Unit 6 — Steps and skips
Read by distance, not by name: line to space is a step, line to line a skip, and anything wider a leap. Unit 6 makes distance the main way of reading, and finds D and E above treble C that way.
Songs in this unit
Read by distance, not by name. Line to space is a step; line to line is a skip; anything wider is a leap, and fourths and fifths are learned by their shape. Unit 6 makes distance the main way you read, and finds the next two notes, D and E above treble C, that way.
- Prerequisite: Unit 5.
- New notes: D5 and E5, on the treble staff.
- Landmark: treble C.
- Idea: intervals.
The new notes
| Note | On the staff | From treble C | On the keys |
|---|---|---|---|
| D5 | The fourth line | A step up | Between the two black keys above treble C |
| E5 | The top space | A skip up | Just right of those two black keys |
The distances
| Distance | On the staff | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Step | Line to the next space, or space to the next line | C to D |
| Skip | Line to the next line, or space to the next space | E to G |
| Fourth | Line to a space further on (or space to line) | C to F |
| Fifth | Line to line two lines up (or space to space) | C to G |
The sittings, in order
- Steps and skips (concept). Steps, skips, and leaps of a fourth or a fifth, by how they look on the staff. You play three of them.
- Meet D and E. A step and a skip above treble C: the fourth line and the top space.
- Note cards.
- Mix. Name the distance before the notes (step, skip, leap or the same), plus which is higher, play it, name it and echo.
- Read by shape. Two pages read by the shapes the notes make.
- Use it: London Bridge. The hand sits in D position; the thumb reaches down to C at the very end.
- Use it: Row, Row, Row Your Boat. The hand moves twice, each time between phrases.
- Use it: Old MacDonald. Up to E5, each finger on its own key: G A C D E with fingers 1 2 3 4 5.
- Checkpoint.
Teaching notes
- D5 is a step above treble C, the fourth line (E G B D F).
- E5 is a skip above treble C, the top space (FACE).
- Say the distance before the note. "Up a skip, down a step." A reader who reads by distance reads faster than one who names every note.
- Distances are fingers. In a five-finger position a step is the next finger, a skip misses one finger, and a fifth is thumb to little finger.
- Hands move between phrases. Row, Row, Row Your Boat spans an octave, more than a hand; it moves up for "merrily, merrily" and back again, never crossing fingers.
Common mistakes
- Counting the starting note as zero. A skip is two letters on (C to E), not one.
- A fourth mistaken for a skip. A skip is line to line; a fourth is line to space, one further on.
- Reading every note from a landmark. Use a landmark for the first note, then distance from note to note.
Related guides
Next: Unit 7 — Note lengths. Back to the whole path.