Free Music Lesson Plans
Ready-to-teach music lesson plans for elementary and middle school. Each one has an objective, timings, the free games to use and a quick check at the end, and prints on one page.
- Free
- No sign-up
- Grades 2–8
- Works with Google Classroom
Choose a lesson plan
- Note readingReading the treble staffGrades 2–5 · 45 min
- Note readingLines and spaces: EGBDF and FACEGrades 3–5 · 45 min
- RhythmFeel the beat: note lengths and rhythmGrades 2–5 · 45 min
- Note readingMeet the bass clefGrades 5–8 · 45 min
- TheorySharps, flats and the major scaleGrades 6–8 · 50 min
- ListeningThe elements of musicGrades 3–8 · 45 min
Reading the treble staff
Objective. Students name the notes on the treble staff using two landmarks, G and middle C, and explain how lines and spaces step up the staff.
You need
- A screen at the front, and a device for each student or pair
- Lesson 1–3 links, posted in Google Classroom or on the board
- A class test link (made on this site, free)
The lesson
| Time | Step | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 5 min | Warm-up: the hand staff | Hold a hand sideways: five fingers are the five lines. Students point to lines and spaces as you call “line 2”, “space 3”. |
| 10 min | Teach: how the staff works | Project Lesson 1. Notes step up line, space, line. Ask: what comes after a line? |
| 10 min | Teach: two landmarks | Lesson 2 (G, where the clef curls) and Lesson 3 (middle C on its ledger line), as a class. |
| 15 min | Practice | Students play Treble Clef Practice on Level 1. Circulate and ask each student to find G and middle C first. |
| 5 min | Check | A 20-note class test at Steady. Results come to you in Google Classroom. |
Support
Turn the note names on in Training for the first few minutes; pair a confident reader with one who isn’t.
Stretch
Early finishers try Arcade: how high a score can they reach?
Checking understanding
Class test score, and the notes most students missed (shown in each result).
Vocabulary: stafflinespacetreble clefmiddle Cledger line
Free from trebly.fun/teachers/lesson-plans
Lines and spaces: EGBDF and FACE
Objective. Students name every line and space note on the treble staff, using Every Good Boy Does Fine and FACE, and read a note without counting up from the bottom.
You need
- A screen at the front, and a device for each student or pair
- Lessons 4 and 5, posted in Google Classroom or on the board
- Worksheet 1 (Name the notes), printed from the sub plans page
The lesson
| Time | Step | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 5 min | Warm-up: the hand staff | Fingers are lines, the gaps are spaces. Call out “space 1”, “line 4”; students point. |
| 10 min | Teach: the spaces spell FACE | Project Lesson 4. Students say F-A-C-E from the bottom space up, pointing to the gaps on their hand. |
| 10 min | Teach: the lines, EGBDF | Lesson 5. Every Good Boy Does Fine; then ask the class to invent their own sentence for E, G, B, D, F. |
| 15 min | Practice | Treble Clef Practice: start on Level 1, then switch to Level 2 for the whole staff once students are ready. |
| 5 min | Check | Worksheet 1 as an exit ticket: twelve notes to name, with the answer key for you. |
Support
Keep the reminder of the lines and spaces on the board; use the large-print worksheet.
Stretch
Worksheet 2 (note-name words): find the words hidden in the notes.
Checking understanding
Worksheet 1: look for students who confuse lines and spaces (for example, E and F at the bottom).
Vocabulary: line notespace notemnemonicEGBDFFACE
Free from trebly.fun/teachers/lesson-plans
Feel the beat: note lengths and rhythm
Objective. Students keep a steady beat, say how long whole, half, quarter and eighth notes last, and clap and count a one-measure rhythm.
You need
- A screen with speakers, and devices if you have them
- Lessons 12, 15 and 19
- A whiteboard for writing rhythms
The lesson
| Time | Step | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 5 min | Warm-up: find the beat | Play any song the class knows. Students pat the steady beat on their knees, then count it out loud: 1, 2, 3, 4. |
| 10 min | Teach: the beat | Project Lesson 12 and tap along as a class: the pulse underneath every tune. |
| 10 min | Teach: how long is a note? | Lesson 15: whole, half, quarter and eighth notes. Hold each one with your voice while the class counts. |
| 15 min | Practice: read a rhythm | Lesson 19, a measure at a time, then Pulse at the Slow speed for students on devices. |
| 5 min | Check | Write a four-beat rhythm on the board. The class claps and counts it (“1, 2 &, 3, 4”), then each student writes one of their own. |
Support
Count out loud with the class the whole time; start with quarter and half notes only.
Stretch
Students swap their written rhythms and clap a partner’s.
Checking understanding
The rhythms students write: does each measure add up to four beats?
Vocabulary: beatrhythmwhole notehalf notequarter noteeighth notemeasure
Free from trebly.fun/teachers/lesson-plans
Meet the bass clef
Objective. Students find F and middle C on the bass staff and name its lines and spaces, using Good Boys Do Fine Always and All Cows Eat Grass.
