New Covid-19 Protocol Policies for Everyone’s Safety                                      Updated 8/27/2020

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Covid Policies will be Strictly Enforced while the pandemic persists.

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1.     No one will be allowed into the studio without a mask worn properly (covering nostrils and mouth, preferably 3 layers). Bandannas and neck gaiters are not recommended. Unfortunately, we are not able to provide masks.

 

2.     Students must arrive 5-10 minutes early to stand by. We hope to have every student inside on the dance floor and the door locked as close to class start time as possible. If attending via Zoom, the dancer needs to be signed in and standing by 5 minutes before class. With our tight schedule and added safety routines, late arrivals disrupt everyone and cannot be accommodated. Expect classes to start and end promptly. If your student will not be able to be on time, we welcome you to be a part of our dance community by accessing the class via Zoom. If a student arrives after the door closes and class has begun, they will not be admitted, and are encouraged to take the class via Zoom at home.

 

3.    The door will be locked until class start time. Students and families are asked to wait outside the building. There is no longer a waiting area inside the studio. A maximum of 3 students line up at the door, socially distanced 6 feet apart. If there are already 3 students in line, please wait inside the car.

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4.     Everyone will have their temperature measured with a touch-free thermometer as they enter the building. No one is allowed in the building with a temperature of 100°F or higher (37.7° C). Students who are not feeling well are encouraged to take or monitor the class at home via Zoom. Every attending student’s temperature will be logged for each class.

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5.     Students will not be allowed to change clothes in the bathroom. Students should be wearing their dance clothes under their outerwear. The bathroom door must remain open at all times (except for brief, urgent use of the toilet), so that it can be properly ventilated.

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6.     Only Students and staff will be allowed inside the building, with the exception of PreBallet Students, who must have an adult alongside at all times. No street shoes are permitted on the dance floor; adults accompanying PreBallet students may wear socks or ballet slippers on the dance floor.

 

7.     Upon entering, each student goes to an empty chair. There are only 8 chairs, and they have been socially distanced for safety. The chairs are not to be moved. 

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8.     Student should quickly remove street shoes and outerwear and leave these on their chair (shoes go under the chair). The cubby hole unit does not allow for social distancing, and will not be used by students while the pandemic is active.

 

9.     Student then quickly heads to the dance floor, taking along their dance bag with water bottle, and places it on an X in front of mirrors or behind the dance floor (there are 8 socially distanced X’s marked with blue painter’s tape). The student should wait on the dance floor next to their X until the teacher assigns them a place.

 

10.  Class size has been limited to 8 students, allowing us to socially distance.

 

11.  Once all students have entered the building, the door will be locked. It still opens easily from the inside, but no one else will be admitted. [Teachers who have keys to the studio may enter sometimes to prepare for the next class.]

 

12.  Teacher will then assign each student to a square on the floor or a place at the barre where the student will remain throughout the barre exercises [no “rotating” to next place at the barre while the pandemic persists]. For Ballet, we have a set barre arrangement that distances the students at least 6 feet apart. Barres as well as door handles are wiped down with alcohol before each class.

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13.  Students need to bring their own water bottles. For sanitary reasons, we will not be providing water or drinking cups. It is up to the teacher whether to call for a water break.  Water should be kept with the dance bag at the X so it is readily available.

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14.  Once Barre is finished, students may be asked to help move their barres off the dance floor (barres will be wiped down again between classes).

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15.  Work done in Center Floor: Our large floor area and high ceilings give us ample room to socially distance and ventilate. Teachers will assign spots on the floor to dancers.

 

16.  Nine 6-foot x 6-foot Boundary Squares are indicated by blue tape on the floor. Two-foot margins exist between each square. Teacher may demonstrate in the center front square, or upstage behind the students.

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17.  If there is any traveling “across the floor” movement (teacher will make do with as little of this as possible), it will be done one at a time on a slight diagonals, with a full music phrase in between each student (think of the amount of time after a masked jogger passes before you would want to enter that space). Students wait on the sprung floor next to clearly marked,  socially distanced X’s alongside it. If done at all, this will be done at the end of class. Students may opt out and wait at their chair with their street clothes. They will not exit the studio until the end of class.

