If you are going to make a full-payment and purchase an instrument, I suggest buying a wood instrument. If you are looking to rent, a plastic instrument will be just fine.

I highly suggest NOT purchasing an instrument online (please do not purchase instruments from Amazon or any grocery store) for a large variety of reasons. If you are insistent on purchasing an instrument without going through one of the recommended music stores, PLEASE reach out for help! I am MORE than willing to help in any way I can when purchasing instruments to ensure students have access to quality equipment. Students who are not on an appropriate equipment set-up WILL experience far less success than their peers.

Required Instrument Supplies & Accessories  

• A case of Vandoren 2 1/2 strength reeds. 7th/8th Graders will upgrade to 3 or 3.5 strength during the course of their middle school experience.

• A soft, clarinet cleaning cloth (polishing cloth) to wipe oil and fingerprints off the instrument's exterior

• A weighted clarinet swab (best is a small cloth on one end of a string with a weight at the other end)

• Cork Grease

• Access to a metronome/tuner to have at home (there are also many free apps available for mobile devices)

• A folding music stand for practicing at home. These will occasionally be required for performances during the year as well.

Looking to buy accessories online? These are very trusted sources:

• Music & Arts Woodwind Accessories

Required Class Instructional Materials

Students are required to bring the following items with them to band class, DAILY. Student's upkeep of materials and preparation for class are considered part of our "rehearsal etiquette" standard. Student's ACTIVE participation is tracked throughout the year.

• Grade-Level Fundamentals Book- Provided by the band program/ Mrs. Norwood  (RevTrack Program Fee)

6th Grade: Habits of a Successful Beginner Band Musician

8th Grade: Foundations for Superior Performance in Band

• 3-Ring Binder, with name CLEARLY labeled on the front cover

• 5 Tab Dividers (Warm-Up, Technique, Rhythm, Vocabulary, Repertoire)

• Page Protectors

• Pencils and Erasers- Please ensure students have a healthy supply of pencils and erasers!

Mrs. Norwood is only able to provide students with certain materials because of our annual Band Program Participation Fees. Thank you for having your participation fee paid for via RevTrack so we can get these items in your students hands (in addition to other vital operational resources) to use throughout the year!

• Students are provided their band banders in 6th grade only (or upon initially joining the SIMS Band Program). After students have been provided their initial set up, they are expected to have an identical binder set up with them daily in their continuing years. If binders become misplaced or destroyed- it is the student's responsibility to replace it and re-create an identical setup.