Arie Crown’s Fall 2025 Music Club
— Overture Games•Lead Teacher: Alex Klausner
“We Learned the Cheat Code Song!”: Piano Clicker at Arie Crown
On November 12, 2025, students at Arie Crown Hebrew Day School discovered that sometimes the fastest way to level up in Piano Clicker is through a game hack. When a bug kept the class out of Harmonidome, Overture Games instructor Alex Klausner pivoted to a deep dive on Piano Clicker and a familiar classical tune.
Today went great over at Arie Crown! While we didn’t get to do Harmonidome due to a bug, we did do a lot with Piano Clicker. The kids all got to learn a little bit about how to play Für Elise, ‘the cheat code song,’ for getting lots of cash and they walked away knowing how to repeat the code!
As students realized they could “hack” their way through the game by learning and performing Für Elise, curiosity exploded. Questions like “What key is D?” and “How do scales work?” started flying around the room, turning a simple game mechanic into a gateway for real music theory.
Classical piano met modern gaming, and the result was pure, delighted focus.
Chord Bounties and MuseCash Madness
A week later on November 19, network filters blocked some of the usual sites, but the learning didn’t slow down. Instead, Alex turned the session into a live chord quest inside Piano Clicker.
We pivoted to going back to Piano Clicker and I gave all the kids ‘Chord Bounties’ — they learned how to play C major, G major, F major, and A minor triads for MuseCash rewards!
Students raced to master each triad, chasing MuseCash rewards as if they were in a boss battle. Every correctly played chord sparked cheers and high‑fives, building both confidence and real musicianship.
Resilience, creativity, and harmony all showed up in the same lesson.
The Aha! Moment: No “H” in the Musical Alphabet
Earlier in November, Alex had guided the class through one of those small but unforgettable breakthroughs: understanding the musical alphabet.
For Scale the Tower I taught the kids how the musical alphabet works and how there is no ‘H,’ which seemed to help the kids make sense of it.
With tech running smoothly, students explored games like Yeet the Scoop, Chordstruction, and Scale the Tower, uncovering music theory through play. Their laughter when realizing there’s no letter “H” in music turned into a proud “aha!” moment as the pattern finally clicked.
It was joyful learning that stuck because it was experienced, not memorized.
Students as Product Designers
During one lesson, a few students switched roles from players to product designers, offering feedback on how Overture’s games could get even better.
A couple of suggestions from a student: 1. The keys in Piano Clicker should have note labeling so new kids can better ID keys or an option to buy note labels. 2. MusePacks should be tradeable.
These ideas showed not only engagement but ownership. Students weren’t just consuming content; they were thinking critically about usability, access, and what would help future players learn faster.
In the process, they practiced empathy, design thinking, and the kind of creative agency that carries far beyond the music room.
Clapping, Creativity, and “We Will Rock You”
Even on the toughest tech days, the music never stopped. On October 22, school network filters blocked access to Overture’s games, so Alex created a live percussion lab on the fly.
Short of activities and Overture access, I did my best to teach rhythm. I had them clap along with We Will Rock You, play with Chrome Music Labs, and make their own beats. Chrome Music Labs did its part to keep disappointment at bay and give them something to do.
Students clapped, stomped, and laughed their way through the iconic rock groove, then built digital beats in Chrome Music Lab. By the end of class, they were still making music together, proving that great teaching and a bit of creativity can turn any obstacle into an opportunity.
The Arie Crown story is one of cheat codes, chord quests, and quick thinking—but more than anything, it is about kids discovering that music can be playful, powerful, and deeply their own.
