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Welcome to Footsteps!
Welcome to the family, folks! Whether you've registered for classes, attended a birthday party or Zumba class here, joined us for Bring a Buddy Week, or visited us for an Open House, I'm thankful that we've gotten to touch lives through Footsteps. I hope that touch has been a blessing!
It's been a crazy start to the dance year, with the mad rush to get the new facility up & running, & I do thank you for your patience, help, & enthusiasm. Thngs are coming together, as are folks like you around the vision for this studio. My & my staff's vision is that we are working alongside you as you parent your children into godly young people, using dance as a vehicle for teaching life lessons. All 9 teachers, 4 office staff, 4 interns, 3 retail workers, & 22 assistants hope your family learns a lot about dance, & even more about Jesus, through your experiences here at Footsteps!
So you don't miss any fun experiences at dance, you'll receive one of these email newsletters each month. Feel free to forward it to any of your buddies whom you think might enjoy being a part of the Footsteps family--just use the "Forward to a Friend" button at the right. Thanks for recommending us! You can unsubscribe anytime, but we hope you'll choose instead to read each issue of Footnotes & make the most of your family's association with Footsteps. We've got lots to offer you!
Sincerely,
Jennifer Curren
Owner/Director/CEO
Footsteps Family Dance Center LLC |
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It's No Trick--Footsteps is a Treat!
Each year one of our most fun marketing campaigns that involves FFDC families is Trick or Treat: We put together bags of 150 pieces of candy attached to Footsteps coupons, which our families can sign up to distribute in their neighborhoods on Beggar's Night. It's a win-win situation--you need to buy less candy to pass out, we get our name out there in our community, trick-or-treaters get goodies, & their parents get a special discount if they register with the attached coupon!
If you pass out one of our bags of candy, & if you put your studio mailbox number on the coupons in your bag, you will receive a $15 referral credit for each family who registers using one of your coupons. In addition, every FFDC family who participates will get entered in a drawing for a $25 credit--yay!
To join the fun, please sign up on the clipboard outside the office by the October 18 deadline, & we will prepare a bag of candy for you. Candy will be available for pickup in the office the week of October 22. Thanks so much for helping out! |
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Foo Foo the Footsteps Frog!
 If you've crossed the FFDC threshhold, you've met Foo Foo, our mascot, who lives in the entryway. What's up with all the frogs at Footsteps? Well, Miss Jennifer grew up in the country, where she often played with frogs & toads, which are some of the few wild creatures that a little kid can catch & not get scratched, bitten, or stung. A bonus is that the word FROG is a popular Christian acronym for Fully Rely On God, something we encourage all of our families to do! Our own Foo Foo will grow to life-size this month when our new mascot costume arrives! Once she's embellished with a pink tutu, tiara, & some big sparkly red kissy lips, she'll be ready to make appearances at community events. You can meet her a Boo at the Zoo on Oct 19-21! |
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This Month's Workshop: Ballet
Each month we bring in a guest artist in dance or a dance-related subject to supplement our dancer's education. For October, FFDC is proud to bring in Jennifer Zmuda, who recently moved to Columbus from Washington state, to share with our dancers her knowledge of ballet!
A sign-up sheet is now posted outside the office, so if you'd like to attend, please add your name. The cost is $16 ($11 FDT Company). These classes are recommended for students aged 8+ who have at least 2 years of prior dance experience.
Dancers from outside of Footsteps are welcome too--invite your buddies from other studios & further our vision of a cohesive Columbus dance community! We do NOT EVER try to coerce dancers who are happy in their own home studios to transfer here. We just love sharing dance with anyone God brings through our door!
This is the 2nd of 3 workshops that our Company dancers are required to attend as part of their Company educational commitment. Attire for workshops is any color leotard & tights, pink ballet shoes, hair in a secure bun for girls, and sweats, shorts, or dance pants, a plain white T-shirt, and black ballet shoes for guys.
