When group classes dominate the floor

[DanceMentor]

I called the studio owner tonight about a problem.
Our floor is about the size of a competition floor.
Tomorrow starts a new month for my Intermediate Waltz class. There are 18 people in the class. Last month there was only one class, mine.
This month they have added a beginning swing class, and there are 15 signups.
In addition, there are 3 private lessons scheduled for that hour.

I sort of feel bad for the private lesson students, and sure hope they won't be working on something like Quickstep. It will never work.

Have you ever had problems with too many things going on at the same time?

 

[reb]

The good news - you're about to own your own studio!

We encounter this problem often. As amatuers in a large metro area, we can generally pick and choose which studio to use at different times - depending on their schedules, and even then it's not too easy. For example, Studio A for lessons on Monday evenings and Saturday mornings, Studio B for rounds on Friday / Sunday evenings, Studio C for an occasional lesson when the pro (in your same position) can fit us in. When we were pro/am, we just went along with it because the instructor led the way with a positive attitude.
Otherwise, I think trying to fit private lessons in a 'happening' studio's crowded floor can be discouraging.

 

[reb]

DanceMentor, The more I think about it, the more I remember how/why we moved into this routine. There is no way we can practice our standard and smooth in that environment - yes, we understand floorcraft and can work on manageable bits - the problem is not so much the size of the room as there are a dozen different styles, levels, and abilities, and throw in a wedding dance - and if we'd didn't wipe out some very nice people, we'd scare the daylights out of them.

 

[Chris Stratton]

Most likely if the private lesson students feel that their needs are not met in that situation (quickstep in theory vs quickstep in practice for example) they will insist on rescheduling to a different time in the following weeks, perhaps late at night would be a possibility. Obviously there's some risk of losing business... dancers who've been around for a while read the situation, consider their options (constrained lesson, late lesson, lesson elsewhere) and make their decisions.

 

[tangotime]

space

having owned many studios over the yrs, the group problem always rears its head . the problem for an owner, is this-- it raises very good revenue and is the source for private as well as practice sessions . Most studios of a large nature, with one room , frequently book more than one class at the same hr. ( not in the u.k. ) It is the responsibility of the teacher to advise his student (s ) of the potential lack of space . It would be foolhardy to book ANY Intern. style lesson during a very well attended class, ; amer. rhythm might work, but again, music, if needed becomes a problem .I have, in the past. with a large enough student body, run a 2 hr session once a week, where only couples dancing at silver and upwards attended ( others at their own risk ) actually did this in n.y.c. at a chain school, and was very successful.Its always difficult to meet everyones needs at any given hour, practice sessions, in large schools, can become very frustrating for the advanced dancer. Suggestion--if you belong a large student body school with a good proportion of silver and upwards, approach your manager and suggest a special night for that group, he may be surprised how well it works !!

 

[Twilight_Elena]

The only solution with groups that take up space is to schedhule them at times when there are no private lessons (or very very few).

T_E

 

[fascination]

I, knowing when group classes are at my old studio, and b/c I rarely dance latin/rhythm...just never never schedule a lesson during the group hour...I would think that the other pros there would be careful about who takes a lesson at that time and what the focus of the lesson is...it seems an innocent enough problem to be worked around, NO?

 

[tangotime]

time

From some of the responses., it is becoming fairly apparent that none of you have had the experience of owning and or managing a dance school, A good one should run like a well oiled machine ( few do) If one has the luxury of more than one teaching room, even that does not always resolve all situations.; have been involved with 3 rooms, and still problems arise . you should be aware that in the profession , the prime time hours ( 7, 8 and 9 ) attracts most of our business ( fla. possibly an exception-- lots of day time bookings ) and in most schools, the 8 p.m. hr dominates.Throw in practice sessions using up all available space in some cases. Now add to the mix, the availability of the student, time wise. As you begin to see, it becomes a juggling act .have seen some schools run a beginners only session for practice, which can only work if you have enough in that level . Many yrs ago, the Houston f / a , ran 5 parties a week and you were only allowed to attend on the nite you were assigned ( had close to 500 plus students ) On the reverse side, have seen were 1 practice a month was all there was .So-- when you come in for your lesson, realise the planning that has to gone into running a successful studio . ( dont even mention when teachers are sick etc )Empathise with your comments, but I think we do the best we can , given the situation in which we operate .

