Information on Dance Classes
Why Dance?—Dance is advantageous for all students—not just those who intend to make it a career. Learning to dance, especially at an early age, benefits the student in many ways. Dance lends social and physical poise, as well as control and understanding of the body. Dance skills also transfer over to other athletic endeavors as dance increases coordination and familiarity with the body. It also begins healthy exercise and eating habits and promotes an understanding and love for one’s body.
What Kind of Dance?—Dance classes are now divided between a study of ballet and modern/jazz, hip hop, and tap. Classes involve both formal, serious learning and a more free, fun element that allows the dancer to explore dance firsthand, without having every move dictated. This allows the dancer to learn techniques and moves that are fundamental to dancing itself, while finding new moves that work for their body and having a bit of fun, too. For a more detailed description of what you can expect, see “Class Descriptions” tab above.
Registering—In order to register, you will need to contact me by email at vinasdance [at] gmail.com. You will need to provide the following information: your name, two phone numbers (a primary and a secondary), your dancer’s name, your dancer’s date of birth, which classes your dancer is interested in (see the “Class Schedule”) and any questions you might have. You will also need to register for the mailing list.
Arriving and Leaving—Because of the studio’s busy location, parents should escort dancers both to and from the building. Students should not be dropped off at class before the teacher is present. I should arrive at least ten minutes before the appointed class time. Regular classes will last, on average, 55 minutes. This allows the next group of dancers access to the seating area before their class begins. Half-hour classes will generally run the full 30 minutes. If a dancer is late for class, they should stretch themselves out to avoid injury and then join in the class. If a parent is late picking up a student, the student may remain with the teacher at the studio until the parent arrives.
The Classes (what you are paying for)—Both fall and spring semesters generally consist of 12 weekly classes. This equates roughly to 3 months of classes. (You pay for exactly three months.) These semesters start, roughly, in September (fall semester), and January (spring semester). Often, our schedule will give a “bonus” class or two beyond the paid 12 classes. Only holidays that have been previously announced will be taken off. If there is a cancellation due to weather or the teacher’s sickness, you will receive an email informing you. However, if you are unsure of whether classes will run, the cancellation announcement is often on the website.
The Paying For—Payment is generally expected in full at the beginning of each semester. If this is simply not possible, a payment plan can be arranged. If a payment for a student is more than a week late, that student may be denied class participation until the payment is received and a weekly fine of $5 will be charged until the payment is made. Money will not be refunded due to classes missed by the dancer, nor will classes be made up for dancers who cannot attend. However, if the teacher must cancel a class, that class will be made up at a time convenient to the teacher or an appropriate amount of money will be refunded to each dancer. The “bonus” classes mentioned above are sometimes used for make-ups if possible.
The Clothing—Dancers may wear any type of leotard, tights, and/or leggings to class. Good places to shop include online, Target, and Walmart. Style and color of dancewear are not dictated. However, a dancer should have an appropriate pair of dance slippers or tap shoes. If the dancer does not possess an appropriate pair of dance shoes, footless or convertible tights are required to minimize slipping. Appropriate slippers may be purchased though an online dance store, through a catalog, or locally at Academy Sports. In the colder days of winter, a form-fitting cover-up is recommended. Knees should be in no way obscured. Boys may wear a T-shirt and form-fitting pants to ballet. Hip Hop requires comfortable clothes and tennis shoes.
The Classroom Protocol (for the student)—Each dancer should arrive at class with their hair pulled back into a bun or ponytail, or, if this is not possible because of length, pulled away from the face and neck with hairclips. This helps to prevent overheating. All necklaces, bracelets, dangly earrings, and sharp or large rings should be taken off before the start of the class, as they could cause serious injury to the student and his/her classmates. No chewing gum is allowed in the classroom. It is recommended that parents and dancers bring their own water to class. Dancers are expected to listen to the teacher during class-time. They are expected to take note of and adhere to corrections that are made both for the safety of the dancers and for the keeping of a pleasant environment in the classroom. Excessive talking may result in the loss of freeze dance. Physical roughhousing is not allowed at any time. Inappropriate behaviors could result in a time out.
