June 17, 2020
Dear Parent & Dancer,
I hope this email finds you well. I and my staff have been busy preparing for our upcoming Summer and Fall Sessions and packaging up all of the costumes, recital T's, Fall Schedules, and a special surprise for our dancers. ;)
We have also spent a lot of time and energy creating our re-opening plan. We want all of our dancers and their parents, to feel confident about taking dance classes at TTP. Whether it be in July or in September, when you return to dance class you can rest assured that all TTP locations will be clean and safe environments for our dancers to learn in.
This protocol is for the safety and well-being of our staff, our students, and their family members. We appreciate your understanding and compliance in doing what is necessary to keep everyone safe and healthy.
Although we already maintain clean, sanitary, and updated dance studios, we have implemented some new processes that we feel will be important during this time.
TTP COVID-19 PROTOCOL:
~Upon arrival, outside the studio, each dancer's temperature will be taken with a no-touch thermometer.
~Parents will read and sign a symptom checklist.
~Trainees/Teachers will escort each dancer into the studio.
~Dancers hands will be sprayed with antibacterial lotion at the beginning and in between classes when changes shoes and/or before and after eating a snack (where applicable)
~Dancers will enter the dance room one at a time and place their bag into the assigned cubbie.
~Dancers will be given a number and that will be there number for that day.
~They will dance 6 feet apart when at the barre, in the center or when going across the floor.
~They will change shoes in their designated spot.
~Barres will be wrapped with plastic wrap which will be marked 6 feet apart and will be removed after class.
~Barres will be wiped down in between classes.
~Dancers will be escorted out to the parents at the end of the class.
~All dancers and staff members must wear masks
~All parents must remain outside for the time being.
~All Accounts will be on auto charge for the time being
~The lobby will not be open for the time being.
*As guidelines change, we will modify our protocol to reflect those changes.
As in everything that we do, we will always be professional, kid-friendly, patient, and kind to our students throughout all of these processes. You can feel confident that TTP has the safety and well-being of you and your dancer in the forefront of our minds. We want our students to enjoy being in dance class again. We want to be able to share those special moments that we all enjoy together. It's time to get back to dance and implementing some normality back into our lives. TTP is a family and together, we know we can keep our dancers doing what they love.
That being said, we are excited to announce that our Summer programs are running per usual and will begin on July 13th.
If you wish or still need to sign up, please click here: SUMMER PROGRAMS
~Camps & Intensives will run in Cranston only in order to keep the groupings at one location.
~Recreational classes will be held at all three locations.
Fall Registration begins on July 20th. We strongly advise you to sign up right away as we will have limited class sizes and will not be able to go over those limits in the ways that we sometimes do. Once our classes fill up, we will make new classes where necessary/possible. But even Teen levels will be subject to a group size limitation. It is imperative that you sign up for September on July 20th or soon thereafter to have placement in a class.
As always, to be registered for a Fall class, September tuition + the $25 registration fee per dancer must be paid in full. At this time, we will only be accepting those payments online. I will send out Fall Enrollment links in July.
COSTUME ARE READY FOR PICKUP!
**If you still have a remaining balance, you will be receiving a link for payment online shortly via email. Please take care of this balance BEFORE picking up your costumes.
Please click the following link to sign up with the Signup Genius so that you may arrange a time to stop by your studio location to pick up your dancer's costumes, fall schedule, Recital T, and a special surprise from TTP :) Costumes will only be available for pickup at the location that you or your child dances at. You MUST SIGN UP to be able to pick up your costumes......
CRANSTON LOCATION PICK-UP: Cranston Families Click Here to sign up
SMITHFIELD LOCATION PICKUP: Smithfield Families click here to sign up
COVENTRY LOCATION PICKUP: Coventry families click here to sign up
Thank you for your support and we look forward to seeing everyone back in class real soon!
With Love,
Mrs Sheri & Staff
May 30, 2020
Greetings Everyone!
With Love, Mrs Sheri, Director
Week of May 26th, 2020
Good Afternoon!
I hope you all enjoyed a nice long weekend!
With the upcoming commencement of Phase 2, I want to update you on the status of To The Pointe.....
We are currently finishing up our May classes and preparing for one more session of June classes for those of you who would like to participate.
Click below for more details: JUNE DANCE CLASSES
***We will not automatically charge your Credit card for June as this is a new session. Please click the link to sign up and receive your class code to participate.
