Fisher,

ACT, 2611

Lauras Piano Studio Phone: 0439641368

Email: lplevey18@hotmail.com
Web: www.lauraspianostudio.com

Studio Policies & Information 2017

What Ages Do You Teach?...................................................................................................... 2

When are lessons? .................................................................................................................... 2
Are lessons held on public holidays?................................................................................ 2
How do we enroll?..................................................................................................................... 2
Communication via Google Drive..........................................................................................2
What kind of piano do I need?.............................................................................................. 3
Where can I purchase a piano?............................................................................................ 3
Getting Set-Up at the Piano.................................................................................................... 3-4
Who can tune my acoustic piano?...................................................................................... 4
Is there a yearly registration fee?...................................................................................... 4
Is there an extra fee for lesson books?............................................................................ 5
How much are lessons?......................................................................................................... 5
How are lessons paid for?.................................................................................................... 5
Do you have a late payment fee?.......................................................................................5
What does payment cover?................................................................................................. 5-6
If We Miss a Lesson, Do You Offer Make-up Lessons?............................................. 6
How do we cancel lessons?................................................................................................. 6
Lending Library........................................................................................................................6
Is Practice Required?............................................................................................................. 7
Practice Buddies..................................................................................................................... 7
Practice Tips............................................................................................................................. 7-8
Useful iPad Apps.....................................................................................................................8-9
Is There Anything Else I Should Know?....................................................................... 9-10
Dismissal & Termination.................................................................................................... 10

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 What Ages Do You Teach?

I teach ages 4 and above, depending on the students readiness to take piano
lessons.

When are Lessons?

Lessons are once per week during the school term, which is 10 weeks long (See
website for a calendar).

Are Lessons Held on Public Holidays?

No. Lessons are not held on public holidays. If your lesson falls on a public holiday
you will not be charged.

How Do We Enroll?
New students may enroll at any time during the year if openings are available.
All prospective students are given a free meet and greet before their first lesson.
The free meet and greet gives me the opportunity to assess a beginners readiness
for piano lessons and answer any questions parents have about my studio and
teaching philosophy. For students with previous music study, the meet and greet
provides me with an opportunity to assess the students current level of
achievement.
At the conclusion of the meet and greet you may fill out an enrollment form and
schedule weekly lessons.
Participation in my studio indicates your acceptance of all studio policies.

Communication via Google Drive
Every parent is required to sign up to Google drive.
Lesson notes, important documents, photos and videos will be uploaded to Google
drive regularly.
Your child will have their own private folder. This folder will be shared with you via
email. You will receive a link in your email to the folder. If you have a Gmail account
you can sign in to Google drive using that, or sign up with your current email
address.
An ALL PARENT folder will also be shared with you via email.
It is important to read everything in your childs folder and in the ALL PARENT
folder.

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 What Kind of Piano Do I Need?
All students must have an acoustic piano or digital piano for home practice. The
quality of your childs instrument plays a significant role in their potential for
success.

Acoustic pianos should be tuned at least once a year, and kept in working order. If
you prefer a digital piano, please invest in a full size keyboard (88 keys) with
weighted, touch sensitive keys and a sustain pedal.

Where Can I Purchase a Piano?
Better Music in Phillip has a great range of pianos to choose from. They will help
you select your very first piano.

Getting Set-up at the Piano

Pianos are BIG instruments! They are designed for people with adult-sized bodies to
sit comfortably.

SO children need special adjustments to their sitting height and feet so that they can
develop correct positioning and technique at the instrument.

The ideal piano posture:

Relaxed shoulders with upper arms hanging freely.
Forearms parallel to the keys, elbows slightly higher than the keys.
Slight slope down from hips to knees, feet resting flat.
Sitting towards the front of the piano bench. This allows for freedom of movement
across the keys.

Note: If your child is small and the adjustable bench still isnt tall
enough you can prop them up by getting them to sit on a few foam
jigsaw mats.

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 To achieve this:

Purchase an adjustable piano bench. There is no substitute for a proper
adjustable piano bench. You cant put a price on your childs long-term
physical health! They can be found for around $80-$120 at stores like Better
Music and online at sites like eBay or Gumtree.

Create a footrest. Old books or stacks of computer paper work a treat. Make
sure the footrest is big and sturdy enough for both feet to rest upon and feel
secure. Mine were made out of foam mats. I cut them to size and covered
them in material. You may need to make more than one, if you have more
than one child learning piano at home. And if money is no object then do
Google these amazing inventions called Piano Pedal Extenders.

Who Can Tune My Piano?
Chris Leslie is a great piano tuner. He also sells quality second hand acoustic pianos.
His contact details are below.

