5 Ukulele tab easy – tips for successful playing in the music classroom

Ukulele tab easy tips will help you transform your ukulele classroom unit. See how students will play songs along with chords and teach all levels of playing. Prepare students to play as an ensemble and perfect songs for performances. Ukulele tab for beginners is easy enough for elementary students and challenging for middle school students. 

1. Ukulele tab easy finger warmups

Playing ukulele tab easy finger warmups each lesson with your students will establish a routine, improve finger dexterity, and spatial awareness for movement from string to string. Moving from string to string and across the fretboard takes practice. Finger warmups are a great way to teach students awareness of the four strings and the ukulele fretboard. 

Open Strings

Begin with open string awareness by plucking each string down with the right thumb. Unlike the guitar where strumming and playing is across the sound hole, the proper place to pluck or strum on the ukulele is over the fretboard where the neck meets the body. When students pluck a string down with the fleshy part of their thumb they are becoming aware of the distance between strings. 

 

A fun ukulele tab for beginners pattern to practice is to play outside – inside. The 1st string closest to your toes and the 4th string up by your nose are the outside strings leaving strings 2 and 3 as the inside strings. Practice a ukulele tab easy arpeggiated pattern such as these string orders 1-4-2-3 or 2-3-4-1. This is also a fun way to arpeggiate any chord.

Fretboard warmups 

To help students move around the fretboard create repetitive warmups. Use step-by-step warmups that will ensure success. For example, start with just two fingers playing the 1st and 2nd fret on each string. This can grown into using 3 finger then 4 finger ukulele tab easy patterns playing frets 1-2-3-4 on each string. 

2. Ukulele tab easy as A-B-C

To get students started playing melody like the song says “when you read you begin with A-B-C.” (Guess that musical?). Yes, the ukulele tab for beginners will start with the 1st string and notes A, B, and C. The open string is A. You probably realized or already knew that each fret is a half-step. B is located on the 2nd fret and C on the 3rd. Finger numbers should align with the frets so use your 2nd or middle finger with the second fret and 3 finger or ring finger with the 3 fret. 

It is important that even the youngest grades at least try to use the correct fingers. Their index finger is going to be the strongest, so you will notice they will want to only use that finger. The idea is to build strength into all fingers, and coordination of switching fingers. As we know, being able to use each finger will allow for ease of playing in the future. 

3. Ukulele tab fingerpicking 2 strings

The degree of difficulty becomes much harder when ukulele tab for beginners adds notes on the second string. Not only are students trying to keep track of 6 notes but moving from one string to the next is difficult. 

It is enjoyable seeing their little brains churn. Yet, consider how difficult it is for students to move their right thumb to the second string and a finger on the left hand to the correct fret using the correct finger. All of a sudden everything slows way down. 

The brain on music

This is the beauty of music. It creates connections in multiple parts of the brain, and also why music can be very difficult yet beneficial for all. Basically, be ready to have empathy for the learning curve of 2 strings and take it slow with plenty of fun breaks. 

When students are struggling, It is a good idea to take a break from the action with storytelling even if it is completely off-topic. After a short break, go back and try the new skill again. This models effective practice skills. 

Students need to know that it is beneficial to break when frustrated otherwise they are actually practicing how to be frustrated. But when they take a “brain break,” it gives space for the mind to process new skills and information making the task a bit easier when tried the second time. 

2nd string

Teach notes E open string, F 1st fret, and G 3rd fret again correlating the finger number with the fret. Yes, the 4th string G is the same note as G on the 3rd fret. However, the 4th string tends to be used more for playing chords than figured into the melody of a song.  

To make the ukulele tab easy for beginners, consider just adding the open string A at first. Then the G and C together because they are both 3rd fret notes. The first thing students will do is rock the third finger back and forth with out picking it up and placing it on each string.  To eliminate this habit, add a song example to practice picking up the 3rd finger to play each note G or C. 

The hardest movement is to cross side ways from one string to the next on different frets such as 1st fret to 3rd fret on a different string. It just takes time and many song examples. 

4. Ukulele tab easy C scale patterns

All you need is open string C and D on the second fret and your students are playing an entire C scale. Pat yourself on the back it is a huge accomplishment because the world of song and music is now at their fingertips (ha, ha) with ukulele tab easy songs!

Songs often have chunks of the scale in the melody. This is one reason to use chunks of the scale in a warmup. Create a pattern such as C-D-E, D-E-F, E-F-G, and then play it backward G-F-E, F-E-D, E-D-C. 

5. Ukulele tab easy songs in C and beyond

This is a great time to experiment with rhythm adding syncopation, using the pinkie for the high D, and changing the key signature adding a sharp or a flat. You can teach music theory without it being lectured or worksheet-based. When music theory applies to a fun song to play it makes a world of difference. 

Plus your ukulele tab easy unit can be repeated year after year. Use the same warmups or add some similar ones, review the notes on the strings, and work on a new song. Students need to hear, play, and experience the same concept year after year to grasp and understand. It is the best when all of a sudden a light bulb goes on and they understand what you have been saying over and over. 

They may not understand the dotted quarter note with a single eight rhythm, but they sure can play it on songs like “Alouette,” “Ode to Joy,” or “Silent Night” because they have heard it and experienced it, the rhythm comes out naturally. 

Share ukulele tab easy songs with different key signatures 3/4 and 4/4  folk songs “Down in the Valley,” and “Red River Valley.” Turn “Jingle Bells” into a reggae experience by adding a cool backing track and they will want to play it again and again. 

Or teach about patriotic songs by playing them with a ukulele tab easy enough for music students. Remember those brain breaks they need? This is the perfect time to share the history of each song and how music played an important role in motivating military branches and signaling maneuvers during battle. 

I hope these ukulele tab easy tips will help your students find success playing melodies on the ukulele year after year. See also 5 Songs for Ukulele Students Love to Play here. 

To help you get going quickly and excite your students for learning tab, feel free to come take a peek at my ukulele unit below. This ukulele tab easy unit will save you valuable planning time and get your students excited to learn with beat-driven play-along videos that get your students grooving with the sounds and thrilled to repeat.

Btw the musical theater riddle answer is The Sound of Music.