Space is limited, so if you'd like to claim your spot, please don't wait! You may contact us at footstepsfamilydance@yahoo.com or 614-883-5599. For FFDC students, your account will be charged; for guests, payment may be made either when you come for class or via Paypal via the link below:
Come join the fun--we'd love to have you! |
 Small Class Cancellations
One of the sad realities of dance studios being businesses & not just places to have fun & learn is the fact that classes that are too small to turn a profit have to get cancelled. Our policy is that classes with fewer than 4 students by October 15 MAY be cancelled.
There are many factors that go into determining whether or not a class is profitable--this is why some small classes get cancelled, but others do not. Some of those factors include whether or not there are classes going on in other studios at the same time, how many full classes we have on the schedule, how many of the kids in the class are siblings of other dancers & are getting discounted tuition, the instructor's pay rate, & whether or not there is office staff on duty during that class time. We only cancel when we're forced to, & it pains us to disappoint our families when we do.
A list of classes that are on the chopping block will be posted on the bulletin board beside the pay window this week. We will give it until Oct 15 before the classes are officially cancelled--since we just had Bring a Buddy Week, it's possible that we may get get 4 kids registered in these classes before the deadline! If yours is on the cancellation list, please look at the schedule on the clipboard outside the office to determine an alternate class to switch to. If switching isn't possible with your schedule, we will refund any unused tuition. Because you may also have invested in dancewear, we will also sell your dancewear on consignment in our Frog Hop Dancewear Shop, & send you a check if/when it gets sold.
We began registering students for the current season back on May 1, 5 months ago. We gave it our best shot for as long as we could! Please accept our apologies if your family is affected. |
 New: Online Access to Your FFDC Account
There are many new things at Footsteps this year: New facility, new staff, new students..... One other new thing is our studio management software, which will now allow our clients access to their Footsteps accounts 24/7/365! By logging in to your FFDC account, you can pay your balance, view your transactions, check your attendance history, schedule make-up lessons, & double-check which classes your dancer is registered in, among other things. We are very excited to be able to offer you this convenience!
To access your account online, just visit our Online Registration page at www.footstepsfamilydance.com/OnlineRegistration.html, and click on the frog logo--she'll take you to the login page, where you can use your email address and create a password. From there, you'll be able to hop right into your account!
If you have any issues with using the online account access, please let our office know, & we'll see what we can do to get the problem resolved ASAP. Thanks for your patience as we take advantage of the latest technology to make your Footsteps experience as easy & convenient as we can! |
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Ask the Director: Do you offer adult classes to, or is Footsteps just for kids?
We get asked this question all the time, so I figured I'd just answer it here, once & for all: Yes, we do offer adult classes!
Mainly, Footsteps is geared toward children, but there are plenty of adults out there who are still kids at heart and want to study dance here. Miss Courtney has a real burden for these grown-ups, and she's the one who has made a pet-project out of starting our adult program! She learned that adult students need flexibility in the schedules, and that the classes needed to be at a time when Dad was available for child-care duties at home so Mom could escape for a little "me-time" at the studio, & not during typical work hours. These reasons made Sunday afternoons the ideal time, & class cards the ideal tuition system.
Every Sunday we have Adult Jazz 1:30-2:30, Adult Ballet 2:30-3:30, & Adult Tap 3:30-4:30. These classes are mixed in level right now, so those who wished they'd danced as kids can feel just as at-home as those who danced their whole lives. Miss Courtney is adept at giving simple combinations for beginners with more advanced options for those who have prior experience. There are always lots of giggles as everyone challenges themselves to learn this art form that has the fringe benefit of exercise!
Adult classes are offered on a class card system: The more classes you purchase at a time, the less you pay per class. Each adult dancer has a class card that's kept here at the studio, & we stamp it each time you take a class. Come when you can, & don't worry about it if you can't--total schedule flexibility! You don't have to pay for classes you're not able to attend, & no make-up lessons have to be scheduled. Yay! Pricing info can be found on our Classes page at http://footstepsfamilydance.com/classes.html, under Adults.
