

Presents

I Can
Read
Music
by John Aschenbrenner

Walden Pond Press

Children’s Music Books
New York

Note to
 I CAN READ MUSIC
Copyright © 2000 by Walden Pond Press.
Unauthorized copying, arranging, adapting, recording
or public performance is an infringement of copyright.
No portion of this work may be copied in any respect
without the express written permission of the copyright
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The purchaser of this printable download copy is

authoriz4ed to make one copy for their personal use.
You may not distribute, resell, or copy this ebook for
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reserved.

I CAN READ MUSIC

ISBN # 0-9718936-4-0

Walden Pond Press

PO BOX 566 Crugers, NY 10521

This book is dedicated to my son Jake,

who is my inspiration.

The terms PIANO BY NUMBER and MILLER POND PRESS are

trademarks of Miller Pond Press used to identify its publications. These
trademarks are to be used only with the prior consent of Miller Pond Press.

Some images  2003 www.clipart.com

Some images by Nova Development Corp. / Art Explosion

2
 

Easy Setup: Step #1

1.1 Look at your piano. There are two colors of keys,
white and black. (Only part of a full keyboard is shown.)

1.2 The black keys are arranged in groups of 2 and 3.

2 3 2 3 2 3

1.3 C is the name of the first white key to the left

of any group of two black keys:

2 2 2

C C C

3
 

Step #2
2.1 There is a special, single white key (one of the white
keys named C) in the center of the piano keyboard, which is
specifically called “Middle C.” (Only part of a full piano
keyboard is shown.)

2 2 2

C MIDDLE C C

2.2 On an acoustic piano, Middle C is located in the

area to the left of the manufacturer’s name printed above the
keys in the center of the keyboard. On any piano, electronic or
acoustic, Middle C is the “C” which lies in the center of the
keyboard. (Only part of a full piano keyboard is shown.)

STEINWAY

MIDDLE C

2.3 Note the location of Middle C on your piano for the

next step.

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 

Step #3
3.1 There is a template for a set of six colored stickers
on page 51 of this book (five blue, one red.) Take a red sticker
and place it on the white key named Middle C. (Only part of a
keyboard is shown.)
Red

MIDDLE C

3.2 Take a blue sticker and place it on the second white

key directly to the right of Middle C. Finish placing the blue
stickers as shown onto the white keys, moving to the right of
the keyboard as you place each colored sticker.
Red Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

MIDDLE C

5
 

Step #4
4.1 You should now have six colored stickers placed on certain
white keys of the piano, as shown below. Make sure. The numbered
stickers are shown as a reference for those who have used “Piano Is
Easy!”
Red Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

MIDDLE C

We’ll come back to the piano keyboard and the stickers in just a
minute. First we have to look at printed music!

• YOU’RE READY TO READ MUSIC!

6
 Hi! Let’s learn to read music.
It’s easy. Here we go!

Music is written down with five lines. Let’s count

the lines, starting from the bottom line.

5 Top

4
3

1 Bottom

That was easy! Let’s keep going!

7
 Now let’s meet a note! A note
looks like a circle.

Hi! I’m a note!

In the drawing below, which line is the note on?

The top or the bottom line?

Top

Bottom

The bottom line! That was

easy. Let’s keep going!
5 Top

8
 Notes can be found on any
one of the five lines!

I’m a note!

In the drawing below, which line is the note on?

The top or the bottom line?

Top

Bottom

The top line! That was

easy. Let’s keep going!

9
 Sometimes notes are found on
the line above the bottom line!

I can be found on any

one of the five lines!

In the drawing below, which one of the five

lines is the note on?

5 Top

4
3

2 Second

1 Bottom

The second line, or the line

above the bottom line! That
was easy. Let’s keep going!

10
 Notes can be found on the spaces
in between the lines, too!

Sometimes I’m in
the space between
the lines!

In the drawing below, which space is the note on?

Top

Bottom

This note is on the space above

the bottom line! Let’s keep
going!

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 Notes can be found below the
five lines.
Sometimes I can
be found below
all the lines!

In the drawing below, which space is the note on?

Top

Bottom

This note is on the space below

the bottom line! Let’s keep
going!

