What can we expect in class?

Forte Forest classes are playful, inviting, exciting, engaging, and highly educational.  Children participate in creative movement, active singing games, dramatizations of stories and songs, traditional folk dances from all around the world, and listening activities to music of all types.  This helps to stretch their creative muscles, increase their self-confidence, develop speech and language skills, and form lasting friendships.

A typical class might include:

• Welcome song/Mixer activity
• Children’s singing game
• Traditional folk dance from another culture
• Silly songs to encourage children to sing
• Creative movement activity, often with scarves or some type of prop
• Playing children’s instruments
• Improvising or creating patterns, lyrics, or rhythms
• Songs to reinforce numeracy and literacy skills (especially in preschool classes)
• Activity to encourage interaction and cooperating with others

The environment of class is always playful, inviting, and accepting.  Music should never feel stressful or scary for children.  Students are not pushed to participate in an activity if they do not feel ready and bullying, teasing, or laughing at others who “mess up” or do something “wrong” is not tolerated. Children are not assessed for their musical ability as class is meant to be an experience and opportunity for growth, not perfection.