Recorder Karate Idea Bank

I wanted to share some ideas that I came up with in teaching notes and fingerings to beginners.

I have a group of kids who just had trouble distinguishing B from G. I told them about the G clef, to no avail. I suddenly remembered a story I had read once about a band student who had taken his trumpet out and had noticed birds sitting on power lines, looking for all the world-like notes on the staff. He actually played the pattern!

So, now I tell the kids, "The Bee sits in the middle of the power lines." Now they remember. Also, in remembering the fingering for B, I tell them to "pinch the Bee so it doesn't sting you."