The karate belt method can be used for any classroom instrument unit to motivate students to practice! This is the free version of my Recorder Karate / Recorder Dojo Certificates. That product includes an editable PPT so you can type in names and the date. It also includes a certificate for when a student passes each belt. INCLUDED IN THIS PRODUCT: *Certificate for end of recorder karate unit *Two styles *PDF file for easy printing--just print, write name of your student, date, and your name

Help your students begin with the end in mind! Before your students begin their Recorder Karate unit, help them set a goal! If they achieve that goal, celebrate and set a new one! ...

So, I have seen a TON of good ideas on Pinterest for Recorder Karate. So, I thought to myself, why not compile them all in one place? :) ...

I recently wrapped up my Recorder Karate unit with 3rd - 5th grade. We had a recorder number of Black Belts this year and the students ...

So, I have seen a TON of good ideas on Pinterest for Recorder Karate. So, I thought to myself, why not compile them all in one place? :) Here's some info on Recorder Karate and also some cool ideas I found. What is Recorder Karate? Basically, students master certain songs on their recorder to earn "karate belts." It's a great idea and comes from this book. What adaptations have people made? I personally have found that you need a lot more than just the songs in the Recorder Karate book to help them be successful recorder players. They need more in-between songs to help them learn the notes. I have also found that I don't necessarily agree with the sequencing of the original book--shouldn't the black belt be harder than the blue belt? So, this year I've taken Recorder Resource 1 and adapted it for my school to help there be a more sequential order. Yes, it's a bit more expensive, but it's very sequential and it comes with Power Points that include the backgrounds to the songs. I also like that it has a version of the songs with "kids notes." Basically, the note name is written inside of the note head. I think this is great for students who are getting additional help in reading--we should be differentiating our instruction in the music classroom too! So here is my version: I made my own spots in the Recorder Resource Kit packet that are the required songs for each belt. I pasted a cute little karate kid next to each song that is required for a belt. Speaking of belts . . . What do you use for Recorder Karate belts? I used to use thin ribbons, but they often fell off of the recorder, and it took a long time to cut them all. And I still hadn't found a good way to organize them. I had also seen people use yarn--which is fine, but I wanted it to look a bit more fashionable :) So then I saw this beautiful post on Pinterest about using loom bands and wahlah: An organized assortment of Recorder Karate belts for $15. It will last me for YEARS before I have to get more. AND they are latex-free!! Here's what they look like on the recorders: Pretty sweet! And I also bought silver, striped, and glow-in-the-dark belts for my students to earn if they get to their black belt. FYI--I also keep track of their progress in a notebook, so they can't just go home and add some loom bands to their recorder . . . And now the biggest question--HOW TO SHOW THEIR PROGRESS!! This is where there are lots of great ideas on Pinterest. Here is my set-up for this year: Each belt has it's own colored paper in the back of the room (with a cute clip art from the original Recorder Karate book--if you want that clip art, it's worth buying the book for it!). Then, each student has their own clip that they put on the belt they have most recently earned. I also used the clip art to make these :) Other great ideas I saw on Pinterest: (Click on the picture to get to the pin.) And here are some other cool Recorder Karate pins that may peak your interest: Storage Ideas: Belt Ideas: Self-Assessment: Other assessment tools: How to use recorder karate with Recorder Express: Differentiation with SMARTBoards and iPads: Practicing tips for students: Organization and procedure tips: Procedure ideas: I would also recommend posting recorder rules somewhere in your room along with the fingering charts for the notes they have learned. Hope it was helpful to have all of these ideas in one place!! Feel free to comment with any ideas you have used--I would love to hear them!

