More and more families are taking the path to “home school” their children. As a result, there are more and more resources available to parents today. It is easier to pursue this path then it was only a few years ago. When “home schooling,” it is still good for the child to have opportunities to engage in activities that allow them to socialize with other children and to round out their learning experiences.
Our studio was approached recently by a parent asking us to consider offering dance classes for their child who they are “home schooling.” We then worked with the parent to create a template for offering a dance education program during the afternoon hours (prior to our regular classes starting) to accommodate these children and to provide the opportunity for them to participate in a dance program.
Some of the factors we looked at when working with the parents who were interested are:
- Matching the day and time to mutually meet the needs of the students considering the class and the availability of the instructor.
- Figuring out the preferred dance style or styles the students wanted to take.
- Figuring out the correct age ranges of children in the class(es).
- Deciding the frequency and the length of the classes.
- Determining if the students enrolling in the “home school” classes would do recital.
- Working with parents to “get the word out” on posting boards dedicated to parents who home school their children.
- Making a final decision on whether to offer the class based on the interest of the parent and how many students decide to take the class.
These are the factors we looked at when determining whether or not to offer a dance program for home schooled children. There are probably other factors to consider when deciding on this path. Either way, there appears to be a need in the market for such programs, so start thinking about how your studio might pursue this as an opportunity.
