COVID-19 Updates

 We are continuing to stay informed as new information is made available to us and are updating our policies to stay in line as the science behind covid-19 is updated. Below you will find out current reopening plan for our Fall programs. We were able to practice these new policies during our recital taping week this July and everything worked very well. 

 We are asking parents to  please drop your child off at the designated door no more than 5 minutes prior to class. We will be using multiple entrances to ensure Dancers only come into contact with the children in their class. Dancers under the age of 8 may be walked in by a parent. Parents must wear a mask. Dancers will have their temperature taken by a no touch digital thermometer before entering the studio. Dancers will sanitize hands before entering the studio, between classes and when leaving the studio. Dancers will wear masks in the hallway and waiting room,  and in class, as required by the Mandate that went in to effect August 1st.. Our staff will be wearing masks. Any dancer showing any signs of illness will not be allowed in class. 

Students will have a marked dance space which they will practice in while in the studio to ensure social distancing during class. Dancers should bring one bag with all dance supplies in it, including water, shoes, Barre barrier ect.  Bags will now be placed on a chair, not in a bin.

Dancers will be walked out of the building by HOTVDA staff to parent vehicles. Please park along the studio side of Lehrer Lane. 

 The studio will continue to be cleaned daily. In addition to our regular cleaning we will be disinfecting each dance room after every class and cleaning all barres and props used after every use. We will be limiting the use of props during class as well. Our studio will be cleaned with a 90 day germ killing cleaner, that will continue to kill all germs and viruses for 90 days after treatment, as well as being disinfected by UV light nightly. We have also installed air  purifiers with HEPA filters in each dance room and our lobby. Our bathrooms will be disinfected every 30 minutes as well. 

We are also offering both in studio and virtual Zoom classes every week. This way, dancers who need to quarantine at any time won't miss class. We also have several plans for a recital performance depending on the state of the virus next year. 

Hello Families - 

 We have more details to share about our final four weeks of classes. Thank you for your patience as we worked out the final details with staff and Champion Video. 

Next week, we will send an email with Zoom links to all of our developmental / recital based classes and another to our competition team classes.  In some cases, each class will have a separate link to log in with. In other cases, your teacher will have one link for the entire evening - just log in at your correct dance time. We have attached a copy of the schedule for your convenience. You do not need to have a Zoom account for the link to work - just click and follow the prompts.

Online Zoom classes will begin the week of June 14th. Recital based classes will run June 15-18, June 22-25, July 6 - 10, and our final recording week July 13-17. Classes that do not perform in the recital will not be recorded.  Competition classes will run on June 14, June 28, July 12 and July 19. There will be no recording week for competition team classes.   

Our recital survey was  in favor of an in studio, dancers only taping. We received 153 total votes. A total of 8 voted for an all virtual recital, 79 voted for a dancer only, in studio recording and 66 voted for no recital.

We know not everyone is able to participate in these classes or the recital taping. We do want you to know the classes are always an option for your dancer to log into each week - even in they do not participate in the recital recording. We will be taking attendance during our Zoom classes the first week - if you are not able to attend the first week, but ARE interested in performing in the recital please respond to this message and let us know, if you haven't already. Our teachers will be using attendance from the first week to plan for the recital recording.

Over the first 3 weeks of classes, our staff will be reviewing choreography and making sure everyone is ready for our final performance, which will take place the final week. We have been working with Champion Video over the last few weeks to put together a recital recording for those of who would like to participate. They will be setting up wide angle cameras and lights in our largest studio to record all recital dances the week of July 13-17. We are working to set up the studio to look as much like a professional stage as possible! You will be able to purchase a DVD of this performance through Champion Video. All dances will be available on one DVD. We will be sending out order forms for recital videos next week. We will also have our Zoom cameras on during the performances for you to watch the dances live. Dancers should come in full costume this last week, but please remember that no parents will be allowed in the studio. We will send more details on recital week drop off procedures and costume changing at a later time. 

  We are excited to finish out our dance season with everyone over the next few weeks.  Please understand, these 4 classes will finish out our 28 week 2019-20 dance season. No refunds will be given if you choose not to participate/ withdraw from classes. We encourage your dancer to participate as much as possible. We know this isn't the ending everyone wanted, but we have some great things planned to make this special for those who are able to take part. 

Please remember to watch your emails next week! There will be one email with links to all developmental / recital classes and a separate email for all competition classes. We will also include some notes for certain classes that may need a prop or something special for practice - all things you can find around the house!

Please contact us with any questions you may have. We hope to see you all soon!