This question was posted the other day and I thought it may be something that others were interested in: I am starting Recorder Karate for the first time and looking for an idea pertaining to the belts that is more cost effective. I see you have yarn. Can you explain how you utilize the yarn as belts and what holds it into place? I hear you on cost effectiveness. My school started out at just under 600 total population and now we are at around 900. I have always used yarn for belts and honestly, I have not had to buy new yarn in the 6 years I have been doing recorder karate. When I first purchased the yarn, I stocked up (2 packages per color). Since I only use this with my 4/5 graders, it takes a while to go through. If you want to go the yarn route, I would buy the larger packages of yarn. JoAnn's/Michaels/Hobby Lobby coupons are great. I took several trips in order to get all the yarn I needed. You can also ask parents for donations. Since this isn't one of the more expensive items, I have had parents donate a package here or there. As far as tying the belts on, the kids just double knot them onto the end of their recorder. If they don't have their own, we staple them to their recorder karate packets. Another way that I save on yarn is by being very stern about not replacing lost belts. If they lost their string, they don't have to start back at that belt, they can continue on but I don't just hand out replacement belts. Instead they have to replay the belt for me and time for this is very limited because I always listen to students trying to earn new belts first. This policy seems to cut down on wasted yarn. My kids are in charge of cutting the belts but I have to be specific about the process. When we first start RK in 4th grade, I teach them all how to cut them to the right length. I use a bucket in my RK box as a measuring tool. Otherwise, you'll have to listen to "my belts too short"! :) Another way of doing this is by cutting the yarn ahead of time but I don't have the patience to sit and do that, so having the kids cut the belts works for me. Do you have any questions about recorder karate? I'm happy to share how I have made this work at my school.

High Shoals Elementary School Music Blog, Oconee County GA, Orff Music Instruction

The karate belt method can be used for any classroom instrument unit to motivate students to practice! If you use recorders in your classroom and want to encourage your students to get to their next belt color, these mini awards are a great way to do it! These mini awards are designed to be used with the first and second volume of the Recorder Karate series. INCLUDED: *Mini awards for each karate belt & each karate belt degree *Award cut size is 2.6" x 1.75" *Full color & printer-friendly options for belt color *PDF files for easy printing *Digital Terms of Use for use during COVID-19

As promised – here is my downloadable Recorder Karate Tracker! Amaze your colleagues and motivate your students with the Recorder Karate Tracker. Now, I didn’t come up with this idea …

So, I have seen a TON of good ideas on Pinterest for Recorder Karate. So, I thought to myself, why not compile them all in one place? :) Here's some info on Recorder Karate and also some cool ideas I found. What is Recorder Karate? Basically, students master certain songs on their recorder to earn "karate belts." It's a great idea and comes from this book. What adaptations have people made? I personally have found that you need a lot more than just the songs in the Recorder Karate book to help them be successful recorder players. They need more in-between songs to help them learn the notes. I have also found that I don't necessarily agree with the sequencing of the original book--shouldn't the black belt be harder than the blue belt? So, this year I've taken Recorder Resource 1 and adapted it for my school to help there be a more sequential order. Yes, it's a bit more expensive, but it's very sequential and it comes with Power Points that include the backgrounds to the songs. I also like that it has a version of the songs with "kids notes." Basically, the note name is written inside of the note head. I think this is great for students who are getting additional help in reading--we should be differentiating our instruction in the music classroom too! So here is my version: I made my own spots in the Recorder Resource Kit packet that are the required songs for each belt. I pasted a cute little karate kid next to each song that is required for a belt. Speaking of belts . . . What do you use for Recorder Karate belts? I used to use thin ribbons, but they often fell off of the recorder, and it took a long time to cut them all. And I still hadn't found a good way to organize them. I had also seen people use yarn--which is fine, but I wanted it to look a bit more fashionable :) So then I saw this beautiful post on Pinterest about using loom bands and wahlah: An organized assortment of Recorder Karate belts for $15. It will last me for YEARS before I have to get more. AND they are latex-free!! Here's what they look like on the recorders: Pretty sweet! And I also bought silver, striped, and glow-in-the-dark belts for my students to earn if they get to their black belt. FYI--I also keep track of their progress in a notebook, so they can't just go home and add some loom bands to their recorder . . . And now the biggest question--HOW TO SHOW THEIR PROGRESS!! This is where there are lots of great ideas on Pinterest. Here is my set-up for this year: Each belt has it's own colored paper in the back of the room (with a cute clip art from the original Recorder Karate book--if you want that clip art, it's worth buying the book for it!). Then, each student has their own clip that they put on the belt they have most recently earned. I also used the clip art to make these :) Other great ideas I saw on Pinterest: (Click on the picture to get to the pin.) And here are some other cool Recorder Karate pins that may peak your interest: Storage Ideas: Belt Ideas: Self-Assessment: Other assessment tools: How to use recorder karate with Recorder Express: Differentiation with SMARTBoards and iPads: Practicing tips for students: Organization and procedure tips: Procedure ideas: I would also recommend posting recorder rules somewhere in your room along with the fingering charts for the notes they have learned. Hope it was helpful to have all of these ideas in one place!! Feel free to comment with any ideas you have used--I would love to hear them!

