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I started piano myself in 3rd grade. Looking at my 5 year old, I wouldn't think his fingers would be long enough to handle a real piano/keyboard. But he's also pretty petite.

I started piano at age 5 (and still play at 35), although I've heard that 7 is often a better age for most. I think it really depends on the child! In my case, everybody else in my immediate family played the piano, so naturally I wanted to try it too. At any rate, 6 doesn't sound too young to me

Everyone in my family started at age 5. But it's like anything else (soccer, ballet, whatever)--the early classes focus on the basics and keeping it fun....it's age appropriate and not very intense.

My oldest has always had an interest in music, so we've discussed started her pretty soon. She'll be 5 this summer. Our issue is, we don't know what to start! I took piano lessons, but we live in a condo and would have to buy a keyboard instead. My dad and niece both played/play violin, so my mom keeps mentioning she has various child-sized violins to pass down if we want them. But my husband plays guitar and has already bought a kid sized guitar. She doesn't seem to have a preference, or says she wants to learn them all (haha), so I don't know what to try first for lessons.

For piano, I would wait until like 6-7 because I don't think they are big enough physically to handle the keyboard. For 5-6, I would only do a string instrument that could be sized to their body, like violin or cello. If you know piano is what he seems most interested in, I would personally wait a year and do some Music Together type classes that are just more musical in nature until formal classes at 7.

@jennlin821: What keyboard is this?

Our 3.5 year old plays with his B. Meowsic keyboard like every single day. It was a $30 gift that he's had since he was 1 and I swear he and his 2 year old brother never stop playing with it!

@kiddosc: Easter bunny??? We love our's, but the B.Meowsic keyboard is something I see ALLLL the time on our local BST boards because parents get annoyed with musical instruments, so you might see if there's a used one local to be had!

We tried at 5 with DD but I think 6-7 would be better, at least for her. Her lessons were a 6 week intro to piano group lesson with 3 other kids, and she did learn some great fundamentals and enjoyed going, but she just didn't understand the "need to practice" part of things. Her teacher literally wanted them to just practice 5 minutes a night, and she never wanted to. I think in a year or two she might better understand that practicing would help her get better, but right now it just wasn't worth to pay for private lessons which would be the next step.

@Anagram: @kiddosc: https://www.americanmusical.com/Item--i-CAS-LK265?src=Y0802G00SRCHCAPN&adpos=1o1&scid=scplpCAS+LK265&sc_intid=CAS+LK265&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIj9y65MKA2gIV3rfACh3KlQkqEAYYASABEgIAUPD_BwE

This look similar to the one we had (20+ year ago!)
But there are several out there. If you have a large music store or piano store near you, you could check it out.
There are definitely some on amazon too!

@kiddosc: I think the lessons will come down to how mature your LO is, and how much he likes playing once the lessons start. If there is a group class like MrsBells, that might be a good intro. Perhaps look into a class for the summer?

I know why people get them, but I cringe at the thought of those light up keyboards. If you do wind up doing lessons later, you'll want to get something more like this with weighted keys and 88 of them, pedals, music stand etc. Kids who learn on cheap keyboards often don't learn to use their fingers the right way or how to play loud/soft. If you spring for something reasonable first instead of later, you can all enjoy it in the meantime! Most digital pianos come with enough sound effects to keep kids entertained.

While it's a fun thought to start lessons young, most kids who start at 5 wind up in the same place as the kids who started later. Whether you start now or at 7/8, you'll do well to practice with your kid. So taking lessons at the same time too is actually a good idea!

( https://www.amazon.com/Casio-Privia-PX-160-Digital-Piano/dp/B0106BXNIS/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1521743132&sr=8-2&keywords=casio+privia+px-160 )

I am not interested in formal lessons for my son, the approach I want to do is to have someone come over and play the piano with him. I know this probably doesn't make any sense, but I don't think that he's ready to actually commit to practicing. I know that's where the rubber meets the road in terms of actually learning an instrument and I had a difficult time committing to practicing when I played an instrument.

6-7 is what we will probably do. I'd rather wait a little longer, maybe more like 7-8 but my husband feels strongly about starting early.

My daughter just started piano lessons couple of months ago. She’s five. She can also read a little bit so it helped. We don’t use a keyboard but a regular piano. She’s also small for her age with small fingers. The thing that helped was that I found a music company that personalizes piano lessons for the younger crowd. The teacher and the books they used is very kid friendly and my daughter was able to catch on quickly. You don’t start with actual reading notes and it gradually builds up. Lessons are 30 minutes. A bonus is they also come to your house. She loves it and can play actual songs now.

@jennlin821: I think that kind of piano might be fun but it would be terribly frustrating to go to a real piano after. I’d be afraid of setting the wrong expectations.

@kiddosc: My LO started this year, in first grade. She was 6.5 when she started. Her lessons follow the Musikgarten curriculum, which I love. The program teaches aural training before actually reading music and the kids are encouraged to transpose the songs they learn (by ear) into different keys. If you happen to have a program like this in your area I would highly recommend it. Lessons are in a group and all of the kids play on a keyboard to start. Personally I am happy for her to play on a decent keyboard for a few years before we commit to buying a piano. My DD's hands are still a little small, so she will play modified chords to start but is encouraged to add the third finger as soon as she can.

As a cellist and music teacher, I think this depends on a couple of things—your child’s temperament and interest, but I also think finding a teacher who has experience working with younger students is really important.