Mussila Music School: Music Education App for Children

*This post is written in partnership with Mussila. I received a complimentary download of the product to facilitate my review and was compensated for my time. Opinions are 100% my own.

No matter where you live, school probably looks a little bit different this year. Even as a seasoned homeschooler and former public school teacher, there are a few subjects that have always been a bit tougher for me to tackle. Music is definitely one of them.

Aside from playing the clarinet in the 6th grade and singing in a youth church choir – my musical knowledge is limited to what I learned in elementary school. (Unless of course you count knowing a ridiculous amount of song lyrics.) So, I was thrilled to be introduced to an app that could not only help me teach my children about music – but make it fun in the process.

Mussila Music School is an award-winning app with hours of musical lessons, challenges and games carefully crafted by musical experts and educators, designed to provide a playful experience. And the best part? You don’t need to have a background in music to use Mussila! Even musical rookies like me can (and my kids!) can use (and understand!) the app!

I’m going to be honest. I’ve reviewed A LOT of apps over the years. A lot. This is hands-down one of my very favorites. Ever.

Musilla teaches your child the basics of music and music theory through a variety of activities and exercises. Kids can learn about, play, create, and practice music using the app.

In the “Learn” tab, kids walk through music lessons incrementally, working their way through levels of instruction. Each lesson contains a handful of games and activities that must be “passed” before moving forward. Each activity within a lesson builds upon the information in the previous activity.

Within each level (of the Learn tab), kids learn about types of notes (and rests!) (whole, half, quarter, etc.), the different notes (C, D, etc.), and the names and sounds of different instruments.

Each lesson within the level is also broken down into smaller mini-lessons/activities/games. This not only makes the information easier to digest (and prevents overwhelm), but helps to keep kids engaged by keeping things moving and fresh.

Children are given both visual AND auditory cues to help them learn the notes. I love that kids are shown not only where the notes are on the keyboard, but where they are on the staff as well. (This is awesome, as my kids are learning to play the recorder this year – and this knowledge will translate!)

Perhaps my FAVORITE part of the app is that your child really can learn to play the piano! The pacing and incremental nature of the app allows kids to absorb the musical information.

The app helps your child learn to play classic songs in a step-by-step (and highly intentional!) way. Kids work through the process of simply learning when to play a note, to selecting the correct note. Each song is practiced multiple times, allowing the notes to really sink in. Then – you can actually change the difficulty level! (This is a game changer!!) As students move through the difficulty levels, the visual cues are removed and the pacing increases.

The repetition, visual cueing, and incremental rise in difficulty will increase your ability to read and play music. And don’t be surprised when your children want to put this knowledge to the test! (Confession: After working through Jingle Bells for review purposes, I ran to our piano to see if I could play it on a real piano….and I could!! I am not musical people. This app WORKS.)

Of course, what would a music app be without a bit of free play and creativity? My daughter’s favorite activity was hands-down the ability to create her own music. She absolutely loved the Mussila DJ activity.

And it just keeps going! There’s also a section to practice music theory, matching rhythms, and SO MUCH MORE.

You have to check out this app for yourself. I highly recommend it to anyone wanting to amplify their child’s music education this year.