We've also added a morning session to our Zumba offerings for adults. Certified Zumba instructor Jill Howard shares her love for both dance & fitness on Monday & Friday mornings 11:00-noon, also on a class card basis. Our evening instructor, Tracy Hardison, offers Zumba classes on Tuesdays 5:15-6:00 and Sundays 11:00-noon, as well.
What is Zumba? It's a fitness class based on Latin dance, using very upbeat music & repetitive steps that provide a cardio & toning workout that's more like a party than an exercise routine to suffer through! Truly, it's so fun that you don't even notice that you're getting a workout, just like any other dance class. The stresses of life as well as some extra pounds melt away as your brain is engaged in the artistry & technique, releasing feel-good endorphins. Great stuff!
We offer a free trial class for both the adult program & the Zumba classes, so why not c'mon in & give it a whirl? Bring a friend or make new ones--it'll be fun & beneficial either way. Besides, parents of currently enrolled Footsteppers get a 5% discount on adult & Zumba tuition, so really, come join the fun! |
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Share this newsletter with a buddy you think would be interested in Footsteps!
footstepsfamilydance@yahoo.com
614-883-5599
80 Dillmont Drive
Columbus, OH 43235
www.footstepsfamilydance.com |
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October Calendar
Black: Everyone
Blue: Company
Pink: Staff & Assistants
Red: Closings & Cancellations
1 October tuition due; 1st auto-pay
payments charged; no morning Zumba;
Trick or Treat sign-ups posted--see article for details
5 Intro Seminars Session #2 start
6 Company Measuring 2:15-3:15;
Company
Photos 3:14-4:15; Ballet Workshop 4:30-6:00; Tap Line Rehearsals--Sr 6:00-6:30, Jr 6:30-7:00, Teen 7:00-7:30
8 Columbus Day--yes, we do have
class!
8-14 Customer Appreciation Week--parents
get special treatment!
10 Tuition payment deadline
11 $15 Wish You Had Paid on Time
Penalty charged to accounts with unpaid tuition
15 Cancellation date for classes with
fewer than 4 students--see article for details!; Company costume wish lists due
18 Trick or Treat Sign-up deadline
19 Last day of Intro Seminar Session #2
21 No adult classes; Zumba as usual
22-27 Dance History Week--see article
for details; Company Fall Dance Festival payments due; Trick or Treat bags ready for pickup
29 Company costume statements
distributed
29-Nov 3 Pumpkin Pickin' Prize Week--see
article for details
31 Studio closed for Beggar's Night |
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Customer Appreciation Week--Our Special Thanks for Parents!
As a small business in a volatile economy, we appreciate every family that chooses Footsteps as their dance home each season. It is our sincere belief that each family who chooses us does so as part of God's good plan, & that He will use us in your lives & you in ours to make us all more like His Son, Jesus. We are thankful to Him for that plan!
We're also thankful to you for including Footsteps as part of your family. It means a lot that you have chosen to entrust your children to us. We express that gratefulness with Customer Appreciation Week.
The week of October 8-14 we will treat the parents to refreshments in the lobby while y'all observe your kiddos in class. In addition, each family will receive a special Footsteps thank-you gift. Remember--this event is for the PARENTS, so please do stop in the studio & enjoy getting a little pampering when you bring your kids for class that week! Thanks again! |
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Dance History Week: Oct 22-27
One of the things we pride ourselves in here at Footsteps the quality of the dance education we provide our families. Part of that quality is teaching your kids not only HOW to dance, but also ABOUT dance. This includes dance history, which is full of rich tales, colorful characters, cultural relevance!
Each season we dedicate 1 special week to learning about dance history--how the dance your kids are learning came to be what it is today. You may see your dancers looking at books or videos, going over handouts together, or even coloring topic-related pictures while the teacher explains the material in class. You may also see them learning historical dances or doing other physical activities related to this lesson from the past. Whatever you see, it won't be what you're used to!
