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Key Signature Writing Worksheet

Free key signature writing worksheet: write the sharps or flats for a named major or minor key on an empty staff. All clefs; printable with answer key.

Key Signature Writing Worksheet

Sheet #

Name Date Score /

    Answer key

    Key Signature Writing Worksheet · Sheet #

      How to use it

      1. Choose a difficulty, major, minor or both, and the clef.
      2. Press New worksheet for a set of key names, each with an empty staff.
      3. Work out how many sharps or flats the key has and write them in the standard order on the correct lines and spaces.
      4. Show answers to see the signature drawn on the staff, or print the answer page.

      This worksheet is the writing counterpart of key signature reading: you are given a key name and an empty staff, and you draw the key signature. Writing it correctly shows that you know both how many accidentals the key has and where each one goes.

      The method#

      1. Count the accidentals. Work from the circle of fifths: sharp keys are C, G, D, A, E, B, F-sharp, C-sharp (0 to 7 sharps); flat keys are C, F, B-flat, E-flat, A-flat, D-flat, G-flat, C-flat (0 to 7 flats). For a minor key, count from its relative major.
      2. Write them in order. Sharps: F C G D A E B. Flats: B E A D G C F.
      3. Check the placement for the clef. The accidentals zig-zag within the staff and are never placed on ledger lines.

      Difficulty levels#

      • Easy: up to three sharps or flats.
      • Medium: up to five.
      • Hard: all fifteen signatures.

      If a level has fewer distinct keys than the number of questions you ask for, the sheet adds keys from neighbouring levels, and then other clefs, so that nothing repeats.

      Options#

      Choose major keys, minor keys or a mix, and treble, bass, alto, tenor, treble plus bass, or all four clefs. The answer key shows the finished signature on the staff and lists the accidentals in order.

      Frequently asked questions

      How do I know how many sharps or flats a key has?

      Use the circle of fifths: each step clockwise from C adds a sharp (G 1, D 2, A 3, E 4, B 5, F-sharp 6, C-sharp 7); each step counter-clockwise adds a flat (F 1, B-flat 2, E-flat 3, A-flat 4, D-flat 5, G-flat 6, C-flat 7).

      In what order are the sharps and flats written?

      Sharps: F C G D A E B. Flats: B E A D G C F. You always add them in this order, so a key with three sharps has F-sharp, C-sharp and G-sharp.

      How do I write a minor key signature?

      Use the relative major, three semitones above the minor tonic, and write its signature. E minor uses the signature of G major (one sharp).

      Why do the sharps and flats sit on different lines in other clefs?

      The pattern is fixed by convention for each clef so that the accidentals stay inside the staff, so the same key is drawn differently in treble, bass, alto and tenor clef.

      Reference charts

      More key signature worksheets

      Blank staff