Studio Policies 2025
Lesson Fees
Lesson fees for 2025 will be as follows:
However, if you can provide me with a current Suzuki Association membership number at the time you pay your account, I will discount the cost of each lesson by $5.00. Bear in mind that there are 38 teaching weeks in the year which means a rise in cost of $152:00 per student. Family membership of the Association costs $123.00 (in 2021) per year plus a one-off joining fee of $20:00 if you are joining for the first time. This represents a potential saving to you of $97:00 - and it allows your child to participate in graduations, workshops, festivals and other Suzuki events. Finally, I should also mention that if you have more than one child learning with me, I also offer a 10% sibling discount.
Payment of Fees
Lesson fees are payable one term in advance and are due either on the first lesson of the new term or within seven days from receipt of the account. Please ensure that your payment is prompt. As a result of this I will be introducing a 10% additional surcharge on all accounts that are more than three weeks overdue from the beginning of the term. Please note: this will apply from the first day of term, NOT the day you receive the account, so for example this term starts on Tuesday April 26th so the additional charge will apply to all accounts not paid by Tuesday May 17th. Of course, if this arrangement presents anyone with any difficulties then please talk to me about it.
Group Lessons and Beginning of Term Play In
These will be charged to your account at a cost of $10.00 per class. There are two reasons for billing you in advance: firstly, so that I can make an accurate assessment of the number of students attending and secondly to encourage you all to commit yourselves to them.
End of Term Concert This will be charged to your account at $20.00 per student. The reason for the increase in the cost compared to the Play In is to cover the costs of Hall hire and the pianist’s fee
Missed Lessons/Illness
If your child shows signs of illness, please do not bring them to the lesson. If you do and I end up getting sick because of it, I will either have to reschedule lessons for other students or cancel them altogether, which incurs a significant financial penalty for me. Other than those missed through illness, lessons missed by the student will not be “made up”. If you need to either cancel a lesson or change it then please give me a minimum of 24 hours’ notice. Lessons cancelled at the last minute will not be made up or credited to your next account. However, if your child has missed a lesson due to illness (and with reasonable notice), I will try to make it up if I have some space on the four days that I teach from home (Monday evening, Tuesday evening, Wednesday evening and Saturday morning). However, if we cannot find a suitable time for the makeup lesson on any of those days during the term the missed lesson will not be credited to your next account. I may not remember to mention it to you so please don’t hesitate to ask.
If you know that you will be away at some point during the term, then please tell me before the term starts so that I don’t charge you for those lessons. However, in order to avoid any potential misunderstandings, you must inform me via text or email – not just verbally. That way a trail is left, and everyone knows where they stand.
There could also be times when your child may miss an extended number of lessons due to a long- term illness (e.g. Glandular Fever) or an accident such as a broken finger for example. If that situation ever arises, when your child is ready to resume lessons again your account will be credited for the number of lessons missed.
Termination of Lessons
Notification of cessation of lessons shall be made one term in advance. If you are considering either stopping lessons altogether or of taking your child to another teacher, please consider it carefully and make your decision before the start of each term. Once we have commenced the term’s lessons, we have effectively entered into a contractual agreement which places obligations on both parties. Should you decide partway through the term to leave this studio, although I will obviously accept your decision with regret, I will not be issuing refunds. This is, by the way, standard teaching practice.
Suzuki Association
The Suzuki Association provides many activities for you and your child to participate in. Although the activities themselves involve costs to you as parents, the people who organise and run these events do so on a voluntary basis. Without them the Association would not exist so I will therefore be requiring all families in the studio to be current financial members of the Suzuki Association. Every term the Suzuki office sends me a list of my students who are members and I must say that I do find it disappointing to see a number of families’ names missing. The Association provides many opportunities through workshops and so forth for your children to develop and they also provide a considerable amount of Professional Development for teachers. By the end of this year I will have completed about twenty hours of PD. This training makes me a better teacher which in turn benefits your children. However, all these activities have to be organized by the office which relies entirely on memberships to cover its running costs. The Association does not get any support from either the state of federal governments. Membership is not that expensive, and it provides you with access to Suzuki workshops and allows your child to participate in Graduations when they are ready to present for them. In Suzuki method we do not do examinations so keeping students motivated to practice and to learn can be challenging if you don’t become more involved in the Association.
Deferring Lessons for a Term
I have had a number of occasions in the past when families for various reasons have requested a term off. That is normally not a problem, but I have had situations when families have taken a term off – I’ve had people asking about my availability, told them I don’t have any spaces – and then found that the family has decided to discontinue. This is obviously very irritating from my point of view.
In order to solve this problem, in the future I will be requiring you to pay a non-refundable deposit of one half of the term fee at the beginning of the term to reserve your child’s spot in my studio.
Punctuality
Please be punctual to your lesson. It is beneficial to arrive a few minutes early so that the student can either sit quietly in the car to compose themselves and put their mind on the lesson or alternatively come into the studio a little earlier to observe part of the previous lesson.
Observation
I would encourage you to bring your child into the studio whilst the previous lesson is in progress. Observation of other lessons is of great benefit to students, giving them a sense of where they are going, where they have been and also some insights into pieces that will be studied in the future.
Communication
I am available at any time to discuss your child’s progress with you, so please feel free to talk to me should you have any concerns. If it is a sensitive matter, please ring me. Do not bring it up in front of your child. It could be damaging to their sense of self-esteem.
Sometimes you may not understand or agree with the particular approach I am taking with your child. If that is the case, then please talk to me about your concerns either by telephone or at an arranged time without your child. I will listen and take your views into account. Clear communication between us can help to clear up any misunderstandings that may arise from time to time.
Food and Drink
Please do not bring food or drink into the studio.
Footwear
Please remember to remove your footwear outside before coming into the studio.
Bathroom
Your child is of course welcome to use the bathroom should the need arise; however, do please encourage them to visit the toilet before coming to their lesson.
Waiting
If you are early for your lesson, please either come into the studio or wait on the verandah. Please do not come into the rest of the house.
Copyright © 2025 John Officer Violin - All Rights Reserved.
We use cookies to analyze website traffic and optimize your website experience. By accepting our use of cookies, your data will be aggregated with all other user data.