A Better Way to Teach Kids How to Read Music
I have become a fan of music mnemonics or acronyms (I like to call them memory phrases) because it’s a creative approach to learn how to quickly identify a note, wherever it may be within the staff. I have watched my piano students gain confidence to read music because of these memory aides.
By associating information with familiar or catchy phrase, students enhance their retention and recall. From this they gain confidence and momentum to be able to read music, and eventually being able to site read effectively.
Treble Training has taken the traditional acronyms/mnemonics to the next level, making a visual tool that starts from up in the sky to down on the ground- every memory phrase connects with the picture as a whole to give the student a clear understanding of which memory phrase to use appropriately.
First, I’d like to point out the structure of the picture with the colors highlighted on the treble and bass clefs. I have my students highlight treble clef blue because blue is the color of the sky- think high notes. Bass clef is highlighted green the color of the grass-think low notes.
The cartoons on the page are all tied to together from the face up high in the sky to the bug down in the grass. The cartoons that represent the high notes in the treble clef are the sun and the bird. The cartoons that represent the low notes in the bass are the cow and the bug.
How to know which memory phrase to use for line notes and space notes?
Here are a few fun and visual ways I help students remember:
Treble clef spaces: “The sun up high with the ‘face’ is in ‘space.’” The word “FACE” spells out the treble clef space notes—face in space!
Treble clef lines: “The bird flies up in the ‘sky’ and lands on the ‘lines.’” (Yes, I’ll even use imperfect rhymes if it helps!)
Bass clef spaces: “The cow down low needs lots of ‘space’ when he eats all that grass.”
Bass clef lines: “The green bug chases a ‘line’ of ants” helps us remember it’s for the bass clef line notes.
So why do teachers avoid using acronyms/mnemonics?
Quite a few teachers avoid using acronyms or mnemonics nowadays because it can be confusing for students to remember which phrase goes with which clef—and whether it’s meant for lines or spaces. I completely relate to those concerns. That’s why, when I first used mnemonics, I didn’t have nearly as much success as I do now. The Music Memory Phrases Page gave my students a clear formula for knowing which phrase to use with the appropriate clef and note set, and that made all the difference.
But I don’t want my student to rely on mnemonics forever
Mnemonics are by no means something a student will use forever. Just like older students no longer need a mnemonic to remember the order of the planets—“My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nachos”—or the old-fashioned phrase “righty-tighty, lefty-loosey,” these memory aids served their purpose when we were younger. We used so many of them as kids, and now we don’t need them. They were the training wheels that helped us grow and build confidence.
With my more experienced students who have put in the practice, I don’t ask, “What’s the memory phrase for the treble clef lines?” Instead, I simply ask, “What are the treble clef lines?” and they respond confidently: E, G, B, D, F. That’s the moment I let go of the bike—and they ride on their own. No more training wheels.
We’ve all benefited from creative association
Memory phrases have truly become one of the fastest and most effective ways I’ve found to teach note reading to kids. We are all creative beings and have benefited from creative association more than we often realize. (Anyone else memorize that the sun rises in the east from the Beauty and the Beast song? 90s kid alert!)
My hope is that if you decided to throw out the mnemonics a while ago, you might consider giving them another shot—this time in a way that’s still creative, yet more methodical.
