Games in Music Education

By Dr. Logan Chopyk | September 21, 2026

A few years ago, a piano lesson with my daughter taught me a vital lesson. I wanted her to drill chunks of music five times correctly before moving on. Naturally, she dreaded it and resisted.

Desperate for a shift in energy, I turned it into a game: every time she played a chunk correctly, a toy figurine crossed the piano. Once all five crossed, she won, and we repeated the game with a new section. Instantly, her perspective shifted. She loved it—and even wanted to play it during her independent practice.

• The Core Takeaway: Children are meant to learn through play. As teachers, while we have our agendas and lesson plans, we must remember to inject fun, humor, and little games into the process.

Transforming Lessons Through Student Creativity

Since that first makeshift game with my daughter, gamification has become a staple of my teaching, evolving organically as students bring their own creativity to the table.

For instance, one of my current students with autism initially resisted the piano, choosing to lie on a bench rather than join the lesson. Early on, I tried to make things fun, but I was still clinging too tightly to my own rigid agenda.

Everything changed when I let go and handed the reins over to a game she created:

• The Plot: Her teddy bear plays a "villain" who uses a magic flute to put small duck figurines to sleep.

• The Mechanics: Only by playing the page in her lesson book can the student wake the ducks back up.

• The Reward: Each awakened duck reveals a piece of the mystery regarding how they all ended up asleep in strange places.

As a result, I never have to ask her to turn the page. She sits down and plays eagerly whenever the plot demands it.

Overcoming Frustration

Before we established this game, she used to grow easily frustrated by her own mistakes, shying away from anything that felt too difficult. Within the safety of the game, however, mistakes simply became part of the plot. They stopped throwing her off entirely.

My students continue to inspire me to find fresh, imaginative ways to make games an essential, joyful part of music learning.