Mob: 0429 516 111
Ph: (02) 6251 6123

Is There a Yearly Registration Fee?

Yes. Each student pays a yearly registration fee of $60. This fee is paid before the
student begins lessons. At the end of the year the fee is paid before the Christmas
break for lessons in the new year. If the student begins lessons in term 4, the
registration fee is $20. This pays for the cost of running the music studio as well as
the time spent doing things in addition to actual teaching:
Bookkeeping
Printing
Scheduling
Website cost & maintenance
Time spend on Email and Phone calls

This fee cannot be refunded if you do not decide to continue lessons.

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 Is there an extra fee for lesson books?
Yes. Piano books are an extra cost. An invoice will be sent out for books in the
middle of each term (week 5). Parents can be expected to pay anywhere between
$80 and $200 per year on books.

How much are lessons?
30 minute weekly lesson- $350 per 10 week term
45 minute weekly lesson- $525 per 10 week term
(45mins recommended for students who have had a year or more of lessons)
60 minute weekly lesson- $700 per 10 week term

Fees are expected to rise slightly each year. Fees may vary slightly depending on public
holidays.

How are lessons paid for?

Lessons are paid in advance. They are paid by the school term. Payment is made
before the school term commences. This is essential to hold your place. If you choose
to go away on holidays your fees must be continued to be paid or the place will be
given to someone else. Preferred payment is by bank transfer into the account
below. If possible please email me a bank transfer receipt so I know you have paid.
Please put your childs name in the description. Lessons will not be given until
full payment is received.

Name: Laura E Plevey
Bank: Westpac
BSB: 032-778
Acc: 406243

Do you have a late payment fee?

Yes. If payment is a day or more late a $25 late fee will be added to your invoice. You
will be given plenty of warning before this fee is added. If I still have not received
payment a week after the due date, your time slot will be given to someone on my
waiting list.

What does payment cover?

Payment for lessons covers not only the lesson time spent with the student, but time
preparing for each student as well.
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This includes:
Planning for each student
Professional development
Tuning and repairs of piano
Preparing for recitals/camps
Lending library
Development of teaching materials
Administration

If we miss a lesson, do you offer make-up lessons?

No. There are no make-up lessons. When lessons are paid for, a spot is reserved in
my busy schedule for your child. Unlike a doctor, or hairdresser, I cannot resell that
time nor can I create extra teaching time to give lessons. Please take a look at the
following article, which may clarify my cancellation policy.
http://ottawasuzukistrings.ca/makeuplessons/

If you will miss your lesson please let me know before your scheduled lesson.

If I am sick or away on the day of your scheduled lesson, the lesson will either be
rescheduled or credited.

There are no refunds/credits for missed lessons. My schedule is a complex
pattern that fits in with each students other activities. There are no refunds for
cancelled lessons because fees are a term commitment that reserves a weekly space
and time.

How Do we Cancel Lessons?

If you no longer wish to continue piano lessons please give 2 weeks notice. You can
notify me in person, by phone or email.
If lessons are cancelled midway through the school term, there will be no refunds.

Lending Library
Students are welcome to borrow music related books. These rules need to be
followed:
1 or 2 books can be borrowed for no more than 3 weeks.
If a book is damaged (pages wet, pages ripped, stains, CD lost) or lost, a replacement
will need to be organised as soon as possible.
All books MUST be returned by the END of each school term.
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 If for any reason a student decides to discontinue lessons and still has a book on
loan they must return the book to Lauras Piano Studio.

Is Practice Required?
Yes! Practice is essential for student progress and enjoyment of the instrument.
Students should aim to practice at least 5 times a week for 10-15minutes at a time.
It is my belief that short regular practices are more beneficial than one long or no
practices per week. Of course, as the student advances, more practice will be
needed. See the practice table below for young beginners

If you practice this much: You may achieve this:
2 times a week for 15 minutes Very slow to no progress
3 times a week for 15 minutes Slow progress
4 times a week for 15 minutes A little progress
5 times a week for 15 minutes Moderate progress, this is pretty good.
6 times a week for 15 minutes Good progress! Youre going places!
DAILY for 15 minutes Excellent progress! Youre going places!

Parental involvement in home practice is crucial for student success. Please help
your child to establish a practice routine, and see that practice time is free of
distractions. If you are a parent of a student aged 4 to 8, please plan to sit with your
child for at least a portion of their daily practice time.

Practice Buddies
A practice buddy can be taken home to help your child practice for a week. The
following rules need to be followed:
The practice buddy needs to be brought back to the next lesson with the bag and
folder.
If the buddy or bag goes missing or is damaged, a replacement fee will need to be
paid.