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 There’s one special note called
“Middle C.” This note has its
own special line, just below the
bottom line.

Hi! I’m a special note

called “Middle C.” I
have my own line!

In the drawing below, where is Middle C?

Top

Bottom

Middle C is on its own little

line, just below the bottom
line! Let’s keep going!

13
 When we see that a note has a line through the center
of the circle, we say that note is “on a line.”

When we see that a note doesn’t have a line through

the center of the circle, we say that note is “on a
space.”

Let’s play games with lines and spaces!

Game #1: Line or Space?

Line! Space! Space!

Remember, a note is only “on

a line” if the line goes through
the center of the circle.

Game #2: More Lines and Spaces

Line! Space! Line!

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 Some notes have a sort of stick
on their side. It’s called a stem!

Stem goes up! Stem goes down! No stem at all!

Some notes are hollow! Some notes are filled in!

That was easy! Let’s keep going!

15
 Now let’s look at a group of
notes! Can you tell if each note
is on a line or space?

Tell us if we’re on
lines or spaces!

Line! Space! Line! Space! Line!

Hey! It looks like a stairway!

16
 We read notes from left to right,
just like a book! Let’s see if these
groups of notes are going up or
down the stairs!

We’re going up the stairs!

We’re going down the stairs!

17
 We’re almost ready to start
reading music like grownups do!
First, remember these two
important things we’ve already
learned:

1
Notes are on lines or spaces! A note is “on a
line” if the line goes through the middle of the
note’s circle. A note is “on a space” if the
circle does not have a line through the middle:

Line! Line! Space! Space!

2
There is one special note, called middle C,
which is on its own, special line, just below
the bottom of the five lines:

Middle C

18
 Now we’re ready to read music
like grownups do! Make sure
you’ve already put the six
colored stickers on your piano.
(See page 3 if you forgot!)

Your piano should look like this:

Middle C: (red) Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

Okay! Here we go! Let’s read

music!

19
 First, let’s match up the blue
stickers on the piano with the
lines on the page. It’s easy!
Each blue sticker on a piano key matches one of the five lines!
When you see a certain note in the book, it means to play the
piano key that matches one of the five lines in the book. Let’s
try it:

Red Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

Middle C: (red)

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

Play the piano key that matches the note on the

bottom of the five lines. The piano key is the one
with the blue sticker farthest to the left.

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 Let’s find another note on the
piano! It’s easy!

Each blue sticker on a piano key matches one of the five lines!
When you see a certain note in the book, it means to play the
piano key that matches one of the five lines in the book.

Red Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

Middle C: (red)

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

21
 Let’s find all five notes: every
blue sticker on the piano matches
one of the five lines!

Each blue sticker on a piano key matches one of the five lines!
When you see a certain note in the book, it means to play the
piano key that matches one of the five lines in the book.

Red Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

Middle C: (red)

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

22
 Let’s play our first song! A
famous song called “Brahms
Lullaby” uses the first two of
the five lines:
Each blue sticker on a piano key matches one of the five lines!
When you see a certain note in the book, it means to play the
piano key that matches one of the five lines in the book.

Red Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

Middle C: (red)

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

23
 Remember Middle C, the special
note that was on its own special
little line? Let’s play it!

The red sticker matches the special white key called Middle C.

Red Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

Middle C: (red)

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

Red

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 Now let’s play all three notes
that we have learned so far!

Each blue sticker on a piano key matches one of the five lines!
The red sticker matches the special note called Middle C.

Red Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

Middle C: (red)

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

Start here! Red

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 Now let’s play notes that aren’t on
the lines. Let’s play notes that are
in the spaces between the lines!
In between the red and blue stickers are white piano keys that
don’t have a sticker on it. These are the “spaces” in between the
lines.

Red Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

Middle C: (red) Space Space Space Space Space

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

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 Now let’s play a note that is on the
space below the lowest line.

There’s a white piano key in between the red sticker on

Middle C and the first blue sticker. This matches the note
that is just below the bottom line.

Red Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

Middle C: (red)
Space Space Space Space Space

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

Red

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 Let’s have a fun test! Let’s see if
you can find some notes on the
piano, even if you don’t get too
many clues. The answer is on the
next page!
This song starts on Middle C, the red sticker! If
you forgot where Middle C is, go back to page
24!

