Music notes are written on five lines and four spaces:

The lines and spaces are called a Staff. You may refer to each line and each space by its number. (Example: Line 1, Space 1, etc.)  In the example the numbers are shown to show that the lines and spaces are numbered from the bottom to the top. On the staff we place notes and rests. (You'll find out more about notes and rests in later lessons.)  At the beginning of each staff we place a sign to designate "Treble" or "Bass" called a "Clef". A clef tells us which notes to sing or to play on an instrument. The two commonly used clefs are the "Treble" clef: and the "Bass" clef:   A treble clef and a bass clef join together to form what is called a "Grand Staff":

Piano music for the left hand and the right hand is written on a Grand Staff. In Vocal music soprano's and alto's sing the notes in the Treble Clef and tenors and basses sing notes in the Bass Clef.

This is the treble clef:    You should learn how to draw it:

a) Start at the bottom, and begin to draw the line upward:  

b) Continue upward until you pass the top line of the staff:  

c) Swing to the right and then downward, crossing the first line you drew at about the 4th staff line:  

d) Continue the line downward, then curving to the right, so that it "sits" on or near the bottom line:  

e) You may finish your treble clef with a curl but it is not necessary:  

Practice drawing some treble clefs (They don't have to be artistically pretty):

The bass clef is just a backwards "C":  

a) Draw the backward "C" starting on or about the 4th line, then swing around to the right and down:  

b) Continue to the left until you have a backward "C":  

c) Place two dots beside the backward "C" and let the 4th line go through the dots close to the clef:    

Practice drawing some bass clefs (remember...it doesn't have to look pretty):