Piano Practice Tips

Decide on a routine and do all you can to stick to it! When discussing practice times
with your child, allow them to make as many decisions as possible. The more
ownership they feel over their practice time, the better. Obviously, not doing
practice is of course not an option (!) but you can still give your child control over
how to structure their practice. For example, How would you like to do your daily
practice? In the morning when youre fresh, straight after your after-school snack or
would it work best for you to split it up both morning and evening? Once the
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 routine is decided on, make a deal that the piano time is their time and is not to be
interrupted by any other members of the family or by being asked to do any chores
by anyone.

Place the piano in an appropriate space. Somewhere central and accessible so that
you/your children can go and play during any spare moments throughout the day is
ideal. Just ensure that the piano isnt competing with noise from TVs and other
appliances. And do make sure the area isnt uncomfortably hot or cold either!

Make the piano area an uncluttered and pleasant place to be!

Set them up with all the materials they need, such as a basket of pencils,
highlighters, and post-it notes. These are items we use liberally during lessons to
analyse a piece of music and break it down into smaller manageable chunks, and
they should be used at home too! Magazine holders to keep old and new music
nicely organised is a useful thing to do also.

Practice may be a word you might like to avoid using. To the student it may
sound like a chore. Instead use phrases Play some music, Have a play on the
piano, Go make up a new song, Go and play me your favourite piece, Id love to
hear you play _________for me, its my favourite, which will hopefully entice them to
sit in front of the piano and start playing. Even adults know that making a start the
hardest.

Once theyre at the piano, students should use the lesson notes (often written on the
pieces themselves) to direct their practice. They may need a gentle reminder to read
over such notes. Dont forget to encourage them to explore and improvise and make
up their own sounds and songs. As long as they are also spending time on lesson
assignments, this type of exploration is totally encouraged!

Until the age of 11, children will need parental input and help directing their
practice and reading teacher notes.

And if you are still struggling to get things happening at home dont hesitate to ask
for more suggestions to help make practice more fun and interesting!

Useful iPad Apps
There are literally hundreds of music iPad apps out there. Here is a list of my current
favourites.

1. Metronomes are a must for music students! There are tons of metronome apps
out there. I have a free one on my iPad called Metro Timer. I also have one called
petronome which makes cute animal sounds!
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2. NoteRush www.noterushapp.com/

If you only download one music app, this should be it! It gets kids completely hooked on
practicing their sightreading!

3. Flashnote Derby http://flashnotederby.com/
This is also a really fun app. I like that it is highly customisable. It can be used right from
the beginning as you can select as little as two notes to test yourself on!

4. The Most Addicting Sheep Game
This app might not sound like an educational music game, but it is! In order to make the
sheep jump at the appropriate times in the game, the play must tap on the beat. This app
is super fun!

5. Blob Chorus
This ear training app is fun and silly, but it does have some educational value! Each of the
blobs in the chorus sing a note, and then the king blob sings his note. The aim of the game
is for the student to identify the blob that sang the same note as the king blob.
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 Is There Anything Else I Should Know?
Please do not bring your child to lessons sick. If they are sick and do not attend
school that day, please do not bring them to piano lessons.
No gum, food, lollies, or drinks are allowed in the studio (water is okay). Please
leave all that at home or eat outside.
Please make sure your child uses the bathroom before their lesson. Going to the
bathroom during the lesson is disruptive.
If younger siblings attend the lesson, the children should be attended by a parent
and remain quiet during lessons. Siblings may not be left unattended at the
studio.
Mobile phones, laptops, and other electronic devices must be silenced during
lessons so they do not interrupt the lesson. If you must have your phone turned
on for business purposes, please leave the studio to make or receive a call.
You should arrive for lessons no more than five minutes early. Earlier arrivals
are disruptive to lessons in progress, and the studio does not open until 5
minutes prior to the first lesson of the day. If you arrive more than five minutes
early, please wait outside (not in view of the window) or in your car before
entering the studio.
Parents should pick students up from lessons promptly.
If you arrive late to your lesson, you will receive the remainder of the lesson and
should be picked up according to the normal schedule.
Please feel free to park out front on the gravel.
Parents who need to discuss business matters with me should do so either
during the allotted lesson time (let me know before the lesson begins) or by
phone. Im always happy to talk to parents!
Please check your email regularly to stay up to date on the latest studio
information. If your email address changes, remember to let me know!

Dismissal & Termination
Should any of the following situations occur after parental notification has been made
along with time provided to correct the situation, dismissal will result:

Failure to honour studio policies or make payments promptly.
Inappropriate or disrespectful behaviour, theft, and/or misbehaviour in my home.
Failure to maintain practice standards or uncooperative attitude.
Repeated neglect on the students part to take responsibility for bring materials or
following assignment & practice directions.

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