Is testing season over yet? Oh my I can't wait until it is!
Thanks to everyone for your flexibility over the last several weeks. This time of year presents a whole new level of scheduling challenges. It's been quite the puzzle, but it seems like we've gotten through pretty well.
Congratulations to all the bands and their UIL performances! I'm glad to see so many First Division ratings. We should all be proud of the fine work that your children do in band. Every one of them contributes to the success of the band!
Looking towards the end of school, I will be curtailing lessons as we approach the end of the school year. My focus will become on those that are working towards contest performances and auditions. I know that for many schools, the last couple weeks become filled with other end-of-school year activities and festivities that often interrupt normal schedules. Plus, I will be preparing my house for the return of my son from college, and family visits and trips throughout the summer, so the wind-down of lessons for a couple weeks will give me time to do that.
This is the time to look forward to summer lessons. Like in past summers, I will be available for lessons most weeks over the summer. I will be away a couple times, of course, but I am planning on being available most weekdays when I am here, excluding holidays. I know many of my students will also have trips and other activities planned, so for the summer, I do not keep a regular weekly schedule, but set up lessons on a week-to-week basis. That allows us to work around everyone's schedule, and find a convenient time for lessons. We are somewhat limited by when schools are open for lessons, but if you're willing to drive a little farther than usual, there are usually other schools that I teach at, not too far away, that can accommodate us on almost any weekday. So, with that in mind, I will be discussing the possibility of summer lessons with you and your child over the next few weeks.
Once change from past summer's lessons, for those of you who have been with me that long: Last summer is when we switched permanently to the billing-after system for our invoices. As we hoped, this has seemed to cut down on the confusion surrounding when we receive payments and when you see those payments on your invoice. Since we are not following a regular schedule each week for summer lessons, we will expect payment at the time of each week's lesson. We will still send an invoice at the end of each month, however, if you have not paid for that month's lessons at the time of billing, I will not be able to schedule lessons for the next month until the balance is paid in full. The reason for this is that, again, since we are not meeting every week, and sometimes we may have many weeks without lessons, it helps us to remember any balances due and take care of them in a timely fashion. Having those balances cleared before the next month, we hope, will eliminate confusion about any outstanding balances at the end of summer. I'm sure we can all appreciate a little less confusion! =)
As schedules have shifted, I have added several new students over the last couple months. If you are new, or if you have been with me for a while, but have just missed it, here are a couple of my previous blog posts that you may find helpful:
https://www.hudsonmusicstudio.com/2020/10/welcome-new-flute-students.html
https://www.hudsonmusicstudio.com/2020/04/how-to-pay-for-lessons-in-remote.html
I look forward to seeing all of you soon!
