Lesson Time and Attendance:

Lessons are scheduled ‘back-to-back’ (sometimes with other students, sometimes with other engagements) - please be on time for lessons and take care of any business (payments, scheduling issues) at the start of the lesson.

When you arrive, if I am still wrapping up with a previous student, you are welcome to enter - if you are early, please quietly wait in the living room.  Older students whose parents are late to pick them up are welcome to wait quietly in the living room.

Tuition and Payments:

Tuition is due at the first class each month (checks can be made payable to Sheila Nelson, paypal is smstrahan@yahoo.com(or @desertchildmusic), cash is also accepted).  Payments that have not been received after the second lesson of the month will incur a $15 late fee.  I will try to issue bills, but this is not always possible - please remember to send payment the first week of each month.  Tuition will be prorated on months with holidays.

I do not credit or refund for missed lessons.  I will endeavor to make-up a missed lesson (as long as it is not a usual occurrence) by rescheduling for a time when another student has cancelled or another free time that I may have later in the week, but there is no guarantee that this is possible.  Think of it like any other class you sign up for: if you don't attend the karate or dance class, you still have to pay for it.  Please do your best to attend regularly.  We can address this on an individual basis if it becomes an issue (i.e. your child suffers a long illness).  I don't reschedule for sports conflicts: you may choose to pay to hold your spot or give up your spot to another student.  If you give up your spot, you will be placed first on the waitlist for any spots that may come up the next season.

I'm working on a shared calendar for students who wish to opt in for trading times to make extra-curriculars easier for busy 

Good Practice Discount:

At each lesson, we will agree upon the practice plan for the week.  Consistent, focused, short practices repeated throughout the week are MUCH more effective than a single practice in the week, no matter the length.  Plan on setting aside time EVERY day to practice.  Practice plans will always include a minimum of 4 practices (but preferably daily) per week (day of lesson does not count).  In general, practice agreements will include at least 3 main tasks that should be completed daily plus an allocated amount of time to do other “playing.” Task-based practice plans are more effective that time-based practice plans, but for planning purposes, the general rule of thumb is that a practice should take 5 minutes for each grade level in school (for example, a 4th grader should generally be practicing around 20 minutes (5 x 4)).  KG and 1st graders should take 5-10 minutes daily.

At the next lesson, I will ask the student and/or parent if the practice plan was followed.  Students who follow the plan each week will get the discount from the next month’s tuition ($15 for 4-lesson months, prorated for months with prorated tuition).

Parent Attendance:

Students under age 10 will have companion lessons with their parents.  This means different things for different families (some actually learn all songs with their children, others simply take notes in a notebook), but the idea is that parents are actively involved in lessons so that students have them as a resource at home in case they have trouble remembering something.  Please note that this is not optional - teaching a young student without parental support is twice as much work for me with half the effectiveness for the student.

During a student’s 4th grade year, I will help them keep their own notes as a transitional year and parents may choose to attend or not.  Students in grades 5th and above are expected to keep their own notes, parents do not need to attend.

Siblings: are welcome to hang out in the living room during lessons. Younger siblings should be able to maintain acceptable behavior with minimal supervision from parents or other arrangements should be made.