 

[argentine_princess]

I guess I'm really lucky, my studio only ever has one class scheduled at a time and never private lessons with a group class. We may have a maximum of three private lessons at one time but that's perfectly workable; gives one a chance to work on floor craft!
Our group lessons can be really packed as my teachers are on Strictly Come Dancing (UK Dancing with the Stars) so people turn up just to meet them but that's ok you expect group lessons to be quite full of people!
Reading other people's experiences I guess I'm quite lucky, the only reason I've ever had to have a lesson late at night is if that's the only time my coaches can fit us in and I've never had to go to a different studio unless its the night before a comp and I'm getting extra practice. I think I've been taking my situation a little for granted!

 

[tanya_the_dancer]

I called the studio owner tonight about a problem.
Our floor is about the size of a competition floor.
Tomorrow starts a new month for my Intermediate Waltz class. There are 18 people in the class. Last month there was only one class, mine.
This month they have added a beginning swing class, and there are 15 signups.
In addition, there are 3 private lessons scheduled for that hour.

I sort of feel bad for the private lesson students, and sure hope they won't be working on something like Quickstep. It will never work.

Have you ever had problems with too many things going on at the same time?

Our studio does not have more than one group class going on at the same time, but it often has several private lessons going on at the same time as the groups. 7pm is the peak time here for lessons. I personally try not to schedule my lessons to coincide with the more popular group classes. Another thing that I noticed is that people who come at the peak times are often beginners who do not take up as much space, as, say, advanced students doing standard.

 

[Chris Stratton]

It would be foolhardy to book ANY Intern. style lesson during a very well attended class

I disagree with that absolute.

First of all, there's latin, which requires a lot less space than standard. And even within standard, so much depends on the subject to be covered. Much of the most important information to be presented and learned does not involve phrased movement - it's the little details of action in one step, discussed and tried repeatedly in a fairly small area.

Of course that is not the whole story... it is also necessary to have lessons that address issues involved in full and continued movement, and I have in at least one recent instance discontinued a set of lessons in part due to lack of space to work on some of my goals.

Lack of space is a serious concern, but it doesn't mean that nothing productive can be accomplished during that time, it just means that lessons need to be scheduled for purposes that can tolerate a lack of space.

 

[Purr]

Have you ever had problems with too many things going on at the same time?

Generally, I do not schedule lessons when group classes are going on. But sometimes the situation can not be avoided. Then most likely it's rhythm or Latin dances or technique, which don't require a lot of floor space, unless the group class is tiny. I don't like the idea of trying to maneuver around a group of people, even though I'm not leading. It would be disruptive to the class.

 

[tangotime]

chris

Chris , you can disagree all you like-- how many studios have you owned or run ? -- till you have tried that format in varying situations ( have over forty yrs plus ) you would come to realise the impracticality of it. Always, but always, have i had my students complain about the lack of space when teaching large groups in one room and trying to accomodate private lessons . of course , there are going to be situations where that may be feasible, but those in my extensive experience, have lead to more problems than they are worth. You have not experienced the behind the scenes problems that arise daily on a private lesson basis , due to the demands that students make upon management , It only encourages discontent ( even from my staff !! )

 

[Chris Stratton]

Chris , you can disagree all you like-- how many studios have you owned or run ? -- till you have tried that format in varying situations ( have over forty yrs plus ) you would come to realise the impracticality of it. Always, but always, have i had my students complain about the lack of space when teaching large groups in one room and trying to accomodate private lessons . of course , there are going to be situations where that may be feasible, but those in my extensive experience, have lead to more problems than they are worth. You have not experienced the behind the scenes problems that arise daily on a private lesson basis , due to the demands that students make upon management , It only encourages discontent ( even from my staff !! )

Obviously space is important and always desired. But for a serious student or couple trying to learn key skills and concepts, quite often getting some time with a teacher even with limited space is better than not getting a lesson. I've had teachers whose studios, even when empty, were not in any realistic sense appropriate for dancing standard in - yet those have been some of my most effective lessons in terms of development.

But for someone wanting to spend their lesson dancing around, obviously it won't work. This easily ties into the difference between the business of training dancers, vs. the business of selling dancing.

 

[tangotime]

chris

let me add this to the mix-- all my comp. couples over the yrs ( and Iv,e had hundreds ) and my Intern . types, would NEVER come in during a group session, neither would i ask them to. have worked in n.y.c. chain schools under the most adverse space conditions, where mandatory groups took place on a reg. nitely basis,and-- trying to teach brand new students in the same room has lead to more losses than you can ever imagine .And, the more people know, the more demanding they become about space ( as a general rule ) and will not book in during class hrs. Dont even lets get into the " music " thing .that even on a normal lesson basis becomes a huge problem for many schools .Have seen many top flight dancers take on studio responsibilities, and fail . its a very complex animal, and needs constant nurturing-- been there-- done that .