Lara Davis

lara@kidstunes.org

Location: North Carolina: Alamance County

Lara is not only a Kidstunes Instructor, she is also the Owner and Founder of the program! She holds a Bachelors Degree from the University of North Florida in Music Education and has worked with young children now for over 20 years! She began playing the piano at age 5, and also sings, plays recorder, ukulele, some guitar and percussion. Trained as both a musician and a dancer, she has performed with various groups, was crowned the Orange Park Mardi Gras Queen in 1988, and was first runner up in the 1989 Miss Clay County Pageant, a precursor to the talent-based Miss America Pageant. Attending the University of North Florida as a National Merit Scholar, she studied Music Education and Performance, and was a singer and accompanist for both the UNF Jazz Choir and UNF Chamber Singers. She has gained valuable experience serving in her church through music, as Choir pianist and assistant Director, Children’s Primary Music Leader, and Primary Classroom Teacher. Her background also includes extensive work with music and children in various areas, teaching for several years as a Music specialist at the Elementary level - including Pre-K, Varying Exceptionality classes, General Music for all levels through 5th grade, producing several musical productions, directing the 4th and 5th grade Chorus, and ongoing work as a private piano instructor and accompanist.

She has incorporated her experience and research into the very heart of the Kidstunes program, composing original music, continually updating the curriculum, and personally mentoring each Instructor. Lara has become a recognized name in her field, having presented at numerous National and Regional Conferences for various organizations in the fields of Early Childhood Education and Music, and her workshops have been accredited by the NC Division of Child Development. Having received her Level 2 certification with the Early Childhood Music and Movement Association (ECMMA), she currently serves on the National Board of Directors and presides as Vice President of the North Carolina Chapter. She is also a member of the American Orff-Schulwerk Association, the National Association for Music Education, and the North Carolina Association for the Education of Young Children. Lara's passion for her work shines through in all she does, and children love to have her as their teacher! She believes that continued growth in this field is essential, which is evidenced by her enthusiastic endeavors to spread her work as well as that of her peers. Without her, Kidstunes would not be what it is today!