Studio Policies
Private Lessons are given weekly in 30 and 45 minute lengths. 45 minute lessons will be encouraged by the instructor when the student has reached a certain point of advancement and maturity. Everyone is encouraged to start with a 30 minute session (especially young children).
Practice Requirements:
Regular home practice is essential for student success. Ideally, students should aim for at least 5 days of practice each week. Short, daily practice sessions (10-15 minutes) are much more effective than one or two long sessions per week. Students should take care to practice the same evening as their lesson in order to solidify what they have just learned. Retention of new knowledge drops to 60% after just 24 hours of time lapse. Parental involvement in home practice is crucial. Please help your student to establish and stick to a practice routine, and see that practice time is free of distractions. If you are the parent of an elementary age student, please plan to sit with your child for at least a portion of their daily practice time.
Required Equipment:
If no piano is available to the student, an inexpensive electric keyboard of around 60 keys is sufficient to get started. Eventually, if the student continues to progress, the decision to purchase a piano will have to be made. However, I discourage my students from purchasing an instrument until they are committed to playing.
Attendance Policy:
Students are expected to attend each scheduled week of the fall and spring semesters. Your time slot belongs to you for that entire session. Summer lessons are scheduled on a by-the-lesson basis. Students should expect to continue lessons on at least a part-time schedule through the summer to maintain the skills they develop through the school year. In the event that your student needs to miss a lesson because of a conflict or illness, please contact me with as much advance notice as possible. If I am able, I will make up the lesson another day. Any lessons missed by the instructor due to illness or emergency will be rescheduled as soon as possible. Please be prompt – lesson times cannot be extended for students who arrive late.
Payment Policy:
Monthly payments for private lessons are preferred unless other arrangements have been made with the instructor. Group class tuition should be paid for the semester on the first day of class. Cash, check, Venmo, and PayPal are all accepted forms of payment.