I was working on this post before the craziness of the end-of-the-year began and realized I never finished! Even though we have been on Summer break for awhile now (woohooo!), I thought I'd go ahead and tell you a little bit about our 5th grade recorder program. Each Spring, 5th graders have the privilege of participating in the "Recorder Karate" program. It is one of my favorite units to teach because the students love it so much! Recorder Karate is a motivational recorder program that encourage students to learn to play the soprano recorder with proper technique while allowing them to work at their own pace and be rewarded for their hard work. They receive a packet of music that has 9 pieces that are increasing in difficulty. Each week we will work together as a class or in small groups to learn the pieces in their packet. Students may work ahead as far as they would like and when they feel confident, they may "pass off" a song to earn a "belt." The "belts" for the Recorder Karate program are colored yarn tied to the end of their recorder. Each time they earn a belt, they will sign their name on the corresponding poster in the hallway outside of the music room. This is a great way to track their progress and show growth. Their overall goal is to earn their black belt by the end of our unit in May. Of course, many of them do not get all the way to the black belt level. However, even if they do not earn all 9 belts, they can set their own individual goal and still show growth and feel accomplished. Here are the posters at the end of the year... Our black belt students (or the "ninja squad" as they like to call themselves): After each of these students earned their black belt, I took a picture of them in front of the black belt poster and their picture was shown on the morning announcements the next day. The students really enjoyed the special recognition and the whole school kept up with who had earned their black belt! The black belt students also get to perform a special song together at their 5th grade graduation ceremony. Although listening to "Hot Cross Buns" 46823796734 times is exhausting, I look forward to Recorder Karate all year and so do my students! ;) It is very rewarding to see many of them begin to realize their musical potential and go on to play instruments in middle school band.

I have many Special Education students in my classes and created these iconic sheets to accompany our Recorder Karate unit in 5th Grade. I have only included the first 5 belts since the songs after that are at a level I am not sure they will be capable of. Hope you enjoy!

So, I have seen a TON of good ideas on Pinterest for Recorder Karate. So, I thought to myself, why not compile them all in one place? :) Here's some info on Recorder Karate and also some cool ideas I found. What is Recorder Karate? Basically, students master certain songs on their recorder to earn "karate belts." It's a great idea and comes from this book. What adaptations have people made? I personally have found that you need a lot more than just the songs in the Recorder Karate book to help them be successful recorder players. They need more in-between songs to help them learn the notes. I have also found that I don't necessarily agree with the sequencing of the original book--shouldn't the black belt be harder than the blue belt? So, this year I've taken Recorder Resource 1 and adapted it for my school to help there be a more sequential order. Yes, it's a bit more expensive, but it's very sequential and it comes with Power Points that include the backgrounds to the songs. I also like that it has a version of the songs with "kids notes." Basically, the note name is written inside of the note head. I think this is great for students who are getting additional help in reading--we should be differentiating our instruction in the music classroom too! So here is my version: I made my own spots in the Recorder Resource Kit packet that are the required songs for each belt. I pasted a cute little karate kid next to each song that is required for a belt. Speaking of belts . . . What do you use for Recorder Karate belts? I used to use thin ribbons, but they often fell off of the recorder, and it took a long time to cut them all. And I still hadn't found a good way to organize them. I had also seen people use yarn--which is fine, but I wanted it to look a bit more fashionable :) So then I saw this beautiful post on Pinterest about using loom bands and wahlah: An organized assortment of Recorder Karate belts for $15. It will last me for YEARS before I have to get more. AND they are latex-free!! Here's what they look like on the recorders: Pretty sweet! And I also bought silver, striped, and glow-in-the-dark belts for my students to earn if they get to their black belt. FYI--I also keep track of their progress in a notebook, so they can't just go home and add some loom bands to their recorder . . . And now the biggest question--HOW TO SHOW THEIR PROGRESS!! This is where there are lots of great ideas on Pinterest. Here is my set-up for this year: Each belt has it's own colored paper in the back of the room (with a cute clip art from the original Recorder Karate book--if you want that clip art, it's worth buying the book for it!). Then, each student has their own clip that they put on the belt they have most recently earned. I also used the clip art to make these :) Other great ideas I saw on Pinterest: (Click on the picture to get to the pin.) And here are some other cool Recorder Karate pins that may peak your interest: Storage Ideas: Belt Ideas: Self-Assessment: Other assessment tools: How to use recorder karate with Recorder Express: Differentiation with SMARTBoards and iPads: Practicing tips for students: Organization and procedure tips: Procedure ideas: I would also recommend posting recorder rules somewhere in your room along with the fingering charts for the notes they have learned. Hope it was helpful to have all of these ideas in one place!! Feel free to comment with any ideas you have used--I would love to hear them!