Play these notes on the piano:

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

Blue

Red

Start here on
Middle C:

Here’s a hint: the stairs are going up!

28
 Now here’s the answer: see below. If
you didn’t play the right three notes,
we’ll try again!

Find the notes that come after Middle C!

Red Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

Middle C: (red)

Start here on Line Space Line

Middle C:

29
 Let’s try another fun test! See if
you can find these notes without
too many hints. The answer is on
the next page! No peeking!
This song does not start on Middle C! It starts on the
bottom line. Remember, Middle C is not on the bottom
line, it is on a special, extra line just for Middle C.

Play these notes on the piano:

Start here!

If you can’t find the first note, ask yourself, “Is the
note on a line or a space?” It’s on a line!

Here’s another hint: the stairs are going up!

30
 Now here’s the answer: see below.
If you didn’t play the right three
notes, we’ll try again!

Find the notes that start on the bottom of the five lines.

Red Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

Middle C: (red)

Line Space Line

Start here on the

bottom line!

31
Now we’re going to play songs in our
songbook, and, after the first song,
we’re going to do it without hints or
clues! If you get confused on the
following pages, you should go back
and read pages 20-31, and then try the
songbook again.

32
 JINGLE BELLS
For the first four parts of this song,
we’ll give you hints!

PART 1
Red Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

When you see the same note three times, play that
Start here on the bottom line! note three times!

PART 2
Red Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

Part 2 is the same as Part 1!

33
 Part 3

Red Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

Start here on the

bottom line!

Part 4

Red Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

Start here on
Middle C!

34
 Jingle Bells
Section 1
With a lot less hints!

Start here on the

bottom line!

If you get confused playing the song

above, you should go back and read
pages 33-34, and then try Jingle Bells on
this page again. Keep trying! It’s easy!

35
 Jingle Bells
Section 2
With one hint! We’ll give you the starting note!
Middle C (red)

Red Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue

Start here on the space above

the bottom line!

If you get confused playing the song

above, you should go back and read pages
33-34, and then try Jingle Bells again.
Keep trying! It’s easy!

On the next pages you’ll find

more songs you can play!

36
 WhenHad
Mary the A
Saints
Little
Go Marching
Lamb In

37
 Mary Had a Little
Lamb

A note to teachers and parents:

Having completed this section of the book, a student is ready for

almost any beginning piano method, or songbooks that contain
simple melodies on the first five white keys above Middle C.

In actual practice, the concepts presented in this book are offered to

young students many, many times, not just once. Sometimes these
attempts end in failure, sometimes ending in a return to the comfort
of “piano by number.”

If you try gently, again and again, to introduce these ideas in a fun
way, children will start to understand sheet music. The most
important accomplishment is that the child understands these ideas
on their own timetable, when they are good and ready.

38
 MY FIRST SONGBOOK
A note to Teachers and Parents:

There are no symbols such as clef signs, rests, finger numbers, etc,
quite on purpose. Children don’t really see such symbols at first,
and concentrate on finding the location of the notes (the circles.)

Until a child can easily match the notes on the page to the keys, even
with one finger, it is pointless to continue to more complex matters.
Give them time to become comfortable matching the notes to the
piano keys. Some children may require as much as a year.

Please remember that, in the long term, children easily comprehend

sheet music if it is taught in the following order:

1. Match the location of the notes on the page to the white keys
of the piano. (This may take a year until the child is certain of the
first 12 white keys above Middle C.)

2. Assign fingering that makes it easy to navigate from note to

note. (Wait for quite a while, until the child reads notes fluently,
perhaps with one finger. Fingering can always wait. Better to
suggest that they use as many fingers as possible, rather than
assign specific fingers too early.)

3. Try to play the notes as close to the rhythm as possible.

(Rhythm is the very last thing to ask of a child, in terms of sheet
music. It’s better to defer the issue while playing rhythm games.
Believe it or not, children readily grasp rhythm when they are
comfortable with finding the notes.)

39
#1: UP AND DOWN

#2: DOWN AND UP

40
 #3: SKIPPING UP

#4: SKIPPING DOWN

Sometimes a note has
a little dot after it!
We’ll learn more
about this later!

