🎹 Piano for Beginners · Lesson 6 of 7
Reading notes
The staff, the treble clef, and C-position notes on the page.
The staff
Music is written on a staff: 5 lines and 4 spaces. Notes sit on lines or in spaces. Higher on the staff = higher note.
The treble clef
The treble clef 𝄞 (G clef) is at the start of the right-hand staff. Its curl wraps around the second line — that line is G above middle C. The bass clef 𝄢 is for the left hand.
C position notes
| Middle C | On a small extra line below the staff (a ledger line) |
|---|---|
| D | Just below the bottom line |
| E | On the bottom line |
| F | In the first space |
| G | On the second line |
Memory tricks
| Lines (bottom to top) | E G B D F — “Every Good Boy Does Fine” |
|---|---|
| Spaces (bottom to top) | F A C E — spells “FACE” |
Tip
💡 Don’t memorize every note at once. Learn C, then G, then F — and read the others as steps up or down from those landmarks.
✏️ Practice: your turn
- Draw a staff with 5 lines and write middle C to G
- Say the line notes with “Every Good Boy Does Fine”
- Say the space notes: F A C E
- Write Mary Had a Little Lamb on the staff and play it from your paper
🧠 Quick quiz
Answer all 4 questions correctly to mark this lesson as done.
0 of 4 correct
All lessons in Piano for Beginners
- 🎹 1. Getting to know the keyboardGroups of 2 and 3 black keys, and where C is
- 🔤 2. Note namesC D E F G A B — the musical alphabet
- ✋ 3. Hand position and finger numbersFingers 1–5, sitting right and a rounded hand
- 🐑 4. A first song with the right handMary Had a Little Lamb with just three notes
- 🥁 5. Rhythm: the beat and note valuesWhole, half and quarter notes, counting out loud and a metronome
- 🎼 6. Reading notesThe staff, the treble clef, and C-position notes on the page
- 🙌 7. Left hand, both hands and daily practicePlay together, and 10 minutes a day to keep going