Rhythm Counting Worksheet – Level 2
Write the counts under each note using "1 e & a" for sixteenth notes. Watch for dotted notes and ties, which carry a note into the next beat. Some lines are in 3/4. Clap each line with a metronome while counting aloud, then check your counts.
Answer key
Show the answers
- Bar 1 (4/4): 1 & & 4 & a
- Bar 2 (4/4): 1 & 4 e &
- Bar 3 (4/4): 1 & a 2 & a 3 &
- Bar 4 (4/4): 2 & a 3 4 &
- Bar 5 (4/4): 2 e & a 3 &
- Bar 6 (4/4): 1 2 e & a 3 &
- Bar 7 (4/4): 2 e & 3 &
- Bar 8 (4/4): 1 & a 2 e & a 3 e & 4
Goal
Count and perform dotted rhythms, ties and sixteenth notes accurately: the rhythms that appear in most real music.
How to practise
- Sixteenth notes: count "1 e & a 2 e & a". Four equal parts per beat.
- A dot adds half the value: a dotted quarter lasts 1½ beats, a dotted eighth ¾ of a beat.
- A tie joins two notes into one longer sound. Write both counts, but clap only the first.
- In 3/4, count "1 2 3" per bar and feel a slight accent on 1.
- Start at 60 BPM with a sixteenth-note subdivision on the metronome. Four clean repetitions per line before moving on.
Self-check
Check with the answer key. Clap with the metronome and listen for evenness: dotted-eighth plus sixteenth patterns are often rushed. Slow down until the short note falls exactly on "a".
Next steps
Revisit note values and rhythm and time signatures, and move on to rhythm level 3 with syncopation and compound meter.