We hope your kids enjoy this fun event & gain an appreciation for the wonderful traditions that their techniques evolved from! |
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Pumpkin Pickin'
Prize Week: Oct 29-Nov 3
Yes, October is full of theme weeks, and the last one is our annual Pumpkin Pickin' Prize Week event. Just for fun, our dancers will pick a pumpkin sticker at the end of class--if it's specially marked, they'll win another pumpkin prize. If it's extra-specially marked, they'll win the grand prize: a real pumpkin & carving kit! 1 grand prize will be awarded from each dance room. We hope your kids enjoy this celebration of God's colorful fall creation! |
 Spring Concert Theme & InformationWe are exited to announce that this year's recital theme is ...... (drum roll, please) .... Footsteppin' on Broadway! Every recreational dance will be performed to music from a Broadway musical--woo-hoo!
When will you find out your dancer's song? Not until we return from Thanksgiving Break at the end of November! But our staff is already busy selecting music & costumes, and our minds are bursting with ideas!
You will find out which of our 4 shows your class is assigned to later in October.
This year's theme is especially fun because the dancers in our accelerated Company Program will have the opportunity to actually go to NYC this summer and see a real live Broadway show! They will perform at a national dance competition in Atlantic City, then, if they wish, they can continue on for another 3 days in the Big Apple, where they will see a show, take private classes at the world-famous Broadway Dance Center, & enjoy the sights of the City!
The Spring Concert will consist of 4 shows, each different, that all take place on June 8-9, 2013. Each dance is performed once, so if your dancer takes 1 class, he/she will perform in 1 show. If your dancer takes more than 1 class, we cannot guarantee that he/she will perform in just 1 show. We cannot accommodate requests to change show--it's just not possible in a studio this size, so please don't bother to ask.
Please note that the Spring Concert schedule has changed. Instead of doing 3 shows on Saturday & 1 on Sunday as originally announced, we will be doing 2 on Saturday, June 8, & 2 on Sunday, June 9, at 2:30 & 6:30 on both days.
We will have much more information for you about the Spring Concert, which we'll share with you in our Spring Concert Handbook later this month. Handbooks will be distributed via studio mailboxes.
Spring Concert participation is NOT mandatory, although by far most of our students do take part in this fun celebration of our hard work & growth. If you decide not to participate, please let our office know prior to the costume payment due date of December 10. We respect your decision--no problem! |
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Walled in by Inspiration!
Last month we put up the posters on the walls in each dance room--some were from our former facility, & some are new. All are inspirational and display some of the values that are closest to our hearts here at Footsteps:
- Individuality & uniqueness
- Goal-setting
- Perseverance
- Personal accountability
- Respect & encouragement of others
- Positive attitude
- Godly character
Each month this column will feature a different one of our inspiration posters & elaborate on its principles. Our hope is that you'll share these thoughts with your dancer, helping them continue to grow more like Jesus every day they dance at Footsteps!
Through dance, not only do kids learn about this art form, but about life as well. Dance relates to life because it expresses our thoughts about what we experience. When your kids learn dance steps, they are learning the equivalent of words, just in the language of movement. When your kids learn the technique of how the steps are to be executed, they are learning to speak the language of movement clearly & with a greater vocabulary. As we teach your kids, we relate often to experiences they've had in their lives already. For instance, when we're trying to get them to move smoothly, we'll say, "Y'know how seaweed swishes in the ocean? Move your arms like that!" Or when we're trying to get them to contract their spine, we'll say, "Hunch your back like an angry cat." Dance is all about experiences--creating them, expressing them, interpreting them, & using them to prompt the desired technique or artistry.
Our greatest hope is that your kids will "learn by experience what God's will is--that will which is good and beautiful and perfect (Romans 12:2 Weymouth NT)." The only way to experience God the way the Bible describes is through His Son, Jesus Christ. Knowing Him personally is the very definition of eternal life: "Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent (John 17:3 NIV)." To know Him, you only have to believe that He is God's sinless Son who died on the cross as your substitute for the sins you've committed, & that He was raised to new life 3 days later. If you believe that & receive the forgiveness that Jesus purchased for you with His death in your place, you will get to share in that new life, a life in which Jesus is your friend, your Savior, your everything! That is more than a mere building block for their futures--it is the very cornerstone! |
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