In June:
We will be packaging costumes, preparing them to go home. Inside the bags will be costumes, tights, the fall schedule, recital t-shirts where applicable, and a surprise for each dancer. Due to the circumstances, we were unable to afford to purchase the trophies that we usually get but we were able to find a suitable replacement to commemorate the year of learning and reward our dancers for a job well done.
We will also be using that time to prepare the studios for our re-opening plan. We are making sure that our business provides a safe environment for our dancers to learn in. It is of utmost importance that we feel confident and ready for when our students come back to the studio for in-studio classes. Soon, our re-opening guidelines will be emailed to you and posted on our facebook pages as well as on our website. It will be very important that everyone understands, adheres to, and abides by our plan to insure a safe learning environment at TTP.
In July:
We will open for our summer sessions per usual on July 13th. Camps, Classes, and Intensives will run. Class sizes will be limited to 15 people. If you are interested in signing up your dancer, please do so ASAP, so that we can assess if we have enough students to run our summer session OR if we have so many that we need to break up the groups and add additional classes. Deadline to sign up for Summer programs has now been made for Monday June 11th so that we will have enough time to adjust our plans accordingly. Click here for more information: Summer Registration Now OPEN!
We will also be taken Fall Registration beginning on July 20th. All registration will be done ONLINE ONLY.
PLEASE BEGIN TO REGISTER ON THAT DAY TO SAVE A SPOT IN OUR CLASSES as class sizes will be smaller than usual this year.....
Link will be emailed out soon.
DANCEWEAR SALE:
We will be holding our Back to School dance wear sale at the beginning of August. All dance wear for the Fall will be 25% off. It is easy to purchase dance wear online, but when you purchase dance wear in person, you insure the correct fit, get longevity out of your shoes, and lesson having to make returns. Also, purchasing closer to the start of the Fall Season is a better idea than purchasing your dancewear now. We will be posting information about our sale soon.
As always, I want to thank you all for your unwavering support. This has been an uncertain time for us all and we are thankful for the support you have given and continue to give to us.
We look forward to seeing our dancers back in the place where they shine!!!!
Have a great day!
Mrs Sheri
Week of May 18th, 2020
Dear Parents & Dancers,
Well, the time has come for us to make some difficult decisions regarding our end of the year recitals and the events leading up to it. I have spent many hours thinking, strategizing, and speaking to Mrs Alicia and my staff in hopes of making the right decision for us all. During contemplation, we found that we had come up with various scenarios that were strong possibilities. All of which had good points and bad. We knew that whatever we decided would not be the same as what we usually offered in a recital season experience. The options must be to the benefit of each and every one of the 650 + students that we teach and adore. We realized, that even though we were attempting to have some sort of control of this situation, that was not the case.
No matter what scenario we came up with, we were met with road blocks. I spent some time thinking about how to handle all of this and deal with the stresses of the change in our business, still offering classes to our dancers via Zoom and keeping To The Pointe a float. I do not want to disappoint my dancers or their families but I know that what we are used to, the experience that we cherish and the organized way that we do things would be altered due to the COVID-19 situation. In order to provide the experiences of the end of the year, such as the recitals, picture days, etc, we would need the support of all of the additional businesses that help us make those events a success:( ie: the photographer, the videographer, RI College, floral companies, trophy manufacturers, etc)
At this time, most of those businesses aren't even open or running and RI College has finally confirmed to me that they have closed their venues to all of us-indefinitely.
After taking in account all of these points and the apprehension due to the safety and well-being of our students, staff, and extended families, and the uncertainty that the upcoming months bring, I feel that the most responsible decision is to cancel all end of the year events for 2020.
I know that each of our dancers will feel disappointed and frustrated. I know that we are sadden by this for many reasons. This is not a decision that I made lightly and it pains me to even type these words. But I have to do what I think is best for all of us.
We have been speaking to our dancers over the past couple of weeks, in preparation for this possible outcome. We know that our dancers are strong, confident, and smart . They understand the severity of the situation and as much as they would love to perform on stage, they understand that the limitations set forth by the governor and so many other reasons do not allow us to be able to perform this year.
Most importantly, I want our dancers to learn and understand that just because certain things happen in life, it doesn't mean that we fall to pieces. We pick ourselves up, continue to work hard, we stay committed and we look forward to the next opportunities that are given to us. We continue to thrive and do our best work no matter what. We do not let that which we cannot control, control us. Instead we choose to react in a way that is positive.
This being our final day of what would have been picture day weekend, many emotions have been brought to the surface. Typing this email to you all is very difficult. I would have never imagined that I would ever miss a recital season while in business. But here we are.
