Handbell Rules

Rules are very important to having a fun time playing bells as a primary.  Every time I use the bells with my primary I post the above image on the board and go over the rules with the kids in detail before I ever hand out a bell.  Without rules and the enforcement of those rules, playing bells can quickly descend into noisy chaos and frustration.  You can print your own rules to post here:

PDF of Rules

Frequently Asked Questions

How exactly do you use them? Do you just go through the music and pull out the notes that are in those chords?

People have different preferences for this.  Some like chords and some like a single line of notes.  I prefer a single line of notes.  This is mainly because having full chords seems like it would either make for very large charts or I would have to make the individual circles too small to see at the back of the primary room.

When I first started making charts I did a single line of notes from the harmony because that is what I saw other people doing online.  Eventually I switched to doing a single line of melody notes because the kids get really excited when they start to hear the song in their bells.  I sometimes still do harmony notes due to the melody being too complex for the kids on the bells or a desire to just do something different.

I lead the bell charts by pointing to each note with a telescoping pointer as it should be played.  I tell the kids to play their bells when I point to their circles.

I can picture Senior Primary doing really well with it, but how does it work with Junior?

I was initially very reluctant to try bells with Junior primary and saved them for Senior primary only.  After a while I relaxed and decided to try it with Junior too.  They did great with following the rules and really enjoyed them.  Of course they didn't hit every note and that's okay. (More on that in the next question)

What about the kids who don't have a bell? Do you switch quickly to let everyone get a turn? I feel like no one would get very good at it, but maybe that is just how it goes?

When we are just having fun in primary I give a bell to every other child.  We will generally sing through a verse twice (or sing two verses) and then switch so that kids who didn't have bells have one. Everyone gets a turn and enjoys it.  We don't get the bells down perfectly, but that's not why we are doing the bells.  We are doing the bells to have fun while we sing.  Bells are a great way to review because the kids love them and will happily sing the same song over and over again if they get a turn to play the bells.  Plus this way everyone gets to try different bells, which is fun too.  Even if it's not perfect it's still really fun and sounds cool.

When we are practicing to perform in sacrament meeting or elsewhere I make sure I have a bell available for everyone to use.*  I assign each child a bell before we ever start practicing and for a couple weeks everyone gets the same bell every time to practice.  This way they have a chance to learn their bells better.  

*I was fortunate to have a presidency member already own a set of bells inaddition to my own, so we had enough bells for everyone in senior to have on at once.  If you don't have that many you may want to rotate through smaller groups for performing.

Do you use them in the primary program?

I did not use them during my first program.  It was enough just getting ready for the program without having to figure out how to do the bells in a performance setting too. We did use the bells plenty during primary in the months leading up to the program as a fun way to review.  After the first program, when we had more time, we did learn a few Christmas songs and played the bells in sacrament a couple time in December and at the ward Christmas party.  After the program and before the new year is a great, low pressure time for the chorister and the kids to figure out how to play the bells in a performance setting.

For my second primary program we had a lot more experience with bells and had played them in sacrament several times.  We used them in our program as well.  Only Senior gets to perform with them.  I intend to write another blog post specifically about performing.   I'll include more info there.

What set did you buy? Where did you get them? 

A Guide to Buying Handbells

How many songs do you use them for?

I used the handbells to perform 2 to 4 songs a year, but their real value lies in review.  I would say 50 to 75% of the songs we worked on got reviewed using handbells at some point.

How loud are the handbells? Are they distracting to others in the building?

I regularly remind the kids to use a light touch when playing their bells as the sound is a lot nicer this way.  When played this way they are not particularly loud.  I never heard of the bells being disruptive to others in the building although I imagine the way the building is setup could affect this.

Go here to read more about the rules I use when doing handbells in primary.

Buying Handbells

I frequently get asked questions about buying bells and where I got mine, so I'm going to answer those questions, both about my bells and thoughts for others considering buying bells

Which bells do you have, and where did you buy them?

I own the full Kids Play brand range of bells from low G to high G with all the sharps in between.  I purchased them at Handbell World along with two 13 note carrying cases for them.  When I was in the market, Handbell World was the best deal.  Altogether I spent about $200.

We purchased the full set because playing handbells at Christmas time was a tradition my husband and I wanted to have with our children.  We wanted the full range for playing songs.  We ended up buying our bells a couple years ahead of schedule when I was asked to lead the children's weekly music program in our LDS congregation.  We purchased them earlier than planned so I could use them with the children at church.

How many bells should I buy?  Do I need to buy sharps?

This is a tough question to answer. This will depend on what you want to do with your bells and what your budget is.  As I mentioned I bought my bells earlier than planned to use during children's music time at church.  It turned out that another person who works with the children's program also had a couple sets of bells.  While I have the full 25 note range, she has two sets of the basic 8 bell diatonic set and one set of the 5 sharps that go with that set.  She does not have the extended range bells above high C or below middle C like I do.  

There are advantages to both our sets.  My set allows us to play any song we want due to having range.  Her set is more limited in the songs we can play, but she has more of the most commonly used bells.  That means more kids can be playing at any given time.  Since I have two full octaves, I will sometimes hand out the notes for the song in both octaves.  We play the song in two octaves together.  In this way I get both range and a lot of kids playing at a time.

So, which bells should you buy? Only you can say, but here are some thoughts.  If you want to be able to play bells just by themselves, range is more important than if you are singing with the bells. This is why I bought the full set, so my family could play songs together.  You'll notice if a bell is missing if it's only the bells playing.  If you are singing with the bells, the bells can be an accent to the singing and it is less noticeable if there are bells missing.  You can get away with not having the full range.

I am linking Groth music for these bells and including their price because their site is easily navigable and they seem a reasonable price.  I recommend shopping around to find the best price. I'm including the prices as of the day I am posting this to give and idea of cost.  The prices may have changed.

8 note diatonic set...................$36.95

5 note sharps add on...............$28.00

13 note set...............................$62.95

20 note set...............................$97.50

25 note set.............................$136.50

Start with the basic 8 note diatonic set.  What to buy if your budget allows for more?

If your budget is limited to two sets but you want to be able have as many kids play bells at a time as possible, buy a second 8 note diatonic set.  Granted you won't have a lot of freedom in your song choice, but these 8 bells see the most use and will allow you to have the most kids playing at once.  Check out my index of songs that are no sharps required.

If your budget is limited to two sets but you are more interested in the range of songs you can play, get 13 note set that includes the sharps that goes with the basic set.

If your budget is more expansive and you want as many people playing as possible, get the basic 8 note diatonic set and the 13 note set that includes the sharps that goes with the basic set. This way you'll have 2 of each of the basic 8 notes that get played the most plus one of each of the sharps that go with them, expanding the songs you can play.

If your budget is more expansive and you want the best range of songs you can play, get the 20 note set or full full 25 note set.