210 | 4 Strategies for Sending Recorders Home Successfully

In this episode, Bryson wraps up our December recorder series with a topic every music teacher knows all too well: what really happens when recorders go home. Instead of crossing our fingers and bracing for the “my kid won’t stop playing Hot Cross Buns” emails, Bryson shares four practical, teacher-tested strategies to help families feel informed, students feel empowered, and everyone stay sane.

If you’re looking for a more peaceful, purposeful, and joy-filled recorder season (yes, it’s possible!)This episode gives you everything you need to set your students, and their families, up for success.

Episode Chapters:

• 0:00 Introduction
• 1:29 The Introduction Letter
• 4:20 Holding Off on Sending It Home
• 6:06 Setting Clear Home Expectations
• 8:31 The “You’re the Boss” Strategy
• 10:33 Takeaways
  
  

Links and Resources: 

• The Elementary Music Summit®
• Elementary Newbie Guide
• Disabilities Guide
• Steady Beat Survival Guide
• Join Elementary Music EDGE™

Use coupon code PODCAST at checkout for 50% off your first month of Elementary Music EDGE™ today!

Have questions or want to share feedback? Reach out to us at hello@thatmusicteacher.com - we’d love to hear from you!

Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction
• 1:29 The Introduction Letter
• 4:20 Holding Off on Sending It Home
• 6:06 Setting Clear Home Expectations
• 8:31 The “You’re the Boss” Strategy
• 10:33 Takeaways

Transcript

Bryson Tarbet: 0:00

Let's be honest, we all know that when recorders go home, the moms in the no Facebook groups are gonna be popping. So let's talk about what we can do to ease that blow a little bit.

Intro: 0:11

You are listening to that music podcast with Bryson Tart, the curriculum designer and educational consultant behind that music teacher in the elementary music summit. Each week, Bryson and his guest will dive into the reality of being an elementary music teacher and how music can truly be transformative in the lives of the students you serve. Show notes and resources mentioned in this. Episode can be found@thatmusicteacher.com.

