Communication: Good communication is important to the success of this season. Your comments and questions are important to me. Please feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns you may have throughout the year. The best time to reach me is 9:00-5:00 weekdays. You can call me at 218-864-8884 or you can contact me by email at battlelake_mn@justforkix.com.

Website: We’re so excited for this great new tool for you. Just go to www.justforkix.com/danceclasses/battlelake_mn and bookmark it in your favorites! Well, ok…so you’re on here so you already figured that out! My hope is that you use this webpage to its full potential!!

♦NEW THIS SEASON!! We will be offering a Battle Lake JFK shirt for you to purchase at $16! I’m so excited about this because I’ve had many dancers and parents ask about this. This will have your school colors. On the front it will say either “Just For Kix Dancer” or “Just For Kix Parent”, and on the sleeve it will say Hermantown. Watch for an order form to come home with your dancer very soon. What a great way to show your dancing pride by wearing these shirts to school the day of a performance, or to competition. AND, we’ll be able to find our parents up in the stands easier!

Important Dates: All performance dates that I have scheduled can be found on the “calendar” portion of the website.

Dance Attire: Please have your dancer arrive in dance or active wear. Jazz pants, leggings, shorts, bikers, leotards and T-shirts are acceptable. NO JEANS, DENIM, DRESSES or SKIRTS will be allowed. In order to be a dancer, you must dress like a dancer. Ballet, Jazz or Tennis shoes are required footwear. (No stocking feet please). Sandals, boots, dress or shoes with a chunky sole will not be allowed. If you have long hair, please have it pulled back into a ponytail. Do not wear any jewelry to class. Please remember no gum, food or candy is allowed.

Uniforms: Please make sure that your dancer has been sized for a uniform. All uniform payments must be returned to me by September 30. Uniforms take 8-10 weeks to manufacture. If uniform orders are not in by that date, we cannot guarantee them for the first performance. Full payment is required to order your dancer’s uniform. Once you receive your uniform, try it on. We can only accept exchanges if the uniform has not been worn. Tights may not be returned once the packaging has been opened, so check the size on the package prior to opening. If an exchange is needed, please return the uniform right away as it may take several weeks to process. We are very picky about how our dancers come to performances. Proper dance shoes must be worn and they must be CLEAN. Nylons/tights or socks must be the correct color. We will designate hairstyles to each group in an upcoming calendar. If your dancers pants are longer than floor length, please hem them before her first performance so she doesn’t slip and slide (and possibly hurt herself).

Payments: Class payments are due by the 1st of each month. Any payments received at the home office after the 10th will have an additional $5.00 late fee per month added to the balance. First 1/2-year payments are due by September 30th and you will receive a $1.00 per month discount by paying by the 1/2 year. Second 1/2 year payments are due on January 1st. I strongly encourage you to send payments directly to the home office at Just For Kix •• PO Box 724 •• Brainerd, MN 56401. You will receive a payment stub sheet with this calendar for your payment convenience. Sibling Discount: If you have two or more dancers in the program there is a dollar discount per month per child. All state sales taxes are included in payments where applicable.
**I will hand out friendly payments reminders regularly at class for any accounts that are past due.
Please Note: Any NSF or “stopped payment” checks made payable to JFK will be charged a $20.00 service fee per check. Thank you.

Cancellations: The calendar will provide you with a class schedule for the season. Occasionally, we may run into a circumstance where an unscheduled cancellation needs to be made. This is very rare but should it happen, you will receive a note or a phone call. Any classes that are cancelled will be made-up. Watch for make-up dates on future calendars. Please note: if school has closed early or is cancelled due to weather, there will be NO Just For Kix classes that evening. I will typically follow the recommendation of the school’s policies given to after school activities as a guideline for canceling classes. Announcements will be made on 103.3, lite rock 105, Fargo tv stations and on our page on the JFK website.

No Distraction Environment: We have found through the years that the most productive way to run classes is without the distraction of parents and siblings. We want to offer the best quality class we can. Since we only have a short time per week together, every minute is important. Therefore, I will have a “no distraction environment”. No spectators will be allowed during class time. However, I will allow spectators in the last 10 minutes of the last class of each month. This way you will be able to see the progress we are making.

Props: At some point during the year, your dancer may do a prop routine. Some props are rented from the Home Office, while others are purchased. All will require a minimal fee ($1.00 to $6.00).

Facility: Our facility is VERY important to us. There is no yelling, running, or gymnastics allowed while you’re at the church (inside or outside). There are other people using the church, and we need to always respect the facility and the other people in it. This is also for your safety. Dancers are to enter in the east parking lot door (down the stairs and to the right), and hang up their jackets, backpacks, etc. on the hooks on the wall downstairs. At that time they should proceed to the class area (sometimes upstairs, sometimes downstairs), and sit quietly until their instructor comes to get them. Dancers should be picked up immediately after their class is finished, as there is no supervision outside of classtime.

Jazz Classes: Jazz classes are additional classes that are offered to our dancers. Our core kick classes teach and work on kids learning the skills needed to dance. Dancers learn 3-4 routines in their regular core kick season classes. If your child chooses to also take a jazz class, that will be run differently than the core kick class. In jazz class, instructors spend more time breaking down JAZZ-specific skills (pirouettes, turns, leaps, flexibility moves, and much more). Therefore this class learns 1-2 routines in their season (which starts in October). Jazz teams will perform at 1 basketball game, 2 competitions, and spring show.

Performances: I will try to offer as many performances as possible. I am always looking for new opportunities; please feel free to contact me with any ideas. Please note… you may have to pay admission into some performances. For example: basketball games, football games or shows. Please understand that Just For Kix has no control over admission fees and we try to offer free performances also.

Shoes: Ballet or Jazz shoes are required at all performances. I would also recommend that ballet or Jazz shoes be worn at practice.

JFK Signature Merchandise: You will be receiving a Signature merchandise pamphlet. The JFK merchandise will be available to order all year long. All orders will be shipped directly to your home. These items have been specifically designed for our JFK dancers. Turn your order into me, mail it directly to the JFK Home Office or order online at http://www.justforkix.com/.

Our Dance Season: Our dance season is broken into different parts. We utilize our fall classes to build up our skills, learn our first routines, get uniforms ordered and prepare for performance season. Our performance season begins in the end of November. By this time we have learned our first routines and have built some of our skills. We utilize this performance season to polish our routines, work on facial expressions and confidence. We may perform routines multiple times to allow us to polish and build self-confidence while we perform. You will notice that each time we perform a routine, the facial expressions and confidence should improve as we become more comfortable with the routine. We will also continue to introduce new routines throughout the performance season. Following the Holidays our 4th-12th grade classes will also begin competing. We finish our year with a Spring Show.

At Home Practice: Often parents ask how to help their dancers practice at home. The most important thing dancers can do is stretch on a regular basis at home. Dancers should do some activity to warm muscles and then stretch as many times a week as possible. Stretching technique is covered at class. Dancers who miss class should try to arrange to get together with one of their teammates to learn what was missed. Note: For Tiny Kix and Wee Petite dancers, at home practice should not be forced. Our goal is for them to enjoy the experience.