I appreciate, more than I can explain in words, how thankful we are to all of you for your support , financially, and emotionally, while we have been offering virtual classes during the months of April and May. When this all began, I was in a bit of a panic and it took a couple of weeks for me to wrap my head around being in business with no income or not being able to open back up. I am doing everything I can to keep my staff employed and the studio running as best as possible.
Without all of your support, quite frankly, we would not make it through.
Remember, we have 2 weeks left of learning yet for May. We are looking forward to making these classes fun and enjoyable for our students. We will not be running classes on Monday May 25th as it is Memorial Day, so Monday 5/18 will be our last Monday in May. If you would like to continue, we have a great program in store for you in June. If you are on autopay, your account will not be charged for June. You must click the link and register for the class that you wish to register for if you would like to continue in June.
That being said, we are looking forward to the opportunities that will arise when Phase 2 and 3 come to fruition. We are hoping to offer a few different programs that our dancers may enjoy. For those of our dancers who have been enjoying virtual classes, we are offering a 4 week program in June. The June Dance Workshop will run on Tuesday evenings. We are offering 4 different classes: A children's Creative Movement/Ballet class for ages 2-4, A Children's Hip Hop class for ages 5-8, A Preteen Hip Hop class for ages 9-12, and an Advanced Technique class which will include Jazz and Lyrical Combinations as well as leaps, turns and Jumps for ages 11 & up. Please click on the link below for more information. Each class is $50 for the 4 week session. Classes will run from June 2nd-24th. Once you pay for the classes, we will send you a code to the classes as the codes will be different for the month of June.These classes will provide a new and fun way to continue learning and doing what they love.
You may click here to view and register for our JUNE DANCE WORKSHOP:
Also in June, we will be packaging your costumes, printing out the Fall Schedule, and preparing a End of Year Surprise for each dancer to commemorate this year of learning. We will email out a sign up list for you to pick up your child's costumes during a specific week near the middle/end of June. As I have stated before, costumes are non-refundable and we planned to use as many of these costumes as we can for our Holiday Show in December. We were able to cancel all put together costumes so those are not due and will not be distributed.
Many of you have been asking about whether we are running a Summer Program or not. At this time, I am still waiting to see how the strategies of businesses getting back into the work place is progressing. My first concern is that of making sure that the studios will be a safe place for my staff and our students to be in. We are currently finishing up our Reopening plan for the upcoming months when we return back in studio classes. We are hoping to offer camps in July and some Intensive classes in August. We also may offer the chance for any dancers who were supposed to do a solo, duet, or trio to have their rehearsal times in July and perform for their parents in costume after the 4 weeks of rehearsals. All of this is dependent upon what happens with the phases and openings allowed by the Governor.
Again, I want to thank all of you for your continued support. I want to thank my staff for doing a commendable job with virtual teaching and I want to thank our students for working hard and never giving up hope throughout this process.
We cannot control this situation but we can control how we react to it. I wish you all a happy, safe, and enjoyable summer and look forward, with great anticipation, to being back to the studio as soon as possible.
Sincerely,
Mrs Sheri
Week of May 3rd, 2020
Greetings Everyone,
I hope this email finds you well. My goal is to try to reach out to you all at least once a week to give you updates and information related to the studio.
We are continuing with classes throughout the month of May. This will allow us time to review steps that our dancers have been working on, prepare for the Fall, and continue to practice recital dances. During this time, teachers will be evaluating each dancer in order to correctly place them into their level for next year. At the same time, our dancers are continuing to perfect the techniques that they have learned, whether it be at the barre, during center work or within their recital choreography, each section of the class provides a chance for practice, reflection, adaptation, and progression.
I want to personally thank all of the families who have paid their May tuition. If you are enjoying our classes and wish to continue in May, please click this link to pay your May tuition if you can at this time.
We appreciate all of the hard work of each and every person who is working together as a dance community to keep our love of dance alive. We are in the midst of a great pause in what we thought of as our "normal" life. We are thankful to have such an amazing dance community that has united and continued to support our dancers and allow them to continue to do something that they love.
We are all still hoping to have some sort of recital in August, whether it be on a stage that is outdoors, or within the classroom on a smaller scale, we are currently determining if there is a possibility that would work for the studio and all it's members as a whole. I am waiting to make this decision until I have exhausted all options and have seen what rules the Governor sets forth for us to follow.
