I strongly disagree that this is the only way students can learn what the rhythm sounds like. While counting is the ultimate goal for musical literacy, demanding it too early can be a barrier. Mimicry, on the other hand, creates dependency. I proposed a third way—a visual tool I call Rhythm Sets.
The Visual Rhythm Set Method
We are happy to announce the release of piano-finger.8va.co. Piano-Finger generates optimal fingering for any piece of piano music. It is free for everyone. Link to the source code is on the website.