Also, if the parents wanted what was best for their child they would set a good example by not bullying the dance teacher and by teaching them how to listen to directions and to be responsible.

tappergurl wrote:

Also, if the parents wanted what was best for their child they would set a good example by not bullying the dance teacher and by teaching them how to listen to directions and to be responsible.

Exactly!

dance deb wrote: "If you MUST bring babies and toddlers with you please keep them quiet and under control in the waiting area. And DO NOT leave dirty diapers in our trash cans!"

to add to that response, if you must bring babies, please take the time to breastfeed at home before dance instead of whipping it out in front of other parents/dancers/children and breast feeding in the midst of the studio

Parents that when you say only 2 guests per child for viewing week and they bring 6 or more people. I give a limit due to fire saftey reasons not because I don't want your family to watch your child dance. I'm allowed 35 bodies in the studio at a time I have 12 students and my self that I must have room for that leaves about 24 spaces left in the room and 2 people per child. And don't bring young children to viewing week and allow them to run around the studio, yes they count as a person in my room even if there 6 weeks old!! and Your toddler is annoying and distracting. Also your son's DS ect needs head phones if there going to be in the class room and use it. Don't make me stop class to deal with your other children the dancers are my responsibility not the other 20 children that are watching.

Also I"M NOT A BABYSITTER !!!! Pick up your child on time, if I have to call you about being late one more time to find out where you are after this has happened every class I'm calling child services. I'm allowed to call any time after 30min espically if you dont anwser your phone!!!!! I guess having to get your child from my supervisors office doesnt have enough of an impact. and I doccument every incident like this I have proof.

Ahem.
I sent a newsletter home on Sunday. I sent home a newsletter for a reason. It has all the information about the performance next week in it. It has costumes, hair, shoes, times, dress rehearsal, extra practice, everything.
READ!!! THE!!! NEWSLETTER!!!!
READ IT!
And don't tell me that you don't know about the practice this Wednesday cause I clearly noted that there would be one. In the newsletter. That apparently you didn't read. *facepalm*

My biggest pet peeves, some which have already been mentioned, is...
1. Trying to get your child into the class ahead of them that is way too hard. We put them in the class that is right for them, TRUST US! We are trained dance instructors, we know what we're doing!
2. Trying to get me to find their dance bill, or asking to buy tights, shoes, etc...I am trying to teach a class. And like it was said before, i am a dance instructor.. not a secretary.
3. Parents TEXTING us all the time. It is my personal phone, I give it to you for emergencies at competition and for booking for choreography for solos, duets, etc. Please don't abuse it! I don't need calls asking what tights to buy on the weekend at 7 AM.... when it is not at all urgent! If it can wait until Monday at dance, please save it until then. If it is urgent, then a call is fine by me!

Your child does not have to attend every single school disco or birthday party that happens throughout the year! The amount of kids I have away each week for these silly reasons is unbearable!

You send your child to me because I possess skills, training, etc. Let me do my job and do not stick your nose in where it doesn't belong. This includes choreography, costume choice, recital dates, and venues. I am open to suggestions, but the final authority is mine and the SO's; I will NOT cater to your demands. If you think that you can do my job better than I can, by all means open up your own studio.

One of the best ways you can support your child is by sending them to (and picking up from) class on time, prepared, fed, and teaching them - hopefully by example - that it is unacceptable to be disrespectful of others.

We are new to Dance.net. What a wonderful resource and great information on running the school with difficult parents. It is inspirational to read so many ideas.

Do not let your child skip dance classes because they need to do homework.

School is important. Arguably, it's more important than dance class. But letting them skip dance in favor of doing homework teaches them a couple of bad habits:

— The child now knows that using homework as an excuse will get them out of dance class when they don't actually have homework and just don't feel like going.
— The child is not learning to manage their time well. I danced 6 days a week and was salutatorian of my graduating class. I didn't manage this by skipping dance to do homework. I learned to manage my time better — little bit of homework in the car on the way to class, little more homework in between classes, little bit of homework when I got home.
— The child falls behind in his/her dance classes. The child feels frustrated when they come back because they've missed important choreography, thus leading us back to my first bullet point.

1. Watching the class and making noise while doing so, especially if they go as far to beg to sit inside the class room.
2. Demand their money back for a costume they didn't receive because they bailed out last minute, causing under study's to pay for it
Well, that's what inDIDNt see

lidwina wrote:

Don't use your child for your convenience.
This is wrong: "My child doesn't like you anymore, that's why she quits."
This is right: "I don't think we can work together anymore, that's why I think it's best when my child quits."

When your child tells you a negative story about me, CHECK IT before you start yelling at me.

Oh I love this. Haha this is why I was fired over one student not liking me when I corrected her! I got yelled at by the parent when I tried to talked about it. She made a threat too. Hmm..parents...*rolls eyes* (not towards any of you all!)

Another one is when a few loud parents sit in the waiting room discussing other parents in the studio or other students negatively. And discussing their weekend activities complete with all the partying details and cussing. We currently have this problem at our studio, and the director has approached them several times. It they continue.

For those that question the monthly payments when there are short or long weeks. You can state that tuition is based on an average of "so many" classes not how many weeks are in the month.

TranscendDance wrote:

For those that question the monthly payments when there are short or long weeks. You can state that tuition is based on an average of "so many" classes not how many weeks are in the month.

I based mine in 30 classes for Sept-June but arranged for 36 classes, because of snow cancellations, etc. If we held all 36, they did not pay more, but if we cancelled for snow, or other emergencies (which was never near 6), they did not pay less.

Then they paid them in ten installments. If they started late, we pro-rated their fee. I still had parents asking why December was the same rate as January. I often wonder if some people are truly that ignorant.

Please do not send me an email wondering why your child cannot do a simple buck time step. My reply will not come quickly. Seeing as how she hasn't been to class in 3 weeks and her attendance was crappy even before that. Maybe if she didn't flake out on her classes every week because she has a pain in her finger, she wouldn't stick out like a sore thumb. She always seems to make it to hip hop though.