I was working on this post before the craziness of the end-of-the-year began and realized I never finished! Even though we have been on Summer break for awhile now (woohooo!), I thought I'd go ahead and tell you a little bit about our 5th grade recorder program. Each Spring, 5th graders have the privilege of participating in the "Recorder Karate" program. It is one of my favorite units to teach because the students love it so much! Recorder Karate is a motivational recorder program that encourage students to learn to play the soprano recorder with proper technique while allowing them to work at their own pace and be rewarded for their hard work. They receive a packet of music that has 9 pieces that are increasing in difficulty. Each week we will work together as a class or in small groups to learn the pieces in their packet. Students may work ahead as far as they would like and when they feel confident, they may "pass off" a song to earn a "belt." The "belts" for the Recorder Karate program are colored yarn tied to the end of their recorder. Each time they earn a belt, they will sign their name on the corresponding poster in the hallway outside of the music room. This is a great way to track their progress and show growth. Their overall goal is to earn their black belt by the end of our unit in May. Of course, many of them do not get all the way to the black belt level. However, even if they do not earn all 9 belts, they can set their own individual goal and still show growth and feel accomplished. Here are the posters at the end of the year... Our black belt students (or the "ninja squad" as they like to call themselves): After each of these students earned their black belt, I took a picture of them in front of the black belt poster and their picture was shown on the morning announcements the next day. The students really enjoyed the special recognition and the whole school kept up with who had earned their black belt! The black belt students also get to perform a special song together at their 5th grade graduation ceremony. Although listening to "Hot Cross Buns" 46823796734 times is exhausting, I look forward to Recorder Karate all year and so do my students! ;) It is very rewarding to see many of them begin to realize their musical potential and go on to play instruments in middle school band.

Another addition to our growing Seventeen T-Shirt collection: Seventeen's recorded breaking album, FML, with this awesome t-shirt! Each shirt has an OT13 photo along with individual shots of the members split up by unit. Designed for carats, this shirt is the perfect way to express your fangirl (or fanboy!) status. We make all of our shirts on premium t-shirt. They are made of a thicker than average 6.7 oz 100% cotton so even the white shirts won't be overly see through. The material is soft and has a boxy fit, not too loose but not too tight either. Size up for an oversized look or consider sizing down for a more fitted look. ---Care Instructions--- Machine wash on warm while inside out in cold water. Tumble dry on low is ok, although air dry is preferred to extend the life of the design.

*** You save $6.00 on this ULTIMATE BUNDLE instead of purchasing each product individually! You also save if you purchase this instead of purchasing all the other recorder bundles separately! ***The karate belt method can be used for any classroom instrument unit to motivate students to practice! If...

For the sake of organization, I created a new seating chart that I implemented in January. This one allows me to organize grades much more ...

Teaching Recorder: 4 ways to structure instruction. Organized Chaos. Different ways to structure your class, especially when you're using a curriculum like Recorder Karate or something similar that encourages self-paced learning.

It is finally spring break. I can’t tell you how long I have been counting down to this vacation. Spring break is the perfect thing to prepare me for the craziness of testing season. It is…

A blog about elementary music education.

It's easy to figure out what songs, notes, and skills I need to learn to earn new belts with this simple Recorder Karate hallway display!

So, I have seen a TON of good ideas on Pinterest for Recorder Karate. So, I thought to myself, why not compile them all in one place? :) ...

