1. Washoe County School District Violin Unit “How-To” for Teachers
Presented by
Danielle Cates &
David Navarette

2. Taking Instrument Out of the Case
Always hold instrument securely, entire hand closed around the neck
Have a policy for your classroom
-Leave cases open when the violin is out or close and lock case after getting violin out
-Do not leave cases closed that are not locked (by latches or a zipper)
-When you put away violin, lock the latches as soon as you close the case
-All this is to avoid forgetting to lock it, standing up, and having the instrument fall out onto the floor
Taking out the bow
-Unlock first
-Slide out (do not pull up!)
-Putting the bow away
-Tip first
-Lock in place

3. Parts of the Violin Important parts to cover: -Bridge (don’t touch!)
-End Button
-Neck
-Scroll
-Shoulder (Upper Bout)
-Sound Hole / Forte Hole / F Hole
-Pegs (don’t touch!)
-Fine Tuners/Tailpiece
-Strings
-Fingerboard
-Chinrest/Jawrest

4. Violin Postures Guitar Position Playing Position Things to watch for:
Posture Set-up Every Time
-“Alligator bites the shoulder/sandwich”
-Violin on your head
-Violin in your ear
-Slide straight down
-Grab with the side of your jaw
>Note: chin does NOT touch the chinrest 
-Right thumb on the SIDE of the fingerboard
-Wrist straight (Dragon Story)
-Follow posture instructions from guitar position
Things to watch for:
-Bridge is visible (not getting bumped by hand or arm)
-Plucking over the fingerboard
-Fingers standing up
>Finger tips pinch the string
>Middle of the finger on the tape
-Thumb pad on back of neck
>“slide back until you touch the scroll”

5. Posture Pictures Pizzicato Fingerboard Wrist
Thumb on side of fingerboard. Don’t pluck where you bow 
Fingerboard
Fingers should stand up for best tone (keep knuckles high)
Wrist
Keep it straight, try not to let hand touch the violin – only thumb and fingers may touch

6. Important Parts to Cover
Parts of the Bow
Important Parts to Cover
-Frog -Screw (Tension Screw) -Tip -Grip (Winding) -Stick -Horsehair (don’t touch!) -Ferrule (“clip”)

7. Bow Care Taking the bow out of the case Tightening and Loosening
1. Look at the bow (put it back the same way)
2. Unlock
3. Pick up the frog 1 inch only
4. Slide the bow out of the case until you can see the entire bow
5. Bow on your head (quiet sign)
Rosining
Rosin bow every time you play. You should see the rosin on the hairs. “Scrub, scrub, scrub”
Righty Tighty - Lefty Loosey
Bow is loose when in the case (hairs should be nearly touching the middle of the stick)
Bow is tight when out of the case
-Hairs are about one pinky width away from the middle of the stick
-Tighten BEFORE rosining too!
Only takes about 3-4 turns to tighten or loosen the bow
-If a finger other than the pinky can fit between the hairs and middle of the stick, you’ve gone TOO FAR.
“Loosen Your Bow Whenever You Go!”

8. Bow Hold
Beginner Bow Hold
“Turkey Sandwich” Style 
1. Tip of the thumb on the clip/ferrule
2. Middle knuckles across the stick
3. Little space between each finger
Poke space! Check good hand posture by poking between each finger.
4. Keep fingers straight, for now
Fingers will relax as they get used to the bow hold and build those hand muscles 

9. Bow Exercises Without the Violin With the Violin Lizard Crawl
On the string
-Encourage students to use middle to upper half of
bow (helps relax their shoulder and elbow)
-Discourage playing at the frog (can stiffen the arm)
-Keep right shoulder and elbow low and relaxed
-Adjust arm height for various strings (escalator)
Teeter-Totters
-Tilt bow across strings by raising/lowering the arm
Bow under violin
-Can put fingers on the string and bow in the crook
of their left elbow (upside down – wood on elbow))
Bow in the air
-Can put fingers on the string
-Good to check correct bow direction
Col Legno Bowing
-Hold bow upside down (hairs face the ceiling)
-Tap strings (gently!) with the upper half of the bow
stick
-Do not “bow” with the wood, just tap up and down for
a cool trick and rhythm practice
Lizard Crawl
-Crawl down and up the bow using only fingers
-Builds muscle, helps students familiarize with the weight of the bow
Bow Charades
-Copy Teacher (hat, dolphin, beard, rocket)
-Surprise bow hold checks; goal is to keep your bow hold the whole time
Bowing on the shoulder
-Use this for “Elbow Swing” practice
-“Open like a door” use left index finger on inside elbow to check for swinging motion.
-Rhythm exercises
-Bow upside down (wood side)

10. Care/Maintenance/Tuning
Caring for the Violins
Tuning
Keep out of extreme heat or cold
Do not set them down on their bridge
“If its not in your hand, its in the case!”
Store sponges on top of the violin, so it blocks the bow from falling on violin when case in closed.
Always clean rosin off violins after use – do not let it sit on there!
Body of violin
Strings
Under fingerboard
Do NOT clean bow hair
Teachers should use fine tuners whenever possible
-If they get turned too far to the right, they can damage the top of the violin. Keep an eye out! If this happens, loosen them and use the peg.
-Righty-Tighty to raise the pitch
-Lefty-Loosey to lower the pitch
If you are comfortable using the peg, only do so if fine tuners are not sufficient
-School strings teacher should handle string replacements
Pluck/bow string constantly if you are using peg
-Better to hear the string so you don’t over-tighten
-If you are using the wrong peg – you’ll know it!
Slowly loosen each peg before tightening it, push in slowly as you turn it away from you to tighten. Don’t over-tighten or turn too quickly, this will break the string!

11. Classroom Management Bow on the head for quiet sign
Copy teacher’s bow / charades to get their attention
Students in rest position when not playing
-like guitar position, left hand on the violin shoulder, right hand “cradles the baby”
-If they do this correctly, nothing will be touching the strings (no plucking sounds!)
Always start beginners sitting on the floor.
-They may stand as they become more comfortable holding their violins securely.

12. Need help during your Violin Unit?
Ask your strings teacher or contact:
Danielle Cates
David Navarette
Good, low-cost websites to suggest to students who want to play violin