Education & Classes in Weymouth

A guitar player for 32 years and a music retailer for more than two decades, Matt earned his musical chops alongside some of the best in the business. As a member of the band Adam Bomb in the late '80s, he shared the stage with notables including Dio, Stryper, Kings X, and Iron Maiden; today, the lineup of his current band, Machines of Grace, includes members of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. The showroom at his Weymouth music store reflects this lifelong dedication, with shelves lined with electric and acoustic guitars, name-brand amps, and all sorts of sheet music. The shop’s soundproofed practice room provides a sanctuary for private lessons from Matt’s handpicked staff of professionally trained guitarists, drummers, pianists, woodwinders, and singers, many of whom graduated from the harmonious halls of the Berklee College of Music.

Inside a historical downtown Quincy home that dates back to the 1850s, chef and baker Lisa Tavakoli crafts signature dishes and scones for guests to savor in a Victorian tearoom. Lisa gathers 8–15 students around her countertop to demonstrate how to top plates with multiple courses and drinks. She emphasizes the gustatory roles that all senses play, creating visually appealing dishes and steeping teas that appeal to the drinker's sixth sense. Curricula include Persian cuisine, Italian cuisine, and courses on raw cooking and seasonal ingredients.

Ask the coed instructors of Streetwise Cycle School to name their favorite roads to ride, and they'll describe places that would rival the pictures in Condé Nast—New England's meandering back roads, South Dakota's arid Badlands, and Oregon's lush Cascade Mountains. Certified by the Motorcycle Safety Foundation and upholding the training standards of the state's Motorcycle Rider Education Program, these instructors ready riders from beginner to advanced for their own open-road odysseys. Courses and private lessons in both motorcycle and scooter riding prepare riders to apply for their licenses. When they're not busy aiding current riders, Streetwise's team members also encourage new enthusiasts to explore motorcycling, arranging incentives through local dealers that include gift cards and discounts on diamond-encrusted helmets.

Located just outside Boston, Blue Hill lets aspiring pilots navigate both the busy airspace above the city and the more difficult flying conditions around the White Mountains. A full-scale flight simulator preps beginners before they can receive one-on-one lessons from an instructor in a two-seat Schweizer 300C helicopter, which accommodates both commercial or private flying tracks. The copter also ferries passengers above the city at dusk or carries riders home to the nest where flying machines roost at night.

From their nests at Plymouth Municipal Airport and Norwood Municipal Airport, New England Helicopter Academy’s Schweizer Model 300 helicopters lift fledgling aviators into the skies for flights ranging from introductory runs to intensive training courses. Combining the choppers’ precise handling with academy president Rick Smith’s rigorous training regimen, pilots-to-be learn to expertly handle real-life flying situations such as landing at uncontrolled airports, flying in inclement weather, and airlifting bananas to King Kong. In addition to serving as mid-air classrooms, choppers also treat students to sky-high sightseeing, with training flights often motoring over New England landmarks including the Cape Cod coastline and cities such as Boston and Providence.

Butter, sugar, and flour. These three simple ingredients form the basis of each treat cooked up at Amanda Oakleaf Cakes. While the ingredients are straightforward, the cakes are anything but, as proven by head baker Amanda Oakleaf and the 4-foot-tall Dora the Explorer cake she constructed on the Food Network’s Cake Challenge. At her shop, Amanda and her team of artists, sculptors, and bakers create treats that run the gamut in flavor and function, from elegant tiers of red velvet to sugary cartoon figurines placed atop marshmallow fondant. Guests can dream up flavor combinations such as gingerbread cake slathered in white-chocolate buttercream or chocolate samoa layered in honey icing, or offer up a 3-D object for Amanda and her team to re-create in meticulous, edible detail. Regularly scheduled cake-decorating classes impart visitors with some of the team’s creative tricks of the trade, such as leveling cakes and keeping schoolchildren from swarming in through the doggy door at the sight of snickerdoodle cupcakes.