Recorder Karate 2.0: Tweaking the System

So if you have not yet heard of Recorder Karate, or you’ve heard of it but aren’t that familiar with it, then you want to start here:

Recorder Karate Resource Board

Today’s post deals with taking the Recorder Karate System and making some small changes to make it work better. Obviously, each teacher has things that work for them and you will have to pick the version that works best for you. But here are some of the tweaks that I have made this year:

Small Groups

I used to simply have the rule that you had to be seated unless you were doing a test. But I have had to amend that rule. I now also restrict the size of the groups. With my fifth grade this year we started with maximum groups of four. That was a bit much and so we pulled it back to three. NEXT year, I might even start in reverse. Work alone, prove to me you can follow the rules, THEN you get to have a partner. If you can handle working with others, THEN we can do groups of three, etc.

Line of Sight

Another small tweak I made to how students can sit around the room is telling them that wherever they choose to sit, they have to have a line of sight to me, where I can see them and they can see me. Cuts down A LOT of the monkey business/of-task behavior. I mean, as I’m writing this I’m thinking how obvious this step sounds and I’m surprised it took me so long to make it an official rule.

Rotating Schedule

I found that trying to teach new songs AND test for belts on the same day could leave us very pressed for time. I always felt like I was rushing through the teaching process in order to test as many people as possible. And the kids were not invested in it because they just wanted to hurry through and get to testing time. So I separated out my days. Every other week we test. On the other weeks, I teach new belts/skills. The kids have already blasted WAY farther along than in past years where I tried to do it the same day. I highly recommend this tweak!

Equal Opportunity to Test

So, the biggest issue that I have had in Recorder Karate is testing. There is one of me and a whole class full of kids. One thing I use is the Partner Test, where students can pass certain belts by playing for a partner instead of me (they can do this a limited amount of times). But I was still having a HUGE line of kids and I couldn’t always get to them before the end of class. Some kids complained that they never got to test because others always got to the line before them. Oh, and the off-task behavior that happened while standing in line was just another reason that something needed to change.

Then a friend told me how she was doing her testing. She would go down the class list and call students up one at a time. Even if they weren’t ready to test, they could come up and get help on a song. I adopted this approach and it is a million times better. Students wait until I call their name and then they have the choice to (1) come and test (2) come and get help or (3) pass. Sometimes, if I notice that they are getting behind the rest of the class, I may not give them the choice to pass. That way I can help move them forward. It feels so much more fair. And kids aren’t wasting time in line. They can work with others to help them with a belt or keep practicing so they are ready to pass, etc.

These small tweaks have made a huge difference in my students’ success rate and my classroom management. Do you have any suggestions on how you approach recorders and independent practice time? I would love hear them!

Also, if you are looking to start a Recorder Karate-style program, you can check out the one at my TPT Store: Recorder Martial Arts. Not only does it contain songs for students to play, but also resources such as my partner test, reflection logs for tracking progress and much more!

Best of luck!

Hi, I'm Erin!

I am an elementary music teacher, blogger and mom on a mission to make teaching and lesson planning easier for you. When I’m not working, you can find me at home enjoying life with my husband, daughter and two cats.

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