I realize that our dancers are going through many stages of grief and adjustment in regards to their everyday lives and what their expectations were for this time of the year. We are attempting to ease their fears as well as be a beacon of hope for them throughout this difficult time. We are spending time, not only teaching dance, but also speaking to our students about life and how we will get through this all. Expressing that everything will be ok and that we are making the best out of this situation. We are trying to celebrate the happy times of being together each week. We are implementing some fun into each dance class and trying to experience this new way of learning in a fun light. Some of our teachers have created games, and challenges, as well as Tiktok videos with the kids. This week has been a full week dedicated to our Senior Dancers. Each day has been dedicated to a TTP dancer who is a graduating senior. Some of which will remain dancing while studying at a local college and some will be going away to college. Regardless of what is ahead for them, we are excited to celebrate their accomplishments and are very thankful to have been a part of their journey. Please click the link below to celebrate our Senior Dancers. I have dedicated a page on our website to celebrate these smart, beautiful, and talented young women.
SENIOR SPOTLIGHT SHOWCASE PAGE
In the coming weeks, we will announce whether a recital can happen or not. In the event that we cannot have a recital, we plan to do our best to use as many costumes as possible for the Holiday Show. We realize that we do not want the costumes that your have purchased to go to waste but we unfortunately cannot get a refund for the costumes as they were special orders that we have already received and the costume companies are not at fault for this pandemic.
In times like these, we have to make the best out of the situation. We will do our best to try and use the costumes whenever or where ever we can in the near future.
In June, we will contact you all with information about when to come by to pick up your costumes at your location. We will also distribute the Fall schedule at the same time. Recital T-shirt orders will also be distributed when you come to get your costumes.
Fall registration will begin in July. We hope to be able to hold some sort of dance wear sale and distribution in July and August and then begin our classes in September. I will email you with more details about Fall Registration and dance wear sales when we get closer to June.
I hope to have addressed any questions or concerns that you all may have had and thank you for your time and continued support.
As always,
Be Well,
Mrs Sheri
Week of April 20th, 2020
Greetings Everyone!
Week 3 of Virtual dance class has been a very busy week! Our dancers are working hard practicing their steps and preparing for Ballet and Tap tests if applicable.. We are so thankful to our students and their parents for all of your dedication to our dance classes. We know it takes everyone in your household to make it happen and we appreciate your efforts immensely.
Some reminders for you this week..........
CLASSES:
We are continuing virtual learning for the month of May. We want to use this month to insure that we get our dancers prepared for next year's levels. There are a few things we still want to clean up and teach in order to prepare them for next year. We are also assessing our dancers to decide which level they will be moved into for the Fall Session. We are continuing to teach choreography until we receive the confirmation otherwise. Classes will run through May regardless.
TUITION:
Auto charges will be taken out per the usual timeframe between the dates April 23rd-28th. Please pay online for your May tuition if you are not on auto charge. You may also drop off a check into the mailbox at our Cranston location if that works better for you. As I have said before, we really appreciate all the the families that are continuing to support us. Without you, TTP would quite frankly not be in business. You are helping to support the 20 employees that work hard each and every day to make sure that your family receives a service that is positive, educational, family friendly, and professional. You are also supporting your fellow dancers who cannot afford tuition at this challenging time. I have said it many times, but it is very poignant today, Our TTP dance family is the best. We are so fortunate to be able to do what we do and have the support of such amazing people who we get to see each week. I just want you to know how much I appreciate everything that is being done to keep our studio's energy in motion.
BONUS MONTH:
Bonus Month has been extended to the duration that we are in session for this season. Take advantage of dancing more hours each week! If you have a free night or want to get extra practice, simply log on to our website or click the links below. Choose your level to view schedules/class days/times. Pick the class that works for you! You may take classes from ANY LOCATION. If the schedule at a different location works out better than you are free to log onto one of those classes!
We will be speaking to all classes to explain which classes or levels are appropriate for make-up classes.
ZOOM CODES:
Once you know which class you wish to make up in, then go to the Virtual page and type in the password 5678 to access each teacher's meeting code so that you can join the appropriate teacher's meeting for the class you are making up in. Click the link below to access the zoom info page, and then click the circle that says "CLICK HERE" for each teacher's code, password: 5678
TICKET SALES DAY:
Ticket Sales Day has be postponed until further notice. I am anticipating getting a final confirmation on whether we can have a recital ~whether it be late summer or not~ I do not feel comfortable selling tickets when we are not sure when the show will be.
COSTUMES:
Costumes will be packaged late May/early June, at which time, we will contact everyone to come by at a designated time to pick up your costumes at your usual studio location.
Thank you again for all of your support , patience, and participation during this challenging time.
We look forward to seeing the end of this pandemic and getting back to our normal lives together.
Sincerely,
Mrs Sheri, Director