That is a very unusual post title don’t you think?

What do pelicans and dolphins have to do with writing music notes? 

Well, today I thought that I should address one of the biggest problems kids face at music theory exams, when trying to write music notes with technical precision. 

They always get confused about the direction of stems, flags, beams and noteheads. 

There is a right and a wrong way to write noteheads, stems and even flags, and in this post, I’m going to cover it and make it so easy that you, even though you may not have learned any music, will be able to teach them and your kids will never be confused about stem, flag or notehead directions ever again. 

Don’t forget to download the music theory worksheet included at the bottom of this post. 

Ready?

Let’s get started, learning how to determine the direction of stems on notes. 

All you’ve got to remember are the words Pelicans and Dolphins when it comes to note stems

Why Pelicans?

Pelicans as you know are birds and birds fly. 

The word pelican starts with the letter ‘p’. 

Teach your kids to remember the word pelican, and the letter ‘p’ because notes written on or above third line in the staff look like the letter ‘p’. 

Their stems go down on the left side of the notehead. 

Isn’t that easy? 

They never have to be confused agin, if they remember that all notes on or above (flying in the sky) the third line have their stems going down just like the letter ‘p’ in the word pelican (a bird that flies in the sky). 

Why Dolphins?

I think you can guess this one. 

Dolphins are a type of fish that swim in the sea. 

Dolphins start with the letter ‘d’.

Every note on or below (swim in the sea) the 3rd line has its stem going up, just like the letter ‘d’.

The stem goes up on the right side of the notehead. 

Easy isn’t it?

No more confusion. 

Did you notice that noteheads on the 3rd line can be either ‘p’s or ‘d’s?

Yes, that is correct, they can have their stems going either up or down. 

What about flags then? 

The flag that is written with single eighth notes are always on the right and if the stem goes up the flag remains on the right side and goes down. 

On the other hand if the stem goes down, the flag still remains to the right side of the stem but this time it goes upward. 

Now use the music theory worksheet that I have made available and have your children learn this very important concept.

If you’ve taught your kids to read music notes and play the piano, you will know that the notes F2 and B3 are neither line nor space notes. 

While both these notes are important notes to know, since they don’t fall into either category it is hard to know when to introduce kids to these notes. 

In this post I will discuss three methods to introduce kids to the notes. 

You can choose either one of the three methods. 

Yes, I am partial to one of the methods over the other, but that doesn’t mean that my favourite method is better than the other two methods I have explained here. 

So, please read through the post and decide, which method you would like to try when teaching your kids to read music notes and play the piano in your homeschool. 

Don’t forget to download the music theory worksheet I have included to help reinforce the concept of F2 and B3 to your kids. 

So, if you are ready, we can get started right now. 

Method 1 – Stand Alone

Like its name, this method is ‘stand alone’, meaning you should teach both notes ‘Fearless F’ (F2) and ‘Bouncing B’ (B3) after teaching your child the Bass Clef Line and Space notes. 

With this method you will: 

– First show your child the flashcard for F2

– Explain that it is F2 and called ‘Fearless F’ because it hangs from the Bass Staff.

– Ask your child to show F2 on the keyboard. 

– You will follow the same steps and introduce B3 as well. 

Method 2 – Teach, when introducing Middle C

You can introduce both ‘Fearless F’ and ‘Bouncing B’ to your child, when teaching them Middle C. 

With this method you will: 

– First show Middle C and point to F2 and B3 in relation to Middle C. – Show flashcards and say F2 is called ‘Fearless F’ because the note hangs from the Bass Staff and B3 is called ‘Bouncing B’ because the note sits on the Bass Staff. 

Method 3 – Introduce F2 with Bass Clef Line Notes and B3 with Bass Clef Space Notes

This is by far my favourite method. However, please remember that methods 1 and 2 are equally good. 

With this method you will:

– Teach the Bass Clef line notes and introduce them to F2, by showing them the flashcard, telling them that it is called ‘Fearless F’ because it hangs from the Bass Staff and then show them the note on the keyboard. 

– Teach the Bass Clef space notes and introduce them to B3, by showing them the flashcard, telling them that it is called ‘Bouncing B’ because it sits on the Bass Staff and then showing them the note on the keyboard. 

Would you like to implement Method 2 but still haven’t introduced your kids to Middle C? Then read my post 3 Absolutely Important Facts To Know About Middle C.

Want to use Method 3? In that case, you will have to first read and implement 5 ‘Shockingly Easy’ Steps To Teach Bass Clef Line Notes, and 5 ‘Ridiculously Simple’ Steps To Teach Bass Clef Space Notes. 

Either way don’t forget to download the music theory worksheet I have made available with this post.

What is your favourite method?

Comment below and let me know.  

If you’ve taught your kids to read music notes and play the piano, you will know that the notes D4 and G5 are neither line nor space notes. 

While both these notes are important notes to know, since they don’t fall into either category it is hard to know when to introduce kids to these notes. 

In this post I will discuss three methods to introduce kids to the notes. 

You can choose either one of the three methods. 

Yes, I am partial to one of the methods over the other, but that doesn’t mean that my favourite method is better than the other two methods I have explained here. 

So, please read through the post and decide, which method you would like to try when teaching your kids to read music notes and play the piano in your homeschool. 

Don’t forget to download the music theory worksheet I have included to help reinforce the concept of D4 and G5 to your kids. 

So, if you are ready, we can get started right now. 

Method 1 – Stand Alone

Like its name, this method is ‘stand alone’, meaning you should teach both notes ‘Dangerous D’ (D4) and ‘Giggling G’ (G5) after teaching your child the Treble Line and Space notes. 

With this method you will: 

– First show your child the flashcard for D4

– Explain that it is D4 and called ‘Dangerous D’ because it hangs from the Treble Staff.

– Ask your child to show D4 on the keyboard. 

– You will follow the same steps and introduce G5 as well. 

Method 2 – Teach, when introducing Middle C

You can introduce both ‘Dangerous D’ and ‘Giggling G’ to your child, when teaching them Middle C. 

With this method you will: 

– First show Middle C and point to D4 and G5 in relation to Middle C. – Show flashcards and say D4 is called ‘Dangerous D’ because the note hangs from the Treble Staff and G5 is called ‘Giggling G’ because the note sits on the Treble Staff. 

Method 3 – Introduce D4 with Treble Clef Line Notes and G5 with Treble Clef Space Notes

This is by far my favourite method. However, please remember that methods 1 and 2 are equally good. 

With this method you will:

– Teach the Treble Clef line notes and introduce them to D4, by showing them the flashcard, telling them that it is called ‘Dangerous D’ because it hangs from the Treble Staff and then show them the note on the keyboard. 

– Teach the Treble Clef space notes and introduce them to G5, by showing them the flashcard, telling them that it is called ‘Giggling G’ because it sits on the Treble Staff and then showing them the note on the keyboard. 

Would you like to implement Method 2 but still haven’t introduced your kids to Middle C? Then read my post 3 Absolutely Important Facts To Know About Middle C.

Want to use Method 3? In that case, you will have to first read and implement 5 ‘Incredibly Easy’ Steps To Teach Treble Clef Line Notes, and 5 ‘Ridiculously Easy’ Steps To Teach Treble Clef Space Notes. 

Either way don’t forget to download the music theory worksheet I have made available with this post.

What is your favourite method?

Comment below and let me know.