You need
- A screen at the front, and a device for each student or pair
- Lessons 21–24
- The bass clef worksheet, printed from the sub plans page
The lesson
| Time | Step | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 5 min | Warm-up: who reads bass clef? | Ask which instruments use it: the left hand on piano, cello, bass, trombone, tuba. Why would low instruments need their own clef? |
| 10 min | Teach: two landmarks | Lesson 21 (F, between the clef’s two dots) and Lesson 22 (middle C, one ledger line above). |
| 10 min | Teach: lines and spaces | Lesson 23 (lines: G B D F A) and Lesson 24 (spaces: A C E G). |
| 15 min | Practice | Students play Bass Clef Practice. Ask them to say the landmark they started from for each note. |
| 5 min | Check | The bass clef worksheet as an exit ticket, with the answer key for you. |
Support
Put the treble and bass mnemonics side by side on the board: the bass staff is one step lower.
Stretch
Lesson 25: notes on both staves, as in piano music.
Checking understanding
The worksheet: look for students still reading the bass staff as if it were treble (G instead of B, and so on).
Vocabulary: bass clefF clefgrand staffledger lineGBDFAACEG
Free from trebly.fun/teachers/lesson-plans
Sharps, flats and the major scale
Objective. Students explain half and whole steps, read sharps, flats and naturals, and build a major scale from the pattern whole, whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half.
You need
- A screen at the front, and a device for each student or pair
- Lessons 26–28
- Paper for writing a scale
The lesson
| Time | Step | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 5 min | Warm-up: the keyboard | Project a keyboard. Where are the black keys grouped in twos and threes? Where are two white keys side by side with no black key between? |
| 10 min | Teach: half and whole steps | Lesson 26: the smallest step on the keyboard, and a step of two. |
| 10 min | Teach: accidentals | Lesson 27: a sharp raises a note a half step, a flat lowers it, a natural cancels them. |
| 15 min | Build a major scale | Lesson 28: C major on the white keys, then G and F major, where the pattern needs F sharp and B flat. |
| 10 min | Check | Students write the notes of G major (G A B C D E F♯ G) and mark where the half steps fall. |
Support
Write the pattern W W H W W W H on the board and count steps on the projected keyboard together.
Stretch
Students build D major (two sharps), then read the key signatures guide.
Checking understanding
The written G major scale: is F sharp there, and are the half steps between B–C and F♯–G?
Vocabulary: half stepwhole stepsharpflatnaturalmajor scale
Free from trebly.fun/teachers/lesson-plans
The elements of music
Objective. Students name and describe the elements of music (melody, harmony, rhythm, tempo, dynamics, timbre, texture and form) and identify them by ear.
You need
- A screen with speakers
- The elements of music guide, with its sound examples
- Paper for a listening log
The lesson
| Time | Step | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 5 min | Hook | Play the same tune at Largo, then Presto (the tempo examples). Ask: what changed? What stayed the same? |
| 15 min | Teach: eight elements | Go through the guide, playing each example. Students write one word for each element in their log. |
| 10 min | Listen and sort | Play examples out of order; students hold up fingers for which element changed (1 melody … 8 form). |
| 10 min | Apply | Play a short piece students know. In pairs, they describe it with four elements: “The tempo is…, the dynamics are…”. |
| 5 min | Exit ticket | Each student writes one element and an example of it from today. |
Support
Give a word bank: fast/slow, loud/soft, thin/thick, smooth/bright.
Stretch
Students explain the difference between texture and harmony in their own words.
Checking understanding
Exit tickets, and the finger votes during “Listen and sort”.
Vocabulary: melodyharmonyrhythmtempodynamicstimbretextureform
Free from trebly.fun/teachers/lesson-plans
A three-week note reading unit
For a short unit on reading the treble staff, about two lessons a week. Each week builds on the last, and the class test shows you who needs more time.
| Week | Focus | Teach | Practice | Check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | The staff and two landmarks | Lessons 1–3, then 4 (spaces: FACE) | Treble Clef Practice, Level 1 | Worksheet 1 (name the notes) |
| Week 2 | Lines, and notes outside the staff | Lessons 5–7 (lines: EGBDF, below and above the staff) | Training and Arcade | Class test at Steady |
| Week 3 | Putting it together: a real tune | Lessons 8–9, then Songs | Songs: Hot Cross Buns, Ode to Joy | Class test at Brisk, and Worksheet 2 (note-name words) |
The lessons are on the lessons page, Treble Clef Practice is at /treble-clef/practice/, and the worksheets print from the sub plans page.
More for your music class
- Music sub plans, with or without tech, and printable worksheets.
- A note reading quiz that sends you every student’s result.
- Using Trebly with Google Classroom.
- Free posters for your classroom wall.
Questions teachers ask
Can I change the plans?
Of course. They’re starting points: swap any activity for another from the For teachers page, or stretch a plan over two lessons.
Do students need accounts?
No. Everything runs in the browser with no sign-up, and Trebly never sees student names.
What if we only have one screen?
Most steps work as a whole class on the projector: the class calls out the answers and a helper at the computer enters them, as in sub plan 3.