The Practice Tree

Learning any musical instrument takes time and commitment and encouraging children to practise can be very difficult, especially with the many different demands on their time. At Forte we try to assist parents by supporting and encouraging regular practice. 

The Forte Practice Tree is an excellent motivational tool for getting children to practise each week and to engage parents in their learning and musical development.

At the beginning of each term, students are given a 1-50 practice chart to record their weekly practices. For every 25 practices they get to put a leaf, with their name on, on the practice tree in the reception area. When they reach 50 practices, they put a flower on the tree and get to pick a highly prized Lego man to take home!

At this point, their teacher also gives them a '50 and beyond' practice chart. For 75 practices, students put something seasonal on the tree, such as a beachball for summer, squirrel for autumn etc.  For 100 practices in a term, they get to pick a second Lego man and (for this term leading up to Christmas) a Christmas bauble on the tree.

At the end of each term the names are removed from the tree and one is picked at random as part of our prize draw. The winner is rewarded with a voucher - this is usually for a family day activity to reward the whole family for their efforts and support, with a choice of activities from bowling to paintballing. Of course, the more practices achieved in a term, the more leaves are rewarded on the Practice Tree, which gives a better chance of winning the prize!

The winner is notified at the end of term and sent their voucher via email.

Please do use the Practice Tree as part of your strategy to encourage your child to set aside time to practise throughout the week – you’ll be surprised how motivating colouring a square in on a practice chart can be!