Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Teachers Forum Biggest family you teach?

What is the largest number of students that you teach from one income source.

Do you offer "family rates"

Does it make you nervous that if they moved you would lose a fair chunk of income?

I'll start

$520 monthly from one family
No, It's all one rate
Yes, it increases the risk (though in this case I feel pretty stable).

Just realized that this title is not very clear.

We can discuss Childhood obesity in another thread.

Jeremy,

Two years ago I taught 3 girls from one family. Had the 3 for quite a few year. Then they moved and I cried! Cause I lost 3 at once, but I cried mostly because I honestly loved teaching them! The dad got transferred, and Poof! Gone!

This year I have 3 from the same family! So far no word that they are going anywhere.

I teach them all for free! . . . Kidding, just kidding! No family rates. No family has complained! Works fine!

My largest is 4 from one family.

In my policy I give a nominal discount in regards to the annual fee. I justify this by how they can share, really only one thing, and that's Piano Explorer, a monthly periodical that I give my students.

No discount on tuition and no complaints!

And yes, it is true if they move away, poof a big chunk of time and income lost! Perhaps we need to charge more for families?? Just kidding. Really not much you can do about it, except hope that they don't quit. I haven't found it a problem... if they give you advance notice of a move, you can more than likely fill their lesson times.

I'm having fun with your question pianoexcellance, is that all right?

TGIF, you know!

Weigh all the members of the family group for a group weight total, then divide by the number of people in the group.

This allows you to establish a "family weight" which should help you with establishing your "family rate discount".

Indeed.

I'm off to Mexico tomorrow morning....so antsy right now.

I had seven in one family, but not all at once. I believe I had up to four at the same time. The oldest had graduated by the time the youngest began.

I would prefer to have no more than two in the same family, at least at the same time.

I teach a family of four children who live just one street away from me (so they can each walk to their lessons). I don't give them a discount, but I do let them pay monthly with no fee (I charge everyone else by the semester)

I taught a family of four children once - I didn't give a discount, but I was flexible with how they paid. Sometimes it was by the term, sometimes by the week. They were very reliable about paying, and about informing me of absences etc. Four very different kids, but all rewarding to teach. I ran into their parents (and one of the girls) in a supermarket queue not long ago, after 20 years, and was very chuffed to hear that 2 of the 4 were still playing, including boy#2 (the Speed Demon) .

Opps,

Just realized I have two sets of 3 from the same family!

Now I'm worried!

Have fun in Mexico, Senor Jeremy! That's right isn't it!?

Senor Jeremy,

I'm jumping like a jumping bean with enthusiasm that you are getting to go to Mexico tomorrow!

Porque?

Hasta La Vista!

Chabeta

I have 3 children from one family, and there's probably more to come! I teach voice to the two older kids and piano to the younger, and he will probably take voice when he's old enough.

I have an hour rate that is slightly less than two-half hours together, so I charge and hour plus a half hour for them. I do this because I want to encourage students to take hour lessons if at all possible (although I only have 2 students doing this right now).

I just remembered that last year I had three in one family. Money was already getting tight, so the family cut down to two half hour lessons and split up the time. I didn't like it, but it was either that or lose all of them. The younger two were twins. Then they moved right before Christmas, and that was the end of that.

This is what I don't like about teaching several people in a family. I got the young twins because the parents saw that I totally turned around their older boy, who was not being taught to read music before I began working with him (and was picking up many more terrible habits). The little girls would have been very good if they had not had to move.

I know the focus of the original question was financial, but if we're talking special problems or concerns with teaching multiple family members I'd just add that I've always tried to make sure each was playing different repertoire, even if they were at approximately the same level. If you use method books that could be difficult, but as I generally don't, it wasn't an issue for me with the 4-kid family.

I have at times taught up 3 three families with three students per family, and the fee for that typically ranges between $325-$450/month. Though right now I only have one with three students, although a number of families have two students taking lessons with me.

Meri