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Lessons
The PSKG year is divided into three semesters, as
follows:
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Fall - September to December |
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Spring - January to May |
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Summer - June to August |
Breaks are given at Thanksgiving, Christmas, Spring
Break, Memorial Day & Labor Day (go to Events
for exact dates).
To assure continued and effective learning, certain
things are expected of PSKG students:
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Students are expected to bring
to each lesson their Piano Lesson Book and all books currently
being used. A book is considered "currently being used"
until I say we are finished with it. |
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Students are expected to do
ALL assignments each week. I know there are sometimes extenuating
circumstances and I will try to be fair about such things.
Exceptions to this requirement, however, should be rare. |
To assure quality lessons, certain things are also
expected of those in my studio while a student is having a lesson:
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Avoid entering the studio
before your scheduled lesson time. |
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Enter quietly in case the
previous student's lesson is not yet finished. |
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Avoid disrupting a student's
lesson in any way. For parents, this includes talking on
the phone, to the student currently having a lesson or to
other parents/students/siblings. For students, siblings
and guests, this includes standing close to the piano, talking,
arguing, running, etc. |
Fees
Tuition is based on 40 lessons per year, pro-rated to 12 equal,
monthly payments. Tuition amounts are as follows:
30 minutes |
$77.00 |
45 minutes |
$115.50 |
60 minutes |
$154.00 |
The total of 40 lessons is divided into two groups, with 34 lessons
during Fall & Spring and 6 during Summer (see Scheduling
& Attendance below). To maintain a place in the PSKG schedule,
fees must be paid for each month of the year,
whether or not scheduled lessons are attended (see Scheduling
& Attendance below).
Tuition is due on the first of each month and is considered late
if not received by the 10th of the month. For payments made after
the 10th of the month, add $15. Payment may be made by check,
money order or cash. Checks and money orders should be made payable
to Kevin Guess.
The Operations Fee is an annual fee of $50 and
is due in September, at the beginning of the Fall semester. For
students beginning lessons in the Spring Semester or Summer semesters,
the fee will be waived. This fee goes towards the expenses of
running my studio, including materials (paper, printer supplies,
reward stickers, piano tuning, etc.) and the cost of recitals.
This fee is non-refundable.
Throughout the year, fees in addition to those above may be required
for various materials & events as follows:
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Books & Sheet Music |
Fee: |
Varying according to item, generally $3
- $15 each |
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Metronome |
Fee: |
Varying according to model, generally $30 - $50 |
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Duet Recital* |
Fee: |
$15/student - Maximum of 2 extra lessons given at no
extra charge |
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CCMTA Events* |
Fee: |
Varying according to event, ranging from $7 - $30 |
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Examinations* |
Fee: |
Varying according to classification & exam |
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*Optional |
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Duet Recital fees will be added to the next
month’s tuition. For other fees, I will assume responsibility
for their payment. At the time of purchase of materials or payment
of event fees, I will make a special invoice for those fees and
present it to the student or parent, or I will include it on the
next month's invoice. These fees may be paid for at that time
or be included with the following month’s Tuition.
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Scheduling
& Attendance
Consistent, regular lessons are important for
a student's progress. Furthermore, when you pay for lessons,
I reserve a time for you on a regular basis and cannot make
up that time if you do not use it. Therefore, refunds
are not given unless I miss a lesson and the lesson
cannot be made up.
During the Fall & Spring semesters, the schedule
is fixed. If something changes in your schedule and you would
like to change your lesson time or day, it may be possible,
but I cannot guarantee it. Any changes will depend on someone
else changing their time as well. During the Summer, things
are more flexible. In April I will give students a chart on
which they can select the weeks and times they would like to
have their Summer lessons.
If I miss a lesson, I will make up the lesson
or, if that is not possible, will credit the amount to the next
month’s invoice. If a student must miss a lesson, the
lesson can be made up providing I am contacted at least 24
hours in advance of the regularly scheduled lesson
time and a make-up time can be found. Students may make up a
lesson according to any of the following three options:
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The student may swap lessons
with another student (see below). |
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If I have a cancellation
or a suitable time outside my normal time, I may offer
that time at my discretion. |
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If necessary, one day of
the Memorial and Labor Day breaks may be dedicated to
make-up lessons. |
Missing lessons disrupts a student’s progress,
and so I will try to see that lessons are made up, within boundaries
I think are fair and reasonable. Missed lessons, however, must
be made up within the semester in which they are missed.
