Learn the musical alphabet and note names
Learn staff notation, clefs, and ledger lines
Learn rhythm values, rests, time signatures, and counting
Learn scales, key signatures, and accidentals
Learn intervals and how to identify them by ear and on paper
Learn triads, seventh chords, and chord symbols
Learn major, minor, and modal scales
Learn chord progressions and harmonic function
Learn cadences, tonic, dominant, and subdominant
Learn circle of fifths and key relationships
Learn basic voice leading and chord inversion
Learn transposition and reading in different keys
Learn ear training for intervals, chords, and rhythms
Learn to analyze simple songs and pieces
Practice writing melodies and harmonies
Practice sight-reading regularly
Practice with a keyboard or other instrument
Use flashcards for notes, intervals, and chords
Study one concept at a time and review often
Apply theory to songs you already know
Work through exercises in theory books or online courses
Compose short pieces to reinforce concepts
Listen actively and identify theory concepts in music
Review and repeat until concepts become automatic