The most commonly practiced and easiest way to rock climb is the method of top roping. Top roping is especially favored because it is the safest form of climbing. What sets top roping apart from other methods of climbing is that it is very difficult to experience a life-threatening fall. Top roping consists of a very long rope that is looped around an anchor placed at the top of the wall or rock that you are climbing. The climber uses a double figure eight knot looped through their harness (after the harness is properly secured) at one end of the rope, and the belayer uses a belay device at the other end of the rope that provides tension or slack to the climber. The belayer can also be attached to the ground to ensure that they will not fly up off the ground if the climber falls. These sorts of climbs can be either single pitch climbs (one anchor) or multi-pitch climbs (advancing above the initial anchor).

   
the above image was obtained from: http://alumnus.caltech.edu/~sedwards/climbing/techniques.html