Thus, a lesson missed in the Spring cannot be made up in the
following Summer semester or thereafter. If a lesson the student
misses cannot be made up, it will be forfeited.
For swapping lessons, each student will be given
a copy of the Student Contact Sheet and will be able to access
my schedule online by going to the Schedule
page of my website. To swap lessons, find someone who has a
spot in my schedule that will work for you and contact them
to see if they can switch with your child's lesson time.
Leaving the Studio
Students planning to leave my studio are asked
to notify me at least one month in advance. If a student leaves
after the first lesson of a month, no portion of that month’s
Tuition will be refunded. It is thus best to plan to leave after
the last lesson of a month.
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Practice
The two most important things about piano practice
are quality and consistency. Quality practice means focused
work toward attaining a clear goal. Consistency means doing
this on a regular, daily basis.
Students are expected to practice 5 days/week.
More often than this is actually not good, as it doesn’t
give the brain time to rest and assimilate all that has been
learned. Less often than this will tend to result in loss of
what has been learned.
The amount of daily quality practice time determines
the rate of progress. Except for very young students (under
6) or special needs students, the minimum duration of each practice
time for good progress is 30 minutes. This does not necessarily
need to be done all at once. It is better to break the practice
time up into two shorter periods of quality practice than to
attempt one 30 minute session, but spend the last 5 or 10 minutes
accomplishing little. For intermediate to advance students,
45 minutes to an hour or more needs to be spent on quality practice
if good progress is to be maintained.
Parents can be very helpful in seeing that the
student practices and in providing encouragement and positive
reinforcement. One of the biggest ways a parent can help is
simply to notice what her child is doing. Try to be aware of
the progress your child is making on a particular piece and
to let him/her know that you have noticed. It is also helpful
to ask him/her to play for you now and then. Additionally, students
age 7 & under will need you to help them with practicing
and with written work until they have learned enough to work
correctly on their own. Your help in the first few months will
insure that they get a good start and a firm foundation for
future progress.
Materials
The Piano Lessons Book consists of a ring binder
divided into sections. Assignment sheets are done on my computer
during the lesson and either printed out at the end of the lesson
or emailed to the student or parent on the day of the lesson.
Whichever way, the assignment sheet should be put in the Assignments
section of the Piano Lessons Book for the student’s easy
reference.
The Piano Lessons Book will also include the PSKG Policies Quick
Reference, the PSKG Annual Calendar, Guide to Music Stores and
Performance Locations, Guide to Online Music Resources and various
pages that I give students during the course of their study.
The student is expected to take care of the Piano Lessons Book
and its contents.
Music books needed will vary, depending on the
student. Generally, these may include method books, theory books,
technique books, various individual sheet music (such as required
pieces for contests) and repertoire books. A metronome is needed
fairly early. It will not be used extensively for some time,
but it can be used early on with some things to help the student
become used to it and also to develop a more sure sense of pulse.
As stated under Materials & Events Fees above, I will assume
responsibility for purchasing books needed and a metronome.
Recitals & Other
Events
Currently, I present three recitals each year.
These are the Holiday Festival Recital in December, the Spring
Recital in May and the Duet Recital in August. In addition,
there are various other events offered through CCMTA and other
organizations in which students can participate. These include
non-studio recitals, festivals, contests (performance, composition
and essay) and examinations (such as those offered by Guild
and ABRSM). There is no additional fee for the PSKG Holiday
Festival Recital or Spring Recital. All other activities do
involve an additional fee, including the Duet Recital. None
of these, including PSKG recitals, are absolute requirements,
but students are strongly encouraged to participate. All of
these activities present students with the opportunity to test
their abilities. Performances and competitions are especially
valuable as these are activities we are all called upon to do
in life, at some point, in a variety of situations. The experience
of performing before an audience or competing against one’s
peers at the piano is a great way to gain confidence in oneself
in those kinds of situations.
Parking
Please park on the street in front of my house
or on the right side of the driveway. The left side of the driveway
is used by my wife, so parking there may prevent her from entering
or leaving the garage.
Problems
or Complaints
If you are having a problem connected to piano
lessons, or if you have a complaint about anything I do or that
occurs in my studio, please contact me about it. I do not like
for conflicts to go unresolved, and I certainly want to know
about any problem having to do with piano lessons. If the problem
involves your child, I prefer that you contact me outside the
lesson, by email or phone. This way, the child is not drawn
into the discussion unless that is really necessary .
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