First a shout-out to Healther Walts from Just Dance Academy for her ideas behind this post, Colds Flus and Bugs!

Uh oh… It’s that time of year. Over the cacophony of achoos, coughs, and wheezing you can barely hear the music. What is a dance studio owner to do?! Check out our tips on how to keep your students and studio healthy and happy. Most of these tips are common sense, but it never hurts to be reminded!

  1. Hand Sanitizer: Make sure you keep hand sanitizer– everywhere! At the front desk, next to your studio rooms, near the music, etc.
  2. Clean, Clean, Clean: Wipe down all the counters, chairs, stereos, and barres every evening with, you got it, plain old alcohol.  It’s cheap and kills germs. Feel like this might be an undertaking? Ask your teachers to wipe down the stereo when they’re finished with class and have the students quickly wipe down the barres after a ballet class. The more the merrier.
  3. Send Them Home: If you have children that are visibly sick call their parents to pick them up so they don’t spread the germs! It’s always good to have a sick policy, but beware of students and parents who might try and take advantage of it. Allow one free sick day and after that if they want to make up classes they must be required to bring in some form of a doctor’s note.
  4. Hydrate: Make sure your students are drinking enough water. Sell water bottles for a dollar or 50 cents at the front desk.
  5. No Sharing: Encourage students to bring their own water bottles and snacks and LABEL THEM! Sharing water bottles can spread germs quickly.  Think about selling personalized water bottles!
  6. Really, No Sharing! Don’t let your students share makeup. We’ve heard this is a major issue at competition with lip-gloss getting mixed up. Have each student bring a container with their name on it. Keep all of their makeup in this container. Consider writing their names on lip-gloss bottles with nail polish.
  7. Clean Some More: Sanitize your studio’s dance floors every weekend. Keeping the floors clean will help keep children from potentially developing warts on their feet, which can knock them out of their game if they aren’t taken care of.
  8. Take Good Care of Yourself! If you, the dance studio owner are sick, stay home. Run the dance studio from your home by leaving instructions to your senior teachers or office administrators. The last thing you want to do is pass your sickness onto your team.