Recorder

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My son's school arranges for each child to buy his own recorder for $4 or so. I think they also provide new recorders to any child whose family doesn't pay, using PTA funds.

Same at our school.

[Anonymous]

I bought my dd her own but she got it mixed up at school. She is now blowing into a recorder that isn't hers.

[Anonymous]

We had to pay but the school then distributed and washed the recorders. My son brings it home from time to time when there are upcoming concerts and he has to practice a part. There are some mild teethmarks sure but it isn't bad and my son said the teacher taught them techniques and also how they shouldn't be biting on the mouthpiece. It didn't smell bad either. With the amount we paid they will rotate with recorders, fife, ukelele, bongos etc.

[Anonymous]

That is just gross. Recorders are not expensive and there is no reason for kids not to have their own (as mine did at 3 different schools).

[Anonymous]

Our school gave the option of buying (think they were about $5) or borrowing. I said no to buying. Why pay $5 for something that's already there?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That is just gross. Recorders are not expensive and there is no reason for kids not to have their own (as mine did at 3 different schools).

0548 here : Yes it maybe a little gross but it is not the $$ issue. All kids will eventually go through band and if they play a wind instrument, the same "gross" issue will happen too, right? I did think about saliva and teethmarks on the mouthpiece etc but if washed, that should be fine, no? You can't wash a trumpet or a clarinet too correct? And like I mentioned, its also a discipline issue and my kids music teacher did teach them not to bite the recorders, keep it clean by washing it after playing, not eating before playing etc. My nieces have their own recorders but they could go from eating a cookie, playing on their recorder (and all the bits probably goes into it!), put it aside and pick it up to play again a couple of hours later! They do not even wash the recorder! True! It is their own recorder but if not taught hygiene, it could really be worse!

[Anonymous]

We use the school's recorders. I think they sterilize it in some solution and they wash it after each class too in the school's high temperature washer. So while it's clean, I think the mouthpiece looks a little chewed but my daughters don't seem to mind. All kids chew their recorders anyway and I think my daughters did that too. So no big deal.

[Anonymous]

We bought our own but threw it away each year because it just looks gross just after one year. Maybe my kid is a little chewer but who can use a recorder with teethmarks especially if chewed by someone else?

[Anonymous]

In our school, they request that each child buys two - comes as two in the PTA kit for 3rd grade. One is left at school the entire year and the second one is left at home for practicing. No sharing.

[Anonymous]

my daughter played in recorder band. With the soprano, we bought our own and she kept one in school and one at home. but after two weeks, they swapped her to play the alto recorder and she used the schools. It was old with bitemarks from I guess kids from the years before but it was pretty clean. We had the chance to bring it home, soak it, scrub it, remove the plastic piece between the mouthpiece (don't know what its called) and cleaned out any gunk if any. After that it was assigned to her for the whole term so it was ok. So maybe before you run out and buy, wait a little to see how fast your kid learns!

[Anonymous]

We use the school's recorder. Looks pretty decent and my ds thinks it ok, clean and all

[Anonymous]

I always used a communal recorder in school, most kids did. Only one or two had their own recorder. We used to go into the recorder class and pick up a recorder that another kid from the previous class had just put down and play it, I never even wiped them and they were pretty smelly and had spit in them etc. I never worried about it and I never got anything from the germs!

[Anonymous]

We've been in many school systems, and everyone always had their own recorders.

Recorder is not taught well, as a rule. First thing kids should learn is that you never put your teeth on one. (Though I know kids like to gnaw on things.)

[Anonymous]

It's the same for us. We bought our kids their own and using the schools smelly chewed up one is like a "punishment" if they left it at home. But that said, you are right too. All kids like to gnaw on things! All my three kids chewed their recorders to bits and just last week, I just threw them out! They only had recorder for like 6 months and it look as if they hadn't eaten for days. I am more concerned of the plastic they are ingesting! In my days, remember our teacher really teaching us to not let the teeth touch the recorder and how to wash it and keep it clean. My kids never did wash their recorder once! Guess they don't teach that now.

[Anonymous]

We don't view it as "punishment" and we were fine using the school's. Maybe we were lucky though the recorders were not brand new, it didn't look bad either. It was not badly gnawed on or did it smell bad.

Maybe it's the system the school puts in place. In our case, my dd was assigned the recorder and gets to keep it for the term. Maybe this way, she gets to "own" it and take care of it. I think she could have been the third or forth child to use it as there were maybe about two or three other names crossed out on the bag. But I think this way is better than just taking from the communal bin every week and not taking care of it. I think my daughter did wash her own recorder without me asking.

So I don't see any harm using the schools under this condition. We kinda treated it like our own.