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18.  After Class has finished, dancers take their dance bags and water bottles to their chair to change. One by one, keeping social distance, they will exit the studio through the emergency exit (facing the building, it is the door on the right corner of our storefront, a few feet from our main entrance door). The teacher will be the last one out, will shut the door, and walk around to the main entrance to re-enter. The barres and door handles will be wiped down before the front door is unlocked for the students of the next class.

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19.  We have only been able to add 15 minutes for transition time, when students exit, the barres and door handles are all wiped down, next students have temperatures logged, etc. It is extremely important that no student dawdles. 

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20.  Zoom-hybrid classes: We understand that some of our families will still want to quarantine, and we are setting up the studio to allow these students to Zoom along online at home with their class in the studio, so as to not fall too far behind their friends. For those students not yet ready to attend in person, the teacher will have a Zoom camera placed by the front desk which will show most of the dance floor. The camera will Chrome-cast to a 32” monitor in the opposite corner so that teachers can keep an eye on both in-studio students and online students. The teacher will wear a microphone so that students will be able to hear both the teacher and the music. Concerned parents should also be able to watch via zoom to see that COVID protocols are being followed. Zoom classes will not be open to the general public. Details about how to access Zoom classes will be shared after students enroll.

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21.  Please talk to your student about these policies so they understand the constraints we are all under. Make sure they understand that this is in order that the studio may be allowed  to open during the pandemic, but also that this is for their safety, and the safety of all who use the studio. If your student will have difficulty adhering to these policies, again, we welcome you to be a part of our dance community by accessing the class via Zoom.

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22.  Unfortunately, we will not be allowing make-up classes in-person during the active pandemic. Your child’s dance class should be the same group of students each week, modeled after the public schools’ use of “pods” of cohorts to minimize person-to-person contacts. Missed classes may be made up using an online class at an equal or lower level.

 

23.  We understand that classes are scheduled earlier and later than may be ideal. We needed to do this in order to have time to clear, ventilate and wipe down the studio. When the pandemic ends, we will try to push the early classes a little later, and by eliminating the 15-minute breaks, move the late classes a little earlier. We know it is not ideal, but there seemed no other way without cutting back the number of classes and raising all the tuition amounts to cover for fewer classes.

 

24.  Late Pick Up Penalty - If a family is late picking up their child, delaying start of the next class, that student may be asked to take their next class online. PLEASE THINK OF THE ENTRANCE AND EXIT TIMES AS IF YOUR STUDENT WERE CATCHING THE BUS. It’s important to be at the bus stop, waiting for the bus to arrive. The door opens, students board, the door closes, and the bus leaves. If the student is late, they miss the bus. The end of class is a similar situation: the bus arrives, the door opens, students disembark, and the bus moves along. If the parent isn’t there, the student is alone at the bus stop. ONCE CLASS STARTS, THE DANCE BUS HAS LEFT. Unfortunately, there is no waiting area for your child to occupy without interfering with the next class.

 

Please remember that Students and Teachers will be required to wear masks at all times in the studio.  We understand this will take some getting used to, and we will be careful regarding exertion. It is possible, and professional dancers are doing it.  It does take some getting used to.  Here are some videos you might show your child:

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https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=296990064692149&extid=G96iR6filMCv1QoT

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https://nypost.com/2020/07/28/uk-doctor-ran-22-miles-with-face-mask-to-debunk-this-myth/

 

Additionally, you may be interested to know:

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Air filtration: We have purchased a Dyson Pure Cool air purifier which can filter out virus particles in an area up to 800 square feet. We will run it during class, and overnight it will filter from the center of our dance floor. It may help with aerosol transmission, but not with typical interpersonal transmission of larger droplets, so masks must still be worn correctly in the studio at all times.

Hand sanitizer is available to students inside the studio if desired. Students will not be touching door handles, as the teacher will hold the door open to let each student in/out.  The students will only be touching their own belongings, and their place at the barre in Ballet classes. The door to the bathroom will remain open, except if the toilet is used.  Students may wash their hands in the sink after touching the bathroom door handle.

 

We hope you are looking forward to dancing. We can’t wait to see you again!