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24 Feb

Celebrating Students’ Festival Success

by admin
in Performance
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NFMC Piano FestivalEvery year, many of my piano and voice students participate in our local Junior Festival, hosted by the Illinois Federation of Music Clubs. Preparation for Festival begins in November when they choose their pieces, and then they work hard for the next four months learning, memorizing, and perfecting.

Needless to say, it’s a stressful time of year not only for my students, but for me as their teacher! The Festival is held over two weekends in late February, and it is only afterwards that we can all breathe a little easier.

I like to celebrate my students’ successes following Festival season, even if just in a few simple (and sometimes silly) ways. More than anything, I want them to know how proud I am of their hard work and performances.

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09 Feb

Getting Through the Winter Lull

by cconrad
in Marketing, Performance, Program Development, teacher resourses, Teaching
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lazyIs it just me, or do students seriously start lacking some motivation during the winter months? The “newness” of the year has worn off, holiday recitals are behind them, and the end-of-the-year spring recital is too far in the distance to really care much.

It’s frustrating for teachers.

So how do we as studio owners motivate our students and keep them moving forward instead of getting stuck in a rut? Here’s a few ideas:

  • Plan a winter event. It can be something informal and more laid-back, but still give your students something to work towards. Ask a local coffee shop if you can bring in a digital piano and have some students play their favorite pieces one evening, or talk to the library about having your dance students perform a number in the children’s section.
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31 Jan

Group Class Ideas

by admin
in Teaching, Uncategorized
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By Julia Kossuth One of the opportunities I have at the Studios of Sarah Strout is to teach a group piano class to three 4- and 5-year-olds. Being relatively new to teaching group classes, it's been a great learning opportunity for me regarding teaching strategies and being creative in class time. A useful tool I've been using lately has been, surprisingly, play-dough. I will have my students...

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28 Jan

Reigniting the Spark in Your Career

by admin
in Program Development
Comments

Reignite the SparkNo matter how successful, motivated, and passionate you are when it comes to your career as a studio owner, it’s inevitable: at some point, you’ll need to add some fuel to the fire that drives your work.

Maybe you’re undergoing a shift in your personal life, or feeling burnt out, or just fighting a case of the winter doldrums. In any case, here are some ideas for reigniting the spark that made you fall in love with teaching in the first place.

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23 Jan

Changing and Enforcing New Policies

by michellep
in Policies and Procedures
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Well, I finally did something I have been wringing my hands over for a long time. I made a couple dramatic changes to my studio policies. For several months before making the decision, I kept finding myself frustrated and feeling like a push over. Why? Well, the main problem was my payment policy. I had a very forgiving one. Students pay at the beginning of the month, but if there is a cancelation within 24 hours notice, they get a refund next month. Do you know what that means? At the beginning of every month I would estimate my earnings according to the calendar, but would lose at least a quarter of income because of all the planned cancelations and excused absences.

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