Bryson Tarbet: 0:45

Hello and welcome back to that music podcast. Today we are gonna continue our conversation about recorders in the elementary music classroom by talking about something that I think is really important, which is getting the parents and the grownups and the families on board talking about how we can get that families. To understand the recorder, to tolerate the quarter recorder in some cases, um, but also really to set everyone up for success along the way. So today we're gonna be chatting about this because it's something that we've been chatting about again, the last couple episodes. We've really been talking about, um, how the recorder kind of gets a bad rap sometimes and how we can use it in a purposeful way to make sure that. It is enjoyable and fun and and highly engaging. Uh, and we are gonna continue that conversation now. Without further ado, let's go ahead and dive into strategy number one on how we can make sure that everyone is on the same page and everyone is set up for success. So, strategy number one is kind of giving a a little bit of an introduction letter. First of all, I want you to create, uh, you know, a friendly, a positive letter, um, email. You're sending it home. Send it home any way you can, physical. Send it on ClassDojo, send an email, literally send it like about carrier pigeon. Um, but I, what I want you to do is really frame the recorder as a new adventure. Talk a little bit about the why. Um, think about the educational value, the fine motor skills, the breath control, reading, music, connecting it to history. Um, talk a little bit about some of the supports that you'll be providing to some students that might need them. Um, talk a little bit about what it'll look like, uh, because let's be honest, this is a great opportunity for advocacy and so many parents might not understand what. It's gonna look like, and it might be a, a case of, you know, when they were in school, it was a very different vibe, and you wanna set the tone about what this is gonna look like. Um, but I also want you to set some expectations. Um, so first of all, you know, I want you to make sure that you are clear, um, that the recorders will have an opportunity to go home. If that, if that's the policy, if that's something that you do. Um, and that you are going to work on, um, creating expectations with the students. That the recorder is an instrument, not a noisemaker. Um, you are gonna give them specific things to practice at home if they have the opportunity. Um, it's not for annoying the cat or jumping on a trampoline and doing flips with it. Um, really set those expectations clear and in writing from the get go. I think it's also important for us to talk a little bit about the safety and care of the instrument. Now, I'm gonna be honest, I'm not a woodwind player, but I have to laugh sometimes in these Facebook groups when we have people that are saying, well, oh my gosh, you put it through the dishwasher. You guys, you just wiped off all the cork grease. I'm like, I have never cork greased a recorder of my life and I've survived. It's fine. Um, you know, and for me, I always have the students remove the little, uh, the cleaning ones because. I, it's gonna be a whole thing. They're gonna get things sh shoved into it. It's gonna turn into, you know, fling across the room. They're gonna, for me, we're not playing it crazy enough that they're gonna need to do full on cleaning. But give some instructions a little bit about safety and care. Like, hey, make sure you're not putting anything into it. Um, this is how you set it up. The big one is make sure you keep it away from dogs.'cause I don't know what it is, but every single year I at least have two students whose recorders get eaten by a dog. So put that in there. Um. Then I also want you to kind of talk about what I call a musical peace plan, um, which is essentially giving grownups and families some tips like designating a practice time, um, or practice space to minimize household noise. Um, we'll talk about that in a little bit because I think it's really important. Strategy number two, and I think this is the biggest one, and I'll be honest, I didn't make this one up. I learned it from someone and I can't for the life of me remember, um, who, um. But I, I want you to delay sending the recorders home. So the way that it always worked for me is every student got a recorder. Um, and they, at the end of the year, they were theirs. They could keep 'em forever, but I didn't send them home from the very beginning because what are you, what's gonna happen if you send recorders home the very first day? They don't know how to play anything yet. They're just gonna make noise, and that's not gonna set anyone up for success. So for me, I make it very clear to my students and to their, their families that I will not be sending home recorders. When they first get them, we're gonna have a minute. We're gonna, we're gonna need a minute to, to learn some things to work together in the class before I get them sent home, because I want them to have a solid foundation. Um, so for me. The kind of arbitrary thing that I said is I, I will not be sending home recorders until we as a class know three songs. Now, to be fair, they might be three songs that only have B and A or even just B or you know, maybe, maybe even BBAG Hot cross buns in there. Um, but I want them to be able to play three recognizable songs. Before I send them home, because I don't want them to just go play. I want them to have something specific to practice and something to share. Um, because again, if you just give them the recorders and they don't know how to use it, they're gonna turn it into noisemakers and that's not gonna be fun for everyone. This ensures that the instrument doesn't kind of go home as a toy. It really shows that this is. An instrument, and this is like something that we're actively working for. Um, so this is great because it creates a little bit less chaos when these get sent home and it allows the students to show something and to be proud about the work that they've already done when they bring it home and they get to show their families. So once the instruments are able to go home, I always tell my students that you are responsible for making sure you have an instrument. When it's a music day and because we were on a weird rotation, so you know, it was every three days, so sometimes it's Monday, sometimes it's all day. I just said, if you're bringing your recorder home, put it in your book bag. If you are not actively practicing. It needs to be back in your book bag. Um, so if, you know, if you practice, where are you gonna put it when you're done not in your bed. I don't care if you're going to, you know, going to dinner, put it back in your book bag, and then you can go to dinner. Um, that way. One, we're kind of getting away from the dogs that eat the recorders, but also we're always making sure that's with us, um, because there might be some weird schedules going on and there might be a music day that wasn't a scheduled music day. Um, so we kind of used that as an opportunity to build responsibility. Now in my classroom, I had a class set of recorders. I'll be honest, the class set had been around the block for a minute. They were clean, you know, I always made sure I cleaned them every year. Um, then we sanitized them every, after every use, but like. They weren't great. They, they, they have, they lived a life. Um, so my students didn't really wanna play them, but I made it very clear that, hey, if you don't have your recorder, you're gonna have to borrow one. Um, borrow one, the class sets, um, and you know, just figure it out, right? And so my students said, oh, I didn't bring that. Right. Go grab one. Um. And I think that's good to kind of show that responsibility. Um, but I also think it's important, especially in the population that I taught, that I didn't just say, well, you don't get to play today.'cause I don't think that's helpful because sometimes it's outta their control. And even if it is in their control, that's just gonna cause classroom management issues half the time anyway. So what can we do to make it a little bit more accessible, have some extra ones available. Another thing that I made really clear with my students when we went home, like when the recorders go home, is that I should not see the recorders or hear the recorders. Anywhere except for the music room. Um, we're, we're not bringing 'em in the hallways. We're not on the, we're not bringing these on the bus. Um, and I said, Hey, if I hear that we're gonna have an issue, we're gonna have to have a talk because, you know, do you think it's gonna be helpful to have everyone on their bus have a recorder? No, that's not safe. And kind of talk about why, you know, very quickly, but like, set those expectations and hold them to it. If you see a student, like there was once I was out on recess doing, and all of a sudden I hear hot cross buns. I'm like, all right, well that's fantastic. You sound great. Why do you have your recorder? That's not what we're doing. Um, that's not, that's, that's just gonna end. It's like it's gonna end poorly. So to set those expectations and hold those expectations. And finally, strategy four, I think is the biggest one, which is establishing a, you are the boss policy. Um, I'm fully aware that there are some. Reasons why a student may not, um, be able to practice at home. So first of all, I always, I never expected my students to practice. I always encouraged them to practice. Um, but also like I taught at a school where a lot of my students really struggled. Um, so like I know that it wouldn't be, it would not be. Responsible for me to expect every single student to be able to practice every single day, that's just not gonna happen. It's not the lives that they're living. Um, but I always encouraged it. Um, but I always, I also said like, Hey, in the music classroom, I am in charge. Am I in charge at your house? And they always say yes. I said, no, I'm not. I'm not in charge of your house. Who's in charge of your house? And oh, my grownups. You know my mom, my dad, my grandma. And I said, yes, your grownups are always in charge. So if you're ever practicing and they say it's time to be done, that's the end of conversation. That's the end of it. Um, if for whatever reason, you know, like your, your baby's si the sister is sleeping or whatever, you can't practice, and they say that, listen to them. If for whatever reason they say, I don't want you practicing, period. I don't want you to take your recorder home, they're in charge. It is their home, their rules. That's okay. Um, we're gonna still make progress in the music classroom. It's all gonna be fine. Um, and really set the expectation that with both with students and with families, that they are in charge. And I want them to, you know, you can't use the excuse of, well, my teacher says I need to practice hot rest funds.

