My First Music Workbook
Printable pages for young violin and viola beginners: the steady beat, reading notes, rhythm, and practicing at home, with notes for grown-ups and an answer key.
31 pages · US Letter · PDF, 2.0 MB. Free, with no email or sign-up.
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A look inside
The cover, page 1 
Section 1: the steady beat, page 3 
Section 2: violin notes, page 11 
Section 3: rhythm, page 18
What is inside
- 1. First music concepts (pages 3 to 9). Feel the steady beat, hear high and low, loud and soft, fast and slow, meet your instrument, and meet the staff. Most of these pages are for moving, listening, and drawing together.
- 2. Finding and reading notes (pages 10 to 17). Violin music is written in the treble clef, and viola music in the alto clef. Start with your child’s instrument. The other clef is there for curious minds.
- 3. Reading rhythm (pages 18 to 23). Rhythm is how long each note lasts. Say it, clap it, then play it: the same rhythm three ways, in that order.
- 4. Practice and play (pages 24 to 27). Good habits for practicing at home: getting ready to play, listening every day, a tune of your own, and a week to color in.
It ends with an answer key and a page to celebrate. Download all 31 pages.
Who it is for
Children who are new to music, whether or not they have started lessons. Ages three to six do the moving, listening, and drawing activities with a grown-up, and older beginners read and write the notes and rhythms on their own.
Violin and viola families alike: violinists read in the treble clef and violists in the alto clef, and each has its own pages.
Bring it to a lesson, or work through it at the kitchen table. The second page is for grown-ups: how to use it, what you need, and what the age labels mean. The answers are at the back.
Suzuki families will find the Twinkle rhythms, the first finger pattern, and pages for practicing at home: a ready-to-play checklist, a listening chart, and a practice week to color in.
Free online games and classes to go with it
Each section of the workbook has a free game or class on our site that practices the same skill. They work on a phone, tablet, or computer, with nothing to sign up for.
Free class · Section 1
Dynamics
Play with volume and feeling: piano and forte, the crescendo, accents, and why dynamics are always relative.
Free class · Section 1
Tempo
The speed of the beat: Italian tempo words, metronome marks, and how music speeds up, slows down, and pauses.
Free class · Section 1
The Staff
The basics of reading music: the five lines and four spaces, high and low on the staff, and why every staff needs a clef.
Free game · Section 2
Name that note
A note appears on the staff and you name it, in the treble, bass, or alto clef. Harder levels add ledger lines, sharps, and flats.
Free class · Section 2
Treble Clef
Learn to read the treble clef from scratch: the G line, lines and spaces, reading on sight, and handy mnemonics.
Free class · Section 2
Alto Clef
Learn to read the alto clef from scratch: middle C on the center line, the lines and spaces, reading on sight, and the anchor that does the work a mnemonic would.
Free class · Section 2
Intervals
Measure the distance between two notes: counting the number, steps and skips, the family up to the octave, and melodic versus harmonic.
Free class · Section 2
Ledger Lines & the Grand Staff
Read the notes that climb above and drop below the staff, meet middle C, and see how treble and bass join into the grand staff.
Free game · Section 2
Where's that note?
A note appears on the staff and you find where it is played on a violin or viola, or a spot is marked and you name its note. From the Twinkle strings to every finger in first position.
Free game · Section 3
How long is that note?
A note, a rest, or a pair of tied notes appears, and you work out how long it lasts. From a long whole note down to the quickest thirty-seconds.
Free class · Section 3
Rhythm
Learn to read rhythm from the ground up: the beat, note values and rests, beaming, dotted notes, and counting a bar out loud.
Free class · Section 3
Time Signatures
Read the two numbers at the start of a piece: what each one counts, common time, and the simple and compound meter families.
Lessons in Kernersville
When your child is ready for more, come meet us. Book a free 30-minute trial lesson at our studio in Kernersville, North Carolina, at the heart of the Triad.