Submitted by Randi Davis, Grants Pass, Oregon

Idea posted June 13, 2006

I have tried various Recorder Karate belt ideas, but the one that works for me is to attach a small chain with a clasp (sold in craft stores) to the bell of the recorder by a tiny ponytail rubber band (sold in the hair section of most drug stores in bags of hundreds). As the children earn their "belts" (our "belts" are plastic beads) they unclasp the chain, slip on the bead, and close the chain back up. The chains hold a good number of beads beyond the basic colors and look very cool hanging off the end of the recorder. We store our recorders in numbered tube socks, which keep them from bumping one another and keep the germs off.