Thank you! 

Hello Dance Families-

We know many of you have had questions regarding just how we will finish out our dance season. The covid-19 pandemic has brought about many events we could have never imagined, but we are doing our best to navigate through these unprecedented times. Our staff got together after the latest changes to stay at home orders to determine what we feel is the best option for our dance family. We realize not all of you may agree with our decision, but I truly feel we are doing what is best for us.

Let me start by explaining that we base our dance season fees on a 28 week schedule. We actually have 30 weeks built in to our dance season to allow for snow days and unexpected closures. This past year, we were able to complete 24 weeks of classes and used no snow days. (Our later Monday night classes were cancelled once, but they also were able to come to class the week the studio closed due to Covid-19.) That means we have 4 weeks of classes to finish. We hoped that we would be able to complete these last 4 weeks in the studio, but we just don’t believe that is the safest option. Instead, we would like to finish those last weeks via Zoom meeting classes. All classes will run during their normal times. You will receive an email with a link to your child’s class – use this to join the class each week. Our teachers will hold a live class each week – answering any questions the dancers have and making sure everyone is confident in the routine.

Classes will start on June 15. We will hold classes June 15-18, June 22- 25, July 6-10, and the final recording week July 13-17. Classes that do not perform in the recital will not be videotaped.  

During the last week, we will be recording videos to be put together for a virtual recital. We have two options: 1) All virtual – parents will video tape their dancer in costume, performing the routine and will submit it to HOTVDA to be included in our virtual recital video. 2) Dancers will come to studio in costume to perform the dance to be video taped for the virtual recital. Only dancers will be allowed in the studio, no audience will be allowed. Champion Video will record the performances and they will put together the video for either option. Please use the following link the vote for your preferred choice : https://www.survio.com/survey/d/J1Y3K8E0R9H4S2L9P

More details on the virtual recital will be sent next week after we review the survey results. Please vote for your recital choice by Thursday, May 28.

All dancers who signed up to perform in our production numbers will be credited the full amount onto your dance accounts.

We have decided to cancel our summer dance program this year. We are heartbroken to not offer these classes over the summer, but we feel it is the safest option for our dance family.

Our fall registration will begin later this summer! We are updating our class offering and making a few changes to help with our new policies. We are excited to kick off a new year at the studio! Watch your email for registration details.

Our competition team will be holding virtual try-outs this year. More details will be released soon! Please watch our social media for updates. 

We do plan on holding classes this fall in the studio with a few new safety measures in place:

All dancers will enter the studio through the hallway entrance – the hall will be marked every 6 feet for social distancing while you wait – we will welcome all dancers into the studio after we have sanitized following each class. Dancers will exit out the main studio entrance out to the street with guidance from our staff.

We are restricting the number of non-dancers (parents, siblings etc.) in the lobbies to protect our customers, staff and faculty. Please just drop off your dancer with their dance bag (including all necessary Items, shoes and a water bottle) - our lobby is effectively closed as a waiting area in between classes – we will reopen the lobby as soon as it is safe.

All staff and dancers will wash their hands upon entering the studio and will sanitize again any time they touch their face and at the end of class.

Dancers will place their dance bag on a studio chair – chairs will be sanitized between each class.

Staff will sanitize the dance studio bars and any equipment used after each use. Our lobby area and bathrooms will be sanitized between every class.

Each dance space, as well as our lobby, will be equipped with an air purifier to remove harmful particles from the air.

Each classroom will have 6 foot square boxes taped off on the floor for dancers use as a guideline for keeping distance.

Our staff will be wearing masks and we ask you and your child to wear a mask at your discretion.

We will take the temperature of all dancers as they enter the studio.

HOTVDA will no longer provide water from standalone dispensers. Every student should bring their own labeled water bottle to class.

Dancers and families should stay home if they are sick and should be fever free for at least 48 hours without fever reducing medication before returning to class. Dancers and families should practice good hygiene, washing hands and using provided hand sanitizer before and after class.  HOTVDAs staff will follow all County public health guidelines.   All HOTVDA customers are expected to follow all County public health guidelines.  If the dancer or any family member in the household has a communicable infection or infestation (ex. Lice, COVID 19, etc.), please do NOT send your dancer to class.

What your dancer needs to bring to class: dance shoes, water bottle, Towel or dance sleeve to cover the barre (see photo below),

Hand sanitizer (optional), mask (optional), yoga mat (optional), please label your dancer’s bag with their name and phone number.

