Dear Parents and Students,
It is with great anticipation, that we welcome back our dancers and their families. Many exciting and wonderful things are planned for our dancers this year.
As always, the children’s Dancing Lights program is designed to enhance your child’s creativity in a non-competitive environment. With a fairy-tale tone, children are inspired to dance, sing, and act theatrically; providing a strong individual emphasis on a child’s self-esteem.
This Student Handbook helps to lay out all our policies and procedures. Hopefully, we have anticipated all of the questions you may have this year and you will find your answers here. If not, please feel free to ask.
Registration & Fees
There is a registration fee of $25.00 per family per year. The registration fee is due in August along with your registration form. Tuition is based on the time, and amount, of classes taken by an individual dancer or her family. Classes 45 minutes - 1 hour, first child/class is $46, monthly. Second child/class add an additional $36 totaling $82 monthly. Third child/class adds an additional $26, totaling $108 monthly. Any additional family members enrolled, add an additional $26 monthly.
Please note - tuition payments are due on or before the 5th of each month. Payments can be mailed directly to the studio or dropped off in the pink tuition box, located on the left of the mirrored desk. Payments received after the 5th of the month will be assessed a late fee of $15. This policy will be strictly enforced.
Families can receive a 5% discount on tuition, by paying for the entire year in advance. If you choose to do so, and your child needs to withdrawal from our dance programs prematurely, we will refund the balance of your prepaid tuition minus one month.
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Month
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Yearly with 5% discount
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Registration Fee
Per Family
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Total
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|
45 mins – 1 hr
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$46
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$393.30
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$25.00
|
$418.30
|
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1 ½ hours
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$65
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$555.75
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$25.00
|
$580.75
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2 hours
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$86
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$735.30
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$25.00
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$760.30
|
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2 ½ hours
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$106
|
$906.30
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$25.00
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$931.30
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3 hours
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$118
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$1008.90
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$25.00
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$1033.90
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3 1/4 hours
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$126
|
$1070.30
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$25.00
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$1102.30
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Tuition:
TUITION PAYMENT BREAKDOWN – example
1. Due by August 15, 2009 - September/June ($46.00) plus ($25.00) registration fee
2. Due by 1st week of class – October ($46.00)
3. Due by October 5, 2009 – November ($46.00)
4. Due by November 5, 2009 - December ($46.00) plus $80.00 Costume fee
5. Due by December 5, 2009 – January 2008 ($46.00)
6. Due by January 5, 2010 – February ($46.00)
7. Due by February 5, 2010 – March ($46.00)
8. Due by March 5, 2010 – April ($46.00)
9. Due by April 5, 2010 – May ($46.00) plus $30.00 Second Costume fee
TOTAL OF NINE TUITION PAYMENTS ($46)
TOTAL OF ONE REGISTRATION FEE ($25)
TOTAL OF TWO COSTUME FEES ($80, $30) (In most cases - these fees are just examples)
EXAMPLE ONLY – TUITION VARIES PER CLASS LEVEL, NUMBER OF CLASSES TAKEN AND NUMBER OF SIBLINGS DANCING.
Please note that you are paying your tuition one month in advance. In the past we have provided payment coupons for your convenience. If you are interested in continuing with this method, please contact us and we will send the coupons to you or you can print them from our website.
All checks should be made payable to: Dancing Lights Ballet School. Payments may be dropped off at the dance school and placed in “The Box” or sent to: P.O. Box 63, Odessa, DE, 19730.
Attire
All dancers need to wear pink ballet shoes. All Ballet I and Advanced dancers need to wear split sole pink ballet shoes. Pre-Ballet and higher levels need to have black tap shoes as well. Advanced dancers may also require additional shoes. Please contact Miss Kristin for further assistance. Ballet shoes are not to be worn as street shoes. Please be sure to tighten, and double knot, all ballerinas' ballet shoes. While bows can be cute, shoes that become loose during class can create a safety hazard. Please cut off excess string, and apply a drop of glue to the knot.
New tap shoe requirements: Only Tap shoes made from pure Aluminum or Steel may be worn, in the new dance school. This policy will be strictly enforced, for all dancers. Appropriate shoes do include Tap shoes made by Leo's or Capezio Tele Tone. Appropriate shoes can be purchased at The Dance Bag, on Kirkwood Highway, Newark, Delaware or The Dance Station, located at 125 W. Main Street, in Elkton, Maryland. Our Pre A - Pre B dancers need to have black, patent leather, Mary Jane style Tap shoes. Our Ballet I and up may wear Jazz Style or Bootie Style Tap Shoes.
