Welcome to the Forte teaching community! Read on for info about being booked for a Trial Lesson.
Forte has students from around the world coming to find an online teacher. If you have a public-facing profile live on the site (also referred to as Forte Connect), students will be able to review your profile and reach out for a Trial Lesson.
Step 1: A student requests a Trial Lesson
Students will select a Trial Lesson date and time that works for them based on the Trial Lesson availability you entered into the Forte system (in your Schedule Configuration settings - accessed from your Teaching Profiles section in the Teaching Hub). Once they've selected a time for a Trial Lesson, you will receive an email from Forte (info@fortelessons.com) confirming that a new student has reached out to meet with you. This email will contain the student's name, as well as the date and time of the booked Trial Lesson.
Need to update your Trial Lesson availability? No problem!
Click on Schedule in the left-hand navigation menu, then click on Schedule Configuration, and finally click on Trial Lesson Availability to customize your calendar in the Display Hours, Preferences, and Terms sections.
Step 2: Chat with your student
Now that the student has connected with you, you can chat with them using Forte's Chat feature, and you will see them listed on your roster of students. On Forte, all written communication between a teacher and a student should happen via Forte Chat, not outside of the platform.
Click on the Forte chat icon (next to the student in the This Week section) to confirm the date and time of the Trial Lesson with your new prospective student and welcome them to the Forte learning community.
Step 3: Meeting with the Student
When it's time for the new student's Trial Lesson, you will connect with them on Forte by clicking on the Enter Studio button next to their name in your Student section OR from the This Week section. The initial lesson length will depend on the Trial Lesson time you've indicated in your profile.
Step 4: During the Trial Lesson
Think carefully about what you would like to accomplish in your Trial Lesson. This will be your chance to figure out if it's a great student/teacher pairing and to discuss important info like your teaching style, studio expectations, and (most importantly!) an ongoing lesson schedule.
As always, for the best lesson experience, please ensure your browser and operating system are up to date.
Learn more about devices and settings for the best Forte experience here:
Forte Supported Devices and Browsers, and Recommended Setup
Step 5: After the Trial Lesson
If you both had a great Trial Lesson experience and have decided to move forward with recurring lessons, you now have a new student – congratulations!
You will add the student's lessons to your Forte Schedule. On Forte, teachers schedule the lessons with their students. That way, you have complete control over your own teaching schedule.
Access your calendar from the calendar icon in the top right of the Teaching Hub.
Add a lesson by clicking on a day/time slot on your calendar and selecting your student. Enter the lesson duration and your lesson fee.
The lesson date and time are automatically populated based on where you clicked on the calendar.
Important: The lesson rate you set represents how much you will be paid. Students will see a higher rate that includes Forte's fee.
Toggle on the "Make recurring lesson" toggle if this lesson will be on-going (select weekly or bi-weekly). Click Create lesson/Create recurring lesson to add the lesson(s) to your calendar and to your student's list of upcoming lessons in their Forte Learning Hub.
When the lesson/recurring lesson series has been booked, your student will receive an email confirming the lesson details.
Read full instructions here: Add Lessons to Forte Schedule