The Classroom Protocol (for everyone else)—Parents and siblings are welcome in the classroom as long as they cause no disturbance to dancers or teacher. This is a personal choice on the part of the parents. Some children react better to having a parent in the room with them. For others, the presence of a parent can be distracting. Please refrain from talking to your child during class. A single word of correction or encouragement is welcome. However, please refrain from distracting your child (and the other children in the class) by making corrections (such as “pay more attention” or “point your toes”). These issues are the teacher’s responsibility during the class time unless she requests parental involvement. The parent is encouraged to discuss these issues with the student and/or teacher after the class has concluded. The parent is asked to adhere to the requests of the teacher, who will take the parent’s best judgment into consideration, on dance class issues. Any other children in the waiting room should keep quiet enough as to not create a distraction. Any cell phone use should be kept to a minimum volume or taken outside the building.
The Recital Preparations—At the end of the spring semester, dancers will perform in a choreographed recital which they will spend some class time during the semester learning. An auditorium will be acquired for the performance. Depending upon the cost of acquisition, a recital fee may be required. The spring recital will be only slightly elaborate, involving minimal costuming. This costuming will usually be recommended by the instructor and purchased by the parent. If a student will not be able to attend recital, the teacher should be informed as soon as possible.
The Recital Attendance Policy—For the fall semester, attendance is not mandatory (though it is strongly encouraged). If the dancer misses classes in these semesters, they are welcome to return to the class at any point (though they will not receive a refund for missed classes). In the spring, however, if a dancer misses more than four classes, though they will be allowed back to class, they may not be able to participate in the recital. The parent should consult with the teacher as exceptions may be made. If it is not possible for the student to attend the recital for this or other reasons, any recital fee paid will not be refunded to them. Paid for costumes will not be refunded.
The Recital—Some studios focus a great deal on end-of-year performances. Others focus primarily on in-classroom work. I intend to find a happy medium in which the dancers will, at the end of the semester, perform a recital based primarily on the techniques they have been learning throughout the semester. All family and friends are welcome at the spring recital as long as there is seating. Audience members are welcome to bring cameras and take photos before and after the performance. There may also be professionally done photographs available. There will often be flowers available for purchase at the recitals.
Signing Up Again—The next semester’s classes will be sent out via email about two weeks before the beginning of the next semester. You must be on the mailing list to receive this email. An effort is made to see that multiple times and days are available to each class level for the student’s and parent’s convenience. Please consult with your instructor before signing up for a class, as she may have recommendations as to where a certain student may be most comfortable or challenged. If there are no convenient times available to the student, efforts will be made to see that they are included in a different class or that there is a more convenient class available the next semester.
The Minimum and Maximum Numbers—If a minimum number of students does not sign up for a class, that particular class will not run and all monies already paid will be refunded. (The minimum number varies by class level. It is usually three or four.) If multiple dropouts cause a class size to become too small, that class may also be canceled and appropriate measures will be taken to ensure that the dancer enters another class or an appropriate amount of money will be refunded. Class cancellations are always the teacher’s decision. If more students sign up for a class than that class can accommodate (again, this ‘critical number’ varies by age and experience), any further students signing into that class will go on a wait list — either to be entered into the class when there is a dropout, or to be incorporated into another class of a similar level.
Any Questions or Concerns—Any questions or concerns a parent or student might have may be addressed to the teacher before or after class if time permits or over the phone, by email or in a meeting by appointment.
Pricing:
Full semester payment is expected at the beginning of each semester. In the fall and spring, this is three months worth of payments. In the summer, this is two months worth of payments. Monthly payments may be arranged only if absolutely necessary. If a payment is late, $5 additional fee will be charged for each week that it is late. Please write any checks accordingly.
1/2 hour class: $17.50 per month
3/4 hour class: $26.25 per month
1 hour class: $35 per month
If two classes are taken, the shorter of the two classes will be discounted to half price.
For example: if your child takes a 45-minute ballet class ($26.25 per month) and a 30-minute tap class ($17.50 per month), the total tuition fee will be $35 per month. (Their 30-minute tap class was reduced by half to $8.75 per month.) The full semester (3 month) payment would be $105.