Premi, Pre A and Pre B Dancers should wear a pink, blue, black or white leotard with pink tights. Skirts, tutus, or leg warmers are optional. Please label all on your dancers belongings, prior to the start of dance. All dancers must have their names inside their ballet and tap shoes, as well as their dance bag. Ballet I and Up Dancers should wear a black leotard with pink or tan tights. They may wear black dance shorts.
Dancers should wear their hair tied back, away from their faces and off their shoulders, in either a ponytail or a bun. Girls with hair too short to be tied back should have their hair pinned back out of their faces. For the safety of the dancers, no jewelry may be worn around the neck or on the arms, ankles, or fingers, except for Medical ID’s. Studs are allowed for newly pierced ears.
Siblings
Our dance studio is designed for our dancers to enjoy their special time at Dancing Lights. Supervised siblings are permitted in the waiting area during drop-offs and pick-ups. However, siblings are not permitted in the dance studio. Please be sure to make arrangements for your other children if you will be attending an in class performance. This will allow your ballerina to better enjoy her time in, “the spotlight.” While classes are in session, please do not allow siblings to become a distraction, in the waiting area. Only quiet play will be permitted, in the waiting area.
Waiting Area
We are excited to share that our dance school does have a large waiting room. This space is to be used by dancers prior to dance, or during dance for shoe changes. Parents will not be allowed to enter classes, while in session. Please refrain from opening class doors or peaking through windows, this is a great distraction for our dancers. Only quiet play will be allowed in the waiting area.
Picking Up
Children will not be allowed to leave class without a parent present. If someone else is picking up your child, please let us know who that person is ahead of time. Please be sure your child is aware of these arrangements. The safety of your child is our priority.
Photos & Video
It is our practice to occasionally take photos of our dancers, during performances and classes. These photos are displayed in our dance school, or presented to our dancers. On occasion, they may be used on our website or for advertising purposes (for example; our brochure.) From time to time, we may videotape our classes and/or performances so the girls can have a chance to see themselves dance. These tapes are NOT used for advertising purposes and are used solely for our dancers’ own enjoyment and instruction. Please contact your teacher, if you have any concerns or if you have not signed a release/waiver, with regard to photos and video.
Inclement Weather Policy
If weather is questionable you can find closing information on our web site
www.thedancinglights.com. If a State of Emergency is declared in Delaware, our classes will be cancelled for the duration of the State of Emergency. The safety of our students and families is our priority. Please note If Appoquinimick schools are closed due to weather we also close. There are exceptions to this policy so checking our website is the best tool.
Holiday School Closings
Dancing Lights is not closed during all school closings. We will be closed for Fall, Winter and Spring breaks, loosely following Appoquinimink School Districts schedule. Our scheduled closings are as follows: Fall Break (November 23 - 27), Winter Break (December 23- January 1), Spring Break (April 2 - 9, 2010) and Memorial Day (May 31, 2010).
Make-up classes
If your child misses a class due to illness, vacation, or inclement weather; you may make arrangements with her instructor to attend another regularly scheduled class to make up the missed class (if one is available). No credits or refunds will be given for missed classes and special make-up classes will be scheduled only if a class session is cancelled due to instructor illness or more than (2) inclement weather days. Please be aware that make-up classes after March 1, 2010 are restricted. Again these make-ups may be done ONLY with instructor permission and by appointment. This is also with the understanding that your child may not be able to participate in the entire make-up class. She will be able to participate in barre work, warm-ups, and across the floor routines. However, when the class is working on their recital routine, she will be asked to be the audience during this time. It is very disruptive to have a dancer who is unfamiliar with a routine in class. This also allows us to build consistency with all of our dancers.
Any dancer who misses more than two consecutive classes or more than 4 classes total after March 1 will not be permitted to dance in the year-end recital. Again this is due to the need for consistency and out of fairness to the other dancers in the class. Please note there are exceptions made with regards to illness or hardship.
The instructor reserves the right to disallow make-ups in order to preserve the integrity of the class and prevent unnecessary disruptions. Make-ups will not be constructive after a certain point in the year and will not be permitted after April 1, 2010.
First Time Students
Parents are required to walk all dancers into the dance school. The waiting area is designed for you to assist your dancer in preparing for class. Dancers should be supervised at all times in the waiting area. Upon arrival, please assist your child with putting on her ballet shoes. Teachers will accompany all dancers into the studio. Please do not leave until the teacher arrives. Always say good-bye to your child, and remind her that you will see her after class.
