We're back....yeah!!!

Back in mid March we thought we would be suspending classes for maybe two weeks, then it turned into six weeks and then 2 1/2 months. Who could have ever anticipated the way COVID 19 has impacted all of our lives.

We have missed all our parents and students so much! We are so glad as of June 1 we can open our studio back up, with precautions. We are being very careful in our sanitizing practices. One of the things that has happened is no parents waiting in the lobby. I have to admit I miss our parents chatting on the bench. I hope someday in the future we will be able to have our happy crowd back in the studio while our students take their classes.

In the meantime, we are sanitizing the studio before and after every use, wiping down the doors, spraying students hands with sanitizer before and after class, and keeping belongings and drinks separated for each student. The drinking fountain is off limits, and the bathrooms are sanitized hourly, or after each use. Doors are wiped down after the start of the class, and again before the class ends. We now have a door for entry and a door for exit. I don't know about all of you but one of the hardest things for me to get used to has been the directional isles in the grocery store, and I chuckle that now we are doing the same thing here at our studio.

We know we have the best students of any dance studio, but after this situation, I think we have incredible parents. As we have tried to stay in touch, there are things that have happened and such care has been given that it brought tears to our eyes. Hoping to keep a business going has been very stressful, but into this stress have come many funny memes that have made us laugh. After all, laughter is the best medicine for any situation and brings a little sunshine. I especially liked the facebook posts about toilet paper. I salute you mothers who have stepped up to be teachers, physical ed coaches, activities director and so many other roles in your families.

Luckily for us, we put into place a contingency plan in case we had to be closed for an extended period of time and just moved everything forward. So now April is June, May Is July, and August 4 and August 5 is our recital. Our landlord was good to work with us and give us some time to get things addressed. Although we enjoyed the time to spend with our families, there comes a point where you just want to get back to a normal schedule in life. We were at that point, just needing to get back to some semblance of normal. Of course, life will never look the same as the life we had before COVID 19 came along, but we are aiming for a "new normal".

So as we go forward into June, we are excited to welcome all of you back to dance!

Pot of Gold

Wouldn’t it be cool to get to the end of the rainbow and find a Pot of Gold? As kids we probably all dreamed of that. At Leaps and Bounds Dance Academy your children are our Pot of Gold at the end of the rainbow, and are precious to us.

Because they are so precious to us, this coronavirus really makes us nervous. This is totally unprecedented in the history of the 66 plus years I have been around! I am sure that it is making us all on edge. With that in mind we have carefully considered the following:

1) Per Governor Herberts direction to close all UTAH schools for two weeks we made the decision to close the studio for two weeks. As the situation progresses we may need to extend that. The truth is right now we just don’t know. We are as in the dark as anyone is at this point in time, but again, we want to keep our students and staff safe.

2) We are exploring options about holding makeup classes, moving the recital, and what to do as we go forward. Currently it is our plan NOT to run April tuition IF we have to extend the studio close. We look forward to our recital as much as you do, so even if we have to push it out a little while we still plan to hold it. As we become aware of more information we will keep you informed. In the meantime please stay safe and healthy!!

3) To help our little dancers stay in tip top shape there are the “Technique Tuesday’s“ videos on the website. Miss Katie will also be adding some videos of steps and exercises so you can work with your child on at home learning. She will also have the recital videos on your parent portals for your child to practice. None of these will have any cost to you, they are just to help.

However, at Leaps and Bounds Academy we believe that dance instruction is a hands on experience so that the teacher can watch and correct any form. Having classes that you pay for and the child do online does not fit that criteria, so we will not be doing that.

4) It is, and always will be, our studio’s policy to put the children first and give direct, prompt communication to our parents. If you have questions please reach out to us and we will try to help you navigate this difficult time. Know that we are always motivated by a desire to be a good community citizen as a business and welcome feedback that is considerate in the way it is given.

Again we thank all of you for giving us the opportunity to educate your children in the artistic endeavors we all love. We feel blessed and privileged to be able to be a business in American Fork and to have your business at our studio!

Now if we could all just get a peek at that pesky Leprechaun🍀😊

Have a Heart...

Welcome to Heart month, aka Valentines Day month, aka Presidents Day month....definitely a busy fun month! Add to that we have 29 days in February which means it is LEAP YEAR. So Leaps and Bounds Dance Academy will be celebrating LEAP YEAR! Yaaaay, cookies the last week in February!!!

We are excited to announce that the American Fork Chamber of Commerce elected our own Miss Katie, teacher and owner, for "Business Person of the Year" out of hundreds considered. She came in second and we are really, really proud of her! Take a moment to congratulate her on this important achievement. She was honored at a luncheon Wed, Feb 5, 2020.

On other notes:

Summer class registration opens March 1, 2020 so plan to sign up for a fun summer class or two...details to come in the near future.

Recital dances will start being taught Feb & March - Please try to have your students in class, it is important. Music will be out on the Parent Portal shortly. That way the students can practice, practice, practice at home. We can't wait to see our cute students in the yearly recital.

Adult Class Reminder - Tap is 8:30 PM-9:30 PM Tuesdays, and Ballet Jazz combo is 8:30 PM-9:30 PM on Wednesdays, come join us for a class. I know I am still trying to get in shape and lose those 5 pounds we all gain over the holidays :). Taking an adult class will definitely help with that.

SHARE THE LOVE - Double bonus referral (bonus referral is a $10 credit, doubled to $20 this month only) for any student when a friend signs up for class in February. Free money, yeah!!!!

We have lots of leotards, white, black and Burgundy for $14.00 and we can add the Leaps and Bounds Logo for free if you would like. We also have pink ballet slippers in all sizes for $12.00, and tights in white and ballet pink in all sizes for $8.00 each. We have Leaps and Bounds Dance Academy Tee shirts as well. Miss Katie will be putting out her list of what tights are needed for what dance in the recital soon. You may want to make your purchase for recital early. We tend to get low toward recital time. Our tights, Leos and shoes are dance supplier quality, but we try and keep them in line with retailers like Target and Walmart.

WE LOVE OUR STUDENTS, THEY ARE JUST THE BEST!