Feldenkrais® Professional Training Program - A Four-Year Training

Discover a method that transforms how you learn, move and think - and become a competent Feldenkrais® Practitioner.

What Is the Feldenkrais Method®?

The Feldenkrais Method® is an educational approach that uses movement, attention, and sensation to improve how people function in their daily lives. Through gentle, structured explorations, students learn to move and function with greater ease, comfort, efficiency, and clarity—supporting wellbeing, learning, creativity, aging more gracefully, and recovery.

The method is taught in two complementary formats:

1. Awareness Through Movement® (ATM):  verbally guided group lessons
2. Functional Integration® (FI):  individualized, hands-on lessons

This four-year professional training program is a certification pathway for becoming skilled Feldenkrais® Practitioners, competent in teaching Awareness Through Movement® (ATM) classes and giving Functional Integration® (FI) individual lessons.

The curriculum is grounded in the original teachings of Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais and informed by today’s scientific understanding of how the human brain learns. Grounding the Feldenkrais Method® in contemporary neuroplasticity theory will deepen your understanding of how and why it works—building the foundation for confident, effective practice

Program Overview

• Duration:  4 years
• Outcome:  Eligibility for certification as a Feldenkrais Practitioner
• Formats:

• In-person training segments at the Feldenkrais Institute of Ann Arbor, Michigan.
• Online ATM and FI learning weekends.
• Weekly study groups for preparation and practice of course materials, assigned readings and discussions.
• Supervised teaching and clinical practicums in both ATM and FI.
• Access to the entire recordings of the program for self-paced repetition and learning.

• Faculty:  Multiple trainers with decades of experience as Feldenkrais Practitioners and as educators, bringing pedagogical variety and richness to the program.

Whether you're pursuing professional certification or personal transformation—or both—this program offers a profound journey of learning and growth.

The Four-Year Journey

Year 1 – Foundations of Somatic Learning and Functional Movement

The 1st year of the training program will be dedicated to laying the foundations for understanding the principles of the Feldenkrais Method and the method’s approach to human learning and development. An emphasis will be put on the uniqueness of the Feldenkrais Method as a sensory-somatic based approach.

You will experience around 100 ATM lessons throughout the first year, covering about 25 different sensory-motor learning processes.These lessons create the foundations for learning the hands-on portion of the work and will help you gain Functional Integration thinking and skills.

We will trace some of the earliest human developmental patterns, and explore how these foundational sensory-motor skills emerge.

You will learn to analyze movement and see the components and variables of different patterns of movement as they appear in the ATM lessons.

You will develop your perceptual skills and your observational skills to be able to sense and see movement in detail, on yourself and on others.

The concepts of efficient movement and optimal organization will be studied in depth and provide a frame for understanding the objectives of ATM lessons. We will highlight the potency of synergistic movement patterns and how they are used within ATM lessons.  

We will study the foundations of human anatomy and biomechanics that will further support your understanding of human movement and its characteristics.

We will engage with hands-on practice during the in-person segments, setting the foundations for Functional Integration. You will learn:

• How to sense another person as they move through different patterns of movement.  
• How to acquire the sensitivity to assess various qualities of movement.
• How touch affects the experience and quality of movement.
• How hands-on practice is a form of sensory-motor communication.
• How touch provides sensory input that changes self-perception.
• How to develop kinesthetic self-awareness through movement exploration, helping you recognize habitual patterns and discover new possibilities for organizing yourself in action.

In between segments, students will engage in self-paced practice of ATM lessons, reading assignments and learning anatomy.

Year 2 – Learning to Teach Awareness Through Movement

Year 2 focuses on developing the teaching skills and competencies needed for teaching ATM lessons effectively and with confidence. Two supervised teaching experiences are required for authorization as an ATM teacher.

The various stages of learning in the brain and how the nervous system processes new information and creates patterns will be a central theme of the second year. Neuroplasticity will be examined in depth, illuminating how creating non-habitual situations is a fundamental principle used both in ATM and FI.

The structure and composition of numerous ATM lessons will be examined as well as the various strategies used within those lessons.

The uniqueness of the human skeletal structure and the marvel of upright organization will continue to inform the objectives of ATM lessons. We will observe and explore the patterns of walking, and develop the observational skills to detect differences in individual variations.  

Hands-on practice will evolve in complexity and will include a wider repertoire of functional movement patterns, greater variety of positions, and a wider tool box of strategies and approaches.

In between segments, students will prepare and practice teaching ATM lessons with peers in small study groups that can meet in-person or online. Small study group activities are part of the preparation process for teaching supervised ATM lessons. Students can choose when they meet and how often they meet. For those students who may have time challenges, once a week is suggested during the first two years, but is not mandatory.  

Year 3 – Functional Integration, expanded and enriched.

The practice and exploration of ATM lessons will continue throughout the 3rd year. The lessons will progress in their complexity, offering new challenges both on the physical, conceptual, and theoretical level.   Bringing new details of movement and development will broaden the scope of the ATM processes.

During this year, you will be encouraged to teach ATMs in various formats and use the training platform for continued support and mentoring. How to present the method to a new audience, choosing ATM lessons to particular audiences, and constructing a series of ATM lessons will be addressed.

We will continue to expand the Functional Integration repertoire and refine the skills needed for giving effective lessons.

The strategies used with Functional Integration will become more explicit and complex and will include:

• The use of synergistic patterns of movement.
• The role of inhibition in learning.
• Using the individual’s movement pattern to create novelty.
• Reversing habitual patterns by creating non-habitual situations.
• Integrating new patterns to develop new movement possibilities.

In between segments, you will watch and study recorded Functional Integration lessons given by Dr. Feldenkrais with your small study group. You will also engage in self-paced review and study of the Functional Integration practice as well as continue expanding your ATM teaching repertoire.

Year 4 - Functional Integration Competencies, Practice and Certification

Year 4 is dedicated to developing professional-level competence in Functional Integration and preparing trainees for certification and independent practice. You will give supervised Functional Integration both to your peers and to outside clients, and you will receive individualized feedback and mentoring.

We will continue to expand the FI repertoire with more advanced skills including more complex positions and more specific and refined techniques including:

• Specific work on balance and equilibrium by creating controlled instability.  
• Integrating working with the eyes, head and neck.
• Specific motions of the spine such as twisting and extension and stimulation of muscular tone.
• Working with the ribs and diaphragm to stimulate mobility and shifting the breathing pattern.

We will emphasize how to begin a lesson by conducting a professional interview and collecting information that will guide you in your decision making process and clinical reasoning. We will also emphasize the integration part of the lesson, and how the lesson transitions into daily function.

We will review client difficulties from a functional point of view and learn how to adapt a lesson according to the client’s limitations.

In between segments you will practice Functional Integration at your own pace with friends and family. With your small study groups you will continue to learn from the Functional Integration lessons by Dr. Feldenkrais and translate them into ATM lessons that can be used with your potential clients in private one-on-one lessons or  group ATM settings.