Just a quick post with a simple solution. If you use the Recorder Karate system like I do, then maybe you will like these cheap, easy “karate belts.” My students like to display them on…

So, I have seen a TON of good ideas on Pinterest for Recorder Karate. So, I thought to myself, why not compile them all in one place? :) Here's some info on Recorder Karate and also some cool ideas I found. What is Recorder Karate? Basically, students master certain songs on their recorder to earn "karate belts." It's a great idea and comes from this book. What adaptations have people made? I personally have found that you need a lot more than just the songs in the Recorder Karate book to help them be successful recorder players. They need more in-between songs to help them learn the notes. I have also found that I don't necessarily agree with the sequencing of the original book--shouldn't the black belt be harder than the blue belt? So, this year I've taken Recorder Resource 1 and adapted it for my school to help there be a more sequential order. Yes, it's a bit more expensive, but it's very sequential and it comes with Power Points that include the backgrounds to the songs. I also like that it has a version of the songs with "kids notes." Basically, the note name is written inside of the note head. I think this is great for students who are getting additional help in reading--we should be differentiating our instruction in the music classroom too! So here is my version: I made my own spots in the Recorder Resource Kit packet that are the required songs for each belt. I pasted a cute little karate kid next to each song that is required for a belt. Speaking of belts . . . What do you use for Recorder Karate belts? I used to use thin ribbons, but they often fell off of the recorder, and it took a long time to cut them all. And I still hadn't found a good way to organize them. I had also seen people use yarn--which is fine, but I wanted it to look a bit more fashionable :) So then I saw this beautiful post on Pinterest about using loom bands and wahlah: An organized assortment of Recorder Karate belts for $15. It will last me for YEARS before I have to get more. AND they are latex-free!! Here's what they look like on the recorders: Pretty sweet! And I also bought silver, striped, and glow-in-the-dark belts for my students to earn if they get to their black belt. FYI--I also keep track of their progress in a notebook, so they can't just go home and add some loom bands to their recorder . . . And now the biggest question--HOW TO SHOW THEIR PROGRESS!! This is where there are lots of great ideas on Pinterest. Here is my set-up for this year: Each belt has it's own colored paper in the back of the room (with a cute clip art from the original Recorder Karate book--if you want that clip art, it's worth buying the book for it!). Then, each student has their own clip that they put on the belt they have most recently earned. I also used the clip art to make these :) Other great ideas I saw on Pinterest: (Click on the picture to get to the pin.) And here are some other cool Recorder Karate pins that may peak your interest: Storage Ideas: Belt Ideas: Self-Assessment: Other assessment tools: How to use recorder karate with Recorder Express: Differentiation with SMARTBoards and iPads: Practicing tips for students: Organization and procedure tips: Procedure ideas: I would also recommend posting recorder rules somewhere in your room along with the fingering charts for the notes they have learned. Hope it was helpful to have all of these ideas in one place!! Feel free to comment with any ideas you have used--I would love to hear them!

Are you looking for some new bright large recorder unit/program/incentive visuals to correspond with your recorder unit/program/leveled system? These adorable LARGE visual aids/posters are just what you need!! These posters were made in Word and converted to PDF on LEDGER size paper 11 x 17. Therefore, you will need to make sure your printer and paper are set accordingly before printing. See tip below. HELPFUL PRINTING TIPS: This resource was created with the intention of being a visual aide for your classroom. Therefore, it was created at the size of 11 x 17 (Ledger size paper). Be sure you have your printer properties and paper set accordingly before printing. If you chose not to print at these measurements, you can scale down to meet smaller paper sizes but make sure you set printer and paper settings accordingly. Come follow and/or subscribe to my blog at.... Mrs. Kuchta's Corner, An Elementary Music Wonderland! Check out and “like” my FACEBOOK page too at… FACEBOOK PAGE - Mrs. Kuchta's Corner Elementary Music Wonderland

The karate belt method can be used for any classroom instrument unit to motivate students to practice! If you use recorders in your classroom and want to encourage your students to get to their next belt color, these mini awards are a great way to do it! These mini awards are designed to be used with the first volume of the Recorder Karate series. INCLUDED: *Mini awards for each karate belt *Award cut size is 2.6" x 1.75" *Full color & printer-friendly options for belt color *PDF file for easy printing *Digital Terms of Use for use during COVID-19

I started Recorder Karate a few weeks ago with my 5s and 6s. I thought I would share the songs that I use for each belt. Below is a copy of...