I’m a bit bummed out since we've gone on break from bellydance classes for the summer, especially since not long ago I’d joined a student troupe and was really enjoying our rehearsals. Is it common for lessons to stop during summer where you live? I used to think this was essentially a Spanish thing, but it looks like I’m not the only one this happens to.
Is this the usual in your area?
- Thread starter Zurah
- Start date
- Status
Aisha Azar
New member
Is this usual?
Dear Zurah,
I usually do not teach regular classes in August or December. By August, I need a break to get myself in order for the class year, which starts in Seotember. I also do not teach in December because people are getting ready for Christmas and New Year and they need the time, and sometimes even the money that they might spend on classes.
Sometimes I do continue to teach private classes, but not this year. It has been very hectic and I have rehearsals with my dance company in August, getting ready for our performance on October 14th, when we will host DaVid for show/workshop!
Regards,
A'isha
Dear Zurah,
I usually do not teach regular classes in August or December. By August, I need a break to get myself in order for the class year, which starts in Seotember. I also do not teach in December because people are getting ready for Christmas and New Year and they need the time, and sometimes even the money that they might spend on classes.
Sometimes I do continue to teach private classes, but not this year. It has been very hectic and I have rehearsals with my dance company in August, getting ready for our performance on October 14th, when we will host DaVid for show/workshop!
Regards,
A'isha
Shanazel
Moderator
I take the months of July and August off from teaching. I'd be nuts if I did it all year around with no pause for vacation. I hardly dance at all in July, but in August I am back in the practice studio planning for classes which start in September. Right now I am fighting a problem with one of my feet- hope it will improve by September, or dancing on half point is going to be rather painful. I also take about a month off around the winter holidays.
Yasmine Bint Al Nubia
Moderator
We don't take off for the summer. Our school is a "brick-and-mortar" meaning it is not in a rec center or building owned by the city. We have two classrooms with a barber shop sandwichd in between. My teacher rents these two spaces and runs two classes everyday. Financially speaking, we need to be open all year to pay the rent nd utilities. My teacher, Ameenah, makes her living solely on teaching classes and selling items from the store. We recetly, began taking 2 weeks off for Christmas holidays, but it would be nice to take some time off for ourselves during the summer
Yasmine
Yasmine
Safran
New member
Round here we also take a break from June to August, and from Christmas to first weeks of January. During these periods people tend to go out of city and/o do everything else but dance classses, so the effort wouldn't really pay off. But we can use the studio during the summer for practising on our own. in fact, this is where I am off to in just a few hours
Viv
New member
I seem to be one of the few the odd ducks out here. I teach year round with only a week break here or there because of a federal holiday falling on the day of one of the Tuesday through Thursday classes. This is mainly to keep all the classes starting at the same time, for the sanity of the gals who have to do the registrations.
I don't see a drop in people durring the summer at all. Actually we get a jump in numbers. Considering our summer temps are in the 110+ this floors me. We ended up breaking into two beginning classes back to back for this session due to the demand and both classes were full the week before they started. What I do see happen though is that there will usually be two or three people who paid but never show to class, and most students will miss one to three classes per session due to vacations and such.
I don't see a drop in people durring the summer at all. Actually we get a jump in numbers. Considering our summer temps are in the 110+ this floors me. We ended up breaking into two beginning classes back to back for this session due to the demand and both classes were full the week before they started. What I do see happen though is that there will usually be two or three people who paid but never show to class, and most students will miss one to three classes per session due to vacations and such.
I teach year 'round and I even teach on holidays (excluding Christmas and New Year's). My studio was recently open and we conducted classes on the 4th of July. I have to stay open in order to keep the financial aspects of the studio afloat. My classes are eight week blocks, but there is no break between sessions.
Maria_Aya
New member
Usually July is a dead month and August have already passed away lol
People are having vacations and why to continue a class with the half missing?
So mostly from July I have privite lessons, 3-4 hours per day, usually my students that ask for certain things.
On August I'm gonna be at Crete vacations, but because some of the dancers worldwide are coming for vacations also we will meet and have already sceduled some privite lessons (between diving and ouzo I suppose lol)
Maria Aya
People are having vacations and why to continue a class with the half missing?
So mostly from July I have privite lessons, 3-4 hours per day, usually my students that ask for certain things.
On August I'm gonna be at Crete vacations, but because some of the dancers worldwide are coming for vacations also we will meet and have already sceduled some privite lessons (between diving and ouzo I suppose lol)
Maria Aya
chryssanthi sahar
New member
I take brake from teaching from August 1st until September 15th. I need holiday and besides this almost nobody is here at this time because of school and university holiday. But I'm going to teach two workshops in Greece (Thessaloniki and Athens) and I don't know what Maria has planed for our holiday on Crete Mariaaaaaa!!!!! Who is coming besides us, our husbands and Suha? What schedule have you made, you belly danceaholic ? Grapse mou kanena mail na matho kai ego ti me perimenei stin Kriti.
Mariaaaaaa!!!!! Who is coming besides us, our husbands and Suha? What schedule have you made, you belly danceaholic ? Grapse mou kanena mail na matho kai ego ti me perimenei stin Kriti.
Safran
New member
Ah, Chryssanti and Maria, you SO make me wish that instead of my tickets to Athens I should have booked a holiday in Crete instead
But, another thing we do in the summer instead of regular classes are dance camps. Quite a few studios hold them - long weekends (either 3 or 4 days), somewhere in the countryside. You can usually learn a new choreography there + do lots of other stuff (swimming, sauna, yoga, costume-making workshops) and the highlight is always the perfomance to the local crowd where you can how off what you've just learned and everything else you can do.
But, another thing we do in the summer instead of regular classes are dance camps. Quite a few studios hold them - long weekends (either 3 or 4 days), somewhere in the countryside. You can usually learn a new choreography there + do lots of other stuff (swimming, sauna, yoga, costume-making workshops) and the highlight is always the perfomance to the local crowd where you can how off what you've just learned and everything else you can do.
chryssanthi sahar
New member
Ah, Chryssanti and Maria, you SO make me wish that instead of my tickets to Athens I should have booked a holiday in Crete instead
Dear Maariku. It's not difficult to come to Crete from Athens. You just have to take the ferry boat
But, another thing we do in the summer instead of regular classes are dance camps. Quite a few studios hold them - long weekends (either 3 or 4 days), somewhere in the countryside. You can usually learn a new choreography there + do lots of other stuff (swimming, sauna, yoga, costume-making workshops) and the highlight is always the performance to the local crowd where you can how off what you've just learned and everything else you can do.
Yes, this is a cool thing and Maria and I are planning something like this for next summer on Crete. That's why we are going to check out some things this year. When we are so far, we'll let you all know. Maybe we all meet next summer on Crete, how would that be
?Wow, a lot of people go on break, this really comes as a surprise - after three years living in Spain I still haven’t gotten quite used to almost everything closing down and people leaving the city in droves during summer. Can’t blame them – temperatures are hovering round 40-42º C here now (105º Fahrenheit or so, not quite sure - either way, insanely hot and muggy).
Safran
New member
Dear Maariku. It's not difficult to come to Crete from Athens. You just have to take the ferry boat
Yes, this is a cool thing and Maria and I are planning something like this for next summer on Crete. That's why we are going to check out some things this year. When we are so far, we'll let you all know. Maybe we all meet next summer on Crete, how would that be
Well, this year I am planning to visit friends in Athens, Larissa and Thes/niki... But the idea of a gathering next year... this would be so cool!!! I'd definitely do my best to make it.
- Status