Hello Dance Families -

We wanted to send a quick update with the governor's new order that went in place this week. The studio will be closed until the end of April. We are completely hopeful that we will finish our season and have a recital - we are anticipating a July recital at this time, but please understand that everything is still a maybe at this time. We also plan to finish our last 3-4 weeks of classes prior to our recital, including our production numbers,. We hope we can give you a much clearer understanding of how we will finish off the year at the end of April / early May, but please have patience, as there are still many unknowns.

We ask you to please continue practicing with your dancer. One or twice a week is all it will take to keep the routines fresh in a dancers' mind. If you haven't joined our Facebook Group - Heart of the Valley Dance Academy Recital Practice, please ask to join! We have videos of our dances to help you practice, links to other dance activities, and more! Follow our regular Facebook or Instagram Page- Heart of the Valley Dance Academy - to find more ideas and links to free online dance classes.

Please remember all accounts should be paid in full by April 15. Please email the studio with any questions.

We hope you are all finding silver linings during this pandemic - sometimes it's the little things, like my teenager finally cleaned her bedroom! It's a small, but positive moment that can put a smile on our faces. Keep looking for those silver linings and keep dancing with heart!

Thank you.

Due the new state mandated guidelines going into effect today, Heart of the Valley Dance Academy will be closed for all classes effective immediately.

We continue to anticipate an April 13 opening, but please watch your emails for further updates as guidelines continue to change daily. 

We thank you all for your support and appreciate your patience as we try to navigate our way through this situation. Thank you to everyone who has asked what they can do to help our small business stay afloat! My best answer for you is just please be sure your account in paid in full by our April 15th deadline. I will be adding some office hours next week for anyone who would like to stop to make a payment or you're welcome to mail them to us. Please watch our social media for dates and times for office hours. 

If you haven't yet joined our new Facebook Group - Heart of the Valley Dance Academy Recital Practice - please request to become a member. We have already been uploading practice videos and there will be more added over the next week to keep your dancers busy while we are closed. We will be adding links to free online classes, having contests, posting coloring sheets and more! Also like our Facebook or Instagram page to see more offerings!

Thank you!

 Heart of the Valley Dance Academy
1921 Lehrer Lane
Kaukauna, WI 54130

We are aware of Gov. Evers announcement on K- 12 school closings next week. We DO plan on holding our production and competition classes this weekend and we are currently planning on holding classes March 16-19. We will continue to monitor the situation closely and will ask our families to continue following our new policies:

*If your child is sick OR you are sick - PLEASE DO NOT COME TO THE STUDIO.

* If your child has had a fever over 99 or had one in the last 24 hours - PLEASE DO NOT COME TO THE STUDIO.

* Please have your child wash their hands before and after every class.

Our staff will continue to sanitize the classroom before , during and after every class! 

We are doing our best to stay informed and keep our families safe and healthy. We will contact you again should circumstances change.  Stay safe and dance with Heart!

Dance with Heart

Hello-

Here at HOTVDA, we want you to know we take your health and safety seriously with the spread of the corona virus. We have been monitoring latest developments and will continue to do so as information is updated. We have always cleaned the studios and waiting room on daily basis. Lately, you may have noticed we have stepped up these cleaning procedures to ensure a safe environment. 

At this time, we will remain open and be conducting all classes as usual. 

We will be taking the following additional steps for the health and safety of our customers and staff:

*Our water dispenser will be removed. Please bring a water from home in a marked bottle. We will also continue to sell bottles water for $1.

*All toys, books and crayons will be removed from the lobby. We will disinfect these items and hope to return them to the lobby as soon as it's deemed safe.

*We will limit the use of props in the classroom - props that are used will be wiped down with disinfectant wipes after each use. 

*Ballet bars will be wiped down after each use.

*We will be asking all dancers to wash their hands prior to class and again when class is finished. 

*We will continue to clean studio, lobby and bathroom surfaces regularly.

Here is What you can do to help:

*If your child is sick OR you are sick - PLEASE DO NOT COME TO THE STUDIO.

* If your child has had a fever over 99 or had one in the last 24 hours - PLEASE DO NOT COME TO THE STUDIO.

* Please have your child wash their hands before and after every class.

We currently have our recital ticket sale scheduled to begin March 30th. We will monitor the situation and keep you informed of any changes over the next two weeks.

We are doing our best to stay informed and keep our families safe and healthy. We will contact you again should circumstances change.  Stay safe and dance with Heart!

.

                   Heart of the Valley Dance Academy
1921 Lehrer Lane
Kaukauna, WI 54130

920-462-4479
www.hotvdance.com

Dance with Heart