41
 #5: SKIPS AND STEPS

#6: MIDDLE C OR THE FIRST LINE?

42
 #7: FOUR IN A GROUP!

#8: FIRST OR SECOND LINE?

43
#9: ALOUETTE

44
 #10: SPACE ABOVE
THE SECOND LINE

Let’s learn a new note! Here’s a note that is just above the second line!

#11: ALL SPACES

45
#12: TWINKLE, TWINKLE,
LITTLE STAR
There’s that new note!

46
 #13: London Bridge

There’s that new note again!

There’s that note with the little

dot after it!

47
#14: CAMPTOWN RACES
(first half)

48
 Notes to Parents and Teachers:
This book is set up so that you can teach piano in the three phases discussed on page 39:

1. Allow the child to find the location of the notes with any finger, either hand,
without regard to rhythm (timing.) Any correct performance of a set of notes is
to be praised.

2. When a child is absolutely sure of the first six white keys (the notes taught in this
book, which are known in “piano by number” as the numbers 1-6) they are
ready for a standard piano book. At this point you can introduce the idea of
fingering, that is, using only a certain finger for a specific note.

3. Rhythm, or timing, is the most difficult concept of all for children, but is easily
taught if they are adequately prepared with the first two phases. A child who is
absolutely certain of all the notes, and has an idea of fingering and can
implement some of it, is ready to think about when to play each note. To ask
rhythm of a child who is struggling with the location of the notes is a mistake on
the part of the teacher. It’s better to take a year to prepare the child for fingering
and rhythm than to make them fail by introducing it too soon.

The Rules

Here are “rules” that make piano study more enjoyable for children.

1. Always show the child the first note of the piece: play the key for them. Later,
they will want to do it themselves, but you need to get each exercise or “try”
going right away, successfully.

2. Follow each note on the page with your finger, or a pencil. Children are looking
from the page to their hands and get lost when they look back to the page. Later,
they will find their way alone across the page.

3. Do not insist on fingering, that is, assigning certain fingers to play certain notes.
Finding the notes is hard enough for children.

4. Do not insist on rhythm. Pretend that it doesn’t exist.

5. Watch very carefully for fatigue. Reading sheet music is exhausting for children,
and you need to stop well short of their saturation point and immediately
commence a fun activity, such as piano by numbers or a simple keyboard game
such as “fours.” See the next page.

6. Never express disapproval. Ignore mistakes that a child cannot correct on their
own. Almost all children know when they’ve made a mistake. Make a joke of it,
make a game of it, but never make a child feel like a failure. Just trying to play
piano is a victory. It takes tremendous patience to teach this way, but it always
seems to work. Wait long enough, and any child can figure out the rudiments of
piano.

49
 Teaching Games

“FOURS”

Here is a fun keyboard game that you can play at any point to dissolve the fatigue
and tension that children feel from trying to read sheet music. I usually play a
funny kind of Chico Marx oom-pah accompaniment, and follow the child, who
starts on Middle C (Middle C is known as the number “1” in “piano by
number.”)

Perhaps the first few times, make the child speak and count the numbers 1 2 3 4
while they play each key. It’s important to connect what their hands are
struggling with to what they are thinking. It’s very easy for almost any child.
Very young children need to be given wide latitude.

Children like to start on Middle C and go all the way to the top note of the piano,
but once they are comfortable, I stop if they make a mistake (usually the mistake
is playing a key three times instead of four) and we go back to the beginning.

The child plays the numbers, and the parent/teacher plays the letters, or
“chords.”

FOURS

Child: 1111 2222 3333 4444 5555 6666 7777 8888 etc.

Parent: C G C F C F G C etc.

50
 13 F G A B
14 1 2 3 7
15 4 5 6 E
16 7 8 9 D
5 10 11 12 C
6 D E F C

Above you’ll find a template to print stickers for I CAN READ MUSIC. Please refer to
the sticker application directions on page 3-6. Office Supply stores have full sheet
removable label stock which can be used.

You can also use stickers from an Office Supply Store, which will have removable ¾
inch wide stickers in many forms. Using such stickers, you can easily use a colored
marker to make your own stickers. Alternatively, you can use masking tape.

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