We have learned a lot after our first full week of virtual lessons. We have seen your amps, drum setups, toys, pets, living rooms, and even taught a few lessons outdoors. We have all gained greater insight into your practice environment. This shift in our lesson model has forced us to grow as teachers and our students to become more self-reliant. 

Many of you are wondering when we will reopen our doors, and unfortunately, we do not have an answer to that question. What we do know is that we will be continuing with virtual lessons for the time being. All group lessons are on hold and you will not be charged for classes until they resume. In the meantime, we encourage you to schedule private lessons with your group’s instructor. You are also welcome to schedule an additional lesson each week with your current instructor (thank you to the students who have already taken advantage of this!). 

To keep things as normal as possible, we ask that you continue to reach out to the front desk for any scheduling and billing questions. Our wonderful administrative staff is answering the phone and emails remotely around the clock. As always, you are welcome to remove one lesson before the 1st of the month and apply makeup credits to a future invoice. Please review our lesson policy below.

One lesson can be removed before the 1st of the month and email is the preferred contact method to remove lessons. Beginning on the 1st of the month, students can cancel up to 24 hours before the lesson and receive a make-up credit. Students that cancel within 24 hours of the lesson will be charged the full amount and will not receive a make-up credit. To cancel and/or reschedule lessons please use the student portal. To remove one lesson (so that you won’t be charged) or apply a makeup credit to your invoice, please email us before the 1st of the month.

Below are some benefits that we have seen from our first week of virtual lessons.

-Use your gear and educational materials 
-Flexible Scheduling 
-Help with your practice rig 
-Connecting with your teacher from any location 
-Record lessons and practice with them throughout the week 
-Our teachers are happy to use Zoom, FaceTime, Skype, and any other preferred video-conferencing applications 

We are very thankful for the opportunity to continue with virtual lessons and see our students each week. Thank you for sticking with us and….

Keep Shedding!

Parker

P.S. Please tag us on Instagram @guitarshedatl with pictures/videos of your virtual lessons! 
P.P.S. Gift certificates are available to purchase online here

“I just wanted to say everything was great. Skype worked well on our end and Finn was engaged and learned 2 new songs! Charlie had his lesson with Max today as well and Zoom was awesome. I loved how Max could put up the music on the screen instead of us having to prop it up next to him. Thanks for making online lessons work. Keeping some semblance of normalcy in our lives through all this chaos was really helpful. – Nancy

You and Guitar Shed have brought me so much joy. Thank you for all you do. – Sara

Thanks for making this an option, we very much want to continue to support the business (and instructors!) we care about and love having an option to continue. – Jessica

We are so happy that lessons are continuing online. It is something to look forward to that is not homeschooling! – 

Suellen

Greetings Guitar Shedders,
Please read the following update carefully.
Our plan at Guitar Shed is to remain open unless Atlanta Public Schools (APS) decides to close schools in our area. I am meeting with local business owners and officials to determine the best plan of action going forward. We ask that you adhere to the following guidelines APS has issued.

-Stay home when you are sick, and keep your children at home when they are sick. As a reminder, students running a fever must stay home from school until they are symptom-free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medication 
-Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom; before eating; and after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing. If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol. 
-Avoid close contact with people who are sick. 
-Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands. 
-Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash. 
-Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipe.

Disinfectant wipes are available in all lesson rooms and in the lobby. We are taking deep cleaning measures on all surfaces, instruments and common spaces. 

For the remainder of March, we are adjusting our cancellation policy to allow makeup credits within 24 hrs. only for students who are sick. 

We plan to offer Skype video lessons if we close down. Skype is a free service and works on most phones and computers that have a camera built-in. We will not make Skype lessons mandatory for students, but hopefully, this will make up for some lost income for our teachers. This is not ideal but will keep some semblance of normalcy and our students will continue to progress on their instruments. Lesson times will stay the same and the bonus is you can learn in your pajamas!

Your health is paramount. Take care of yourselves, take care of each other and if you or your children start to feel symptoms please stay at home to avoid any potential spread.