certain songs you can also purchase them for 99 cents per download.

The Happy Kids Songs Workbook  can currently be purchased for only $12.56

Want to connect with Happy Kids Songs?

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/happykidssongs

Twitter: @howsyourfam

YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/4DrMacMusic

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Take Homeschool Learning to a New Level by Stepping Outside the Home

When you set out to educate your children at home, you're given the chance to mold their minds in a way that would be impossible to attain in a larger classroom. Sure, you can give each child more attention than they'd normally get in school, but you also are uninhibited by outdated curriculum's and the requirement to sit at a desk for hours on end. While most students are lucky to go on three or four field trips a year, you have the power to introduce your little ones to the world day after day for a comprehensive and enriching education. To gather ideas about how to use excursions outside the home to expand one’s learning experience, read the top picks below!


1) Musical expression is like “miracle grow” for a child’s brain and spirit. Foster your little ones’ curiosity and appreciation with plenty of concerts and performances. These can range from the symphony to high school recitals to local theater productions. Music is a great vehicle for children to learn about foreign cultures as well, whether it’s through attending an African drum circle, listening to a CD with Spanish guitar playing or taking Irish river dancing lessons. Encourage younger pupils to establish their own musical voice by having a box full of play instruments; percussion will be easier for children that struggle to have their lungs will with air or don’t quite have the dexterity for strings, so consider purchasing toy xylophones, miniature keyboards and drums for kids, like the ones found at child-friendly West Music. On the other hand, if your student is older, consider having a music teacher provide weekly instruction; you can find plenty of instructors through databases like Take Lessons. Let your child have significant say in the instrument he or she will be playing and, once again, consider exploring different options through live music performances!


2) An observatory is a bridge between our eye and outer space, and it may just serve as a bridge between your child’s imagination and a future career. Freed up to take your children on fieldtrips long after traditional schools close, teach your kids about the different planets, and then quench their curiosity by allowing them to behold the stars. If there isn’t an observatory in close proximity to you, consider laying out a picnic blanket and using a telescope to identify the stars. Not only can this lead to further intrigue about science, but your youngsters may be fascinated by such topics as the mythological characters the star constellations are named after.


3) To a nursing home or Grandma’s house. This selection may strike you as strange, but older generations are a wealth of modern day history. Instead of simply having your children learn about the Great Depression or Pearl Harbor in a book, you can have the events brought to life with firsthand accounts by individuals who witnessed it. With the permission of the caretakers, have your children ask aging senior-citizens preplanned questions and have them take notes or tape record the oral accounts. Of course, there’s the added bonus of having your kids develop an appreciation for older generations, as well the possibility that your efforts may brighten the day of an elderly individual.


These are just basic ideas that are intended to spur your own. I’d love to hear your own experiences about what educational opportunities have helped your children to expand their appreciation for learning. Share in the comment section below!