No, it's 10: 10:09

00 PM Go to bed. Listen. Listen to your grownups. Um, and I think that's really helpful because it alleviates that parental stress, um, and kind of removes an argument out of, out of the play. Um, so that's the big ones that I always give my students, especially when I send the recorders home, that in the music classroom, I'm in charge at home. Not my domain. I'm not in charge. So we have to follow those expectations that are set by those grownups. I hope that you've learned a couple of different strategies to kind of get some parents and families a little bit more on board. Um, you know, maybe it's keeping the recorders a little bit until they learn a few songs. Maybe it's just being, opening that line of communication, celebrating success, whatever. My whole goal for you over this whole series, you know, all do these December podcasts is use the recorder. I think it is one of the best tools we have. I mean, where else can you get an instrument for two to three bucks that a student can play a lot of music on, you know, fairly simple. Um, it's accessible. It's, you know, you can get the cool colors. I got my little green one. You know, you can get it in a way that makes it engaging and fun and joyful. And for me. That's something I'm never gonna stop doing. You know, if I'm in a classroom, I'm teaching the recorder. Um, I, you know, even, even now, you know, when I'm not in the classroom, I'm still preaching the good word of the recorder because I think it's that important. And I really think that it's something that can, I've seen students unlock and light up in ways that I've never thought I'd see. Because of the recorder, because everyone was learning something brand new. You know those students that might have, uh, you know, they might be in fourth grade and they're still struggling to read. They know that they're behind. But when we get into the recorder, it's brand new for everyone. So everyone's at that level, and that is my favorite part, and that is why I will never stop teaching the recorder. So that's all for this year, 2025. How are we already done? Um, we are gonna take a few weeks off from the podcast to recharge and to regroup, but we are gonna be back in January with some huge announcements, so you are not gonna wanna miss it. So be sure to subscribe wherever you are watching or listening to this episode and until next year. Keep making beautiful music, and as always, thank you so much for making a difference in the lives of the students that you teach.