Mini Chord Chart or Beginner Uke Book for Kids

Hi guys,

I've decided to give ukuleles to my nephews and nieces for christmas so I just got back from Todaro's music with 4 colorful ukuleles! Now the ukes I got didn't come with the starter sheet that you find in Kala or Lanikai boxes. Where can I find something similar that has the basic chords, fingering, and a couple of starter songs that I can include with the ukes to get them started? I'm ok with something I can just print myself.

Thanks!



~Mina

You didn't mention how old they are and this may be a little too much. Anyway, maybe worth a shot. Beginner Lesson Package

Kanaka916 said:

You didn't mention how old they are and this may be a little too much. Anyway, maybe worth a shot. Beginner Lesson Package

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Oh sorry, here are their ages:
1 - 3 yr old
2 - 4 yr old
2 - 6 yr old
1 - 16 yr old

Maybe the 16 yr old will make use of the attached. Thanks!

ukechordchart.com

From our own Ukemunga who totally rocks!

Hey Pootsie, thanks!

I was just reading this post and thinking about it and I would be happy to make a few very basic cool chord charts available for free download just for this purpose. And for every rank beginner. I'm not a whole heckuvalot beyond that anyway.

I've got a basic format worked up that includes 6 chords per standard letter size paper. The first set I think should be C, F, G, Am, G7 and Dm. Any other opinions on this?

And what should be the next 6 chords? And then?

I'll post a link where you can go get 'em and print easily in B&W.

Here's a very basic and easily read chord chart for the beginner. The first 6 chords to learn:

http://www.ukechordchart.com/1st6Chords.pdf

ukemunga said:

Here's a very basic and easily read chord chart for the beginner.

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Wonderful. We too often forget what it's like to be at the very start of something.

Learning theory says that some tasks you learn first help with later tasks. However, there are some tasks you learn first which interfere with later tasks.
Had you learned a later task first, it would not have interfered with the first task, and perhaps might have made it easier to learn that first task. Not mumbo-jumbo, but something to consider for learners of any age: I have yet to see the 0-0-0-3 chord taught with the little finger. It is (3) on the chart. That is the ring finger.

The 2-0-1-0 chord is taught as (2) x (1) for fingers. It is just as easy to finger it
as (3) x (2). The 0-2-1-2 chord is taught as x (2) (1) (3). It is actually easier to play it as x (3) (2) (4). Those three chords are moveable chords shapes. The most common way to easily play an {Amajor for dgbe tuning} Dmajor for GCEA tuning, is 2-2-2-5. Try to reach that 5th fret with the ring finger.
The #4 finger reaches it easily. Initially learning to have the index finger dedicated as a barre does not make it necessary to learn another set of fingerings to play those chord shapes at another position on the fret board.

Yes, barring is difficult, and may be a year or so down the road before they do it successfully, but the fingering pattern will make it easier, and all that is different is how to use the first finger. There are other chord which can easily be made without the use of the first finger. 1-2-0-2 is another one which is a moveable chord shape. If it is learned as (2) (3) x (4), the #1 finger is free to fill in that x string anywhere it will be played on up the neck.

Complicated? Only because of our having learned it the other way. To those who learn as suggested here, the chord shape does not require one fingering pattern in the first and second fret chords and a different set of fingering patterns for that same shape when played higher up the neck. Teach for not just the here and now, but lay a groundwork which will make going on not be a conflict of which fingers to use. I would suggest you make up fingering positions different from what shows a heavy dependency on the index finger in the first and second fret range

TheCraftedCow said:

Learning theory says that some tasks you learn first help with later tasks. However, there are some tasks you learn first which interfere with later tasks. Not mumbo-jumbo, but something to consider for learners of any age: I have yet to see the 0-0-0-3 chord taught with the little finger. It is (3) on the chart. That is the ring finger.

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Yes, a hundred times yes. The sooner I can train my 3rd and 4th fingers to act independently the better I'll be. Teaching the 0003 with the ring finger is a crime. It'd be great if you pulled these tips into a couple sheets of chord charts, with the right way next to the way we were taught.

As for finger independence, I've been using this video. It be tough...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=do5gZ4vktH0

But not as tough as this comment
"Yeah good exercise, but once you've got it down try barring with your first finger and moving up and down in the same way with the other three. That sorts the men from the boys I tell you."

seneystretch said:

As for finger independence, I've been using this video. It be tough...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=do5gZ4vktH0

But not as tough as this comment
"Yeah good exercise, but once you've got it down try barring with your first finger and moving up and down in the same way with the other three. That sorts the men from the boys I tell you."

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I've been doing this similar exercise (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67oEOX91BIQ)on guitar for awhile now.... takes the same 'caterpillar' exercise to a radical extreme, but I don't think anything has ever helped my playing more. This guy's videos are great and highly informative....I only understand a little of what he says when he really gets going - he assumes you have a working knowledge of theory and the instrument well above my level - and his presentation isn't always well organized, but they're full of invaluable information and mind blowing musicianship.

In this particular clip, he jumps around, but around 1:10 he holds up a written chart that explains what he's doing more clearly. The real benefit to this is the arpeggiated part of the exercise, where you're moving across the strings instead of playing four consecutive notes on the same string.

I've adapted this to ukulele as well..... I practice finger picking these exercises using one finger per string (thumb, index, middle, ring on G C E A, respectively) going up the fretboard and two-finger picking, alternating index and middle fingers, coming back down.

It's slow going.... I use a metronome and don't bump up the speed till I can play all 24 permuations at tempo.....

Sorry - didn't mean to hijack the thread.... been thinking about tabbing this exercise out and sharing.....

For a three year old what is appropriate is to learn to hold the ukulele ( Pleeeeeze do not have any of them fret with the right hand and strum with the left) and just strum. Many of the simple children's song do not need a chord change, so tuning GCEG puts you in an open chord C.....or drop the 4th string to F--leave the C alone-- turn the E up a bit to an F, so now you are in an open chord F to be in the key of F.. For the 4 and 6 year old, the same beginning tasks are appropriate...hold and strum. Open tuning is appropriate for them, but their tunes might need the chords called the IV (4) and the V (5). In the key of C tuning, one lays a finger or a plastic ballpoint pen across the 5th or 7th fret to get the F and the G. In F tuning, the same positions get you the Bflat and the C.

I would show the 16year old some Britany Paiva U Tube stuff and let it be known that she plays slack key tuning. It ain't just fer little kids!

Seneystretch _-_-_ Thank you for the reply! I had put on my Nomex coat expecting to get flamed for preaching heresy. Thank you for the suggestion of finger placements with moveable chord positions being the same as the "base" position. The charts are already done, it is just the fingering which needs tweaked. Thank you for the YouTube exercises ,also.