The first couple of weeks are typically the hardest on our new or young dancers. We understand the impact of separation anxiety; and we are more than willing to work with you and your child to help alleviate this. We will allow you to stay in the studio for the first two weeks, if needed. We ask that you gradually leave your child, when you are both comfortable. Please know that there may be some tears, but they do not last for long after you are gone. Please remember that there are no siblings allowed in the studio, at any time during dance classes. If you need to stay with your child during class, you are required to stay close to and assist your dancer through the class routines.
We are aware that children go through stages of development that can make adjusting to new situations difficult. For some children the adjustment period may be lengthy, but please be assured that our staff will work with you to find the best solution for you and your child. We have a very high success rate with helping new students to acclimate to the studio environment. We want every child and parent to feel comfortable in class, no matter how long the process.
Performances and Events
We do have several performances scheduled throughout the year (Fall Hoe-Down, Winter Daddy Dance Day, Spring Recital, and Summer Peach Festival Parade). Please understand that these performances are optional, and are not mandatory. No child will be forced to perform or excluded from class if she chooses not to perform. If your child is uncomfortable in front of an audience, for whatever reason, please do not make her feel bad about being reluctant. Our classes are a celebration of dance and what it means to be a girl. For some girls, dance class itself is where they are most comfortable performing - and that is perfectly fine.
We always need volunteers for the parties to perform a variety of tasks such as donating baked goods, helping to organize the events, to make crafts for the various holidays, and to help keep the children focused. We will have sign-up sheets available prior to each event. We do ask that our parents take turns helping out so that everyone gets a chance to contribute.
Our biggest in-class event is the Christmas Nutcracker Tea Party and we must stress again that no siblings are allowed to attend this performance. If no alternate arrangements can be made for your other child(ren), your dancer may participate in the party alone.
General Information
Always walk your dancer into the dance school. Please stay with your child, and properly supervise her until the teacher has arrived. Please be prepared for the start of class. Arrive 5 minutes before class in order for your child to be ready on time. Prior to the start of class, please assist your dancer in putting on her ballet shoes. Your teacher will accompany your child into the dance studio for class. Please do not enter the dance studio while class is in session. Please do not attempt to peek through windows or doors while class is in session. Dancers will enter the studio through the doorway on the right, and exit the studio through the doorway on the left.
Please try to keep questions brief at drop-off and pick-up times. We are more than happy to answer any questions and to help in any way possible. However, there is very little time between classes and we do not want to cut into class time unnecessarily. If you have additional questions or concerns, please call the dance school (302-378-7003) to reach your teacher or email us at: brickleyt@cbakhsh.com. We will be e-mailing monthly newsletters. When needed, we will spend the beginning of class time going over upcoming events and answering questions.
Snacks and Treats
Food is not permitted in the waiting area or dance studio, except on special occasions. We ask that no snacks be brought into the studio. Dancers are permitted to bring in a re-sealable water bottle, only. Please label container with your dancer’s name. Occasionally, we will hand out lollipops or candy, at the end of class as a treat for our dancers. These treats are to be eaten later, not in the studio. Dancers may bring treats to share in celebration of a birthday or special event. Please inform your teacher ahead of time, if you are planning to bring in a treat. Again, these treats will be handed out at the end of class for the girls to take home, not to consume in the waiting area or dance studio. We have a number of students with food allergies, in our dance school. Please keep this in mind when bringing special treats.
Health Concerns
We make every effort to keep Dancing Lights Ballet School safe for all of our students. We do have several children with food allergies; who attend our school. In our small, close-knit environment; they could be put in danger. If you decided to bring any food in for a celebration, please notify your teacher before doing so. We suggest always speaking with the parent of the child with food allergies, before bringing anything into the dance room. If your child has any health concerns or conditions; please take time to discuss you child's limitations prior to the start of class. Please do not bring your child to class if she is ill.
Parent Visitation
We love for parents to be able to see their dancer's progress and growth. Please take the time to ask your dancer about her dance experience. We hold our special events as an opportunity, to show off our dancers skills. Please feel free to bring your camera (still and/or video) for these special days.
Parents may also visit dance class, without siblings, by appointment only. You are also welcome to bring a grandparent, aunt, uncle, etc. at that time if you wish. Parents are invited to videotape any routine that their child is struggling with to facilitate practice at home. This can only be done with prior instructor permission.
Communication
There are several ways to communicate with the staff at Dancing Lights Ballet School. Our telephone number is (302) 378-7003 and we have an answering machine to take messages if no one is available to answer your call. Or you can email us at
brickleyt@cbakhsh.com.
In general, messages will be responded to by the Artistic Director, Kristin Pontius or by our Coordinator Tamara Brickley. If there is an emergency and you cannot reach us at the dance school, you may contact us at 378-3537. For up to date information, feel free to visit our website at www.thedancinglights.com.
Dance
