If you are going to see your Mrs. Mullinax in the next few days, bring the instrument to school. Sending Mrs. Mullinax an email in advance is helpful. If you need to replace a string on a school bass, please contact Mrs. Mullinax. The information on this page does not apply to string bass.
If you are not going to see your teacher for a while, your parent can decide if visiting a local music store is appropriate.
If you need to replace the string at home, I recommend purchasing online from Southwest Strings or Shar Music. D'Addario Prelude strings are the popular choice for students, and D'Addario Dominant strings are the popular "step-up" choice for students. If this is your first time changing a string at home, consider buying two strings so you have one as a back-up. You are now aware that it is easy to break a string.
Watch the videos below. If you are going to change the string at home, watch the video again with a parent.
This video is also helpful for changing a violin or viola string.
You can skip step 7 from this video. (Adjusting the angle of the peg. Leave that for your teacher.)
This video is also helpful for changing a viola or cello string.
You will notice that a new string goes out of tune very quickly at first while the string stretches into place. If you have ever worn leggings or tights, it is similar to how you have to occasionally tug on your leggings to stretch them into place. Review the Tuning Page for help.