health & safety protocols during the covid-19 pandemic

Many Health & Safety Protocols will be followed during our classes, including:

No one with a fever or symptoms of Covid-19, or known exposure to a Covid-19 case, in the prior 14 days is permitted to participate.  All participants in our ALEXANDRIA classes will be required to get temperature checks at the Center's front desk before every class.

If a dance student is sick and experiencing any symptoms of Covid-19 including, but not limited to, fever of 100.4 or higher, cough, shortness of breath, chills, sore throat and/or muscle aches, STAY HOME.  Do not come to class.

All students and adults must wear a face covering or mask when arriving at class and when departing class.

OUTDOOR Classes:  students may remove masks once they are on their marked individual dance spots 10 feet apart from each other. 

INDOOR Classes (for ages 6 and up):  students should wear masks during the entire class.  Parents and guardians must wear masks at all times when inside the public Center, per Virginia State Law.

Our instructors also will follow the rules above.  

Before every class at Fairlington and Barcroft, Arlington County policy requires that each student's parent or adult guardian review and sign off on a set of standard health questions on behalf of his/her student before the student can participate in class.

All of our Pre-Ballet classes (for ages 3-5 and ages 3.5-5) will be run as child/adult classes.  During class, each student's parent or adult guardian must remain within an arm's length of his/her dancer to help ensure proper social distancing.  During this time of the pandemic, we cannot allow younger siblings to attend class as well.  Each dance student's parent or adult guardian must be 100% focused on his/her dancer. 

If siblings are registered in the same class, it would be ideal for each child to have an adult companion at his/her individual dance spot.

Each student's parent or adult guardian MUST stay on the premises during class and must be immediately reachable by the instructor by voice (for OUTDOOR classes) or by phone (for INDOOR classes).  

Arrive at class 5 minutes before it begins, wearing a mask, and stay 6 feet apart from other participants.  The instructor will invite participants to enter the dance area one at a time.

During class, all participants and instructors are to maintain 10 feet of physical distance between each other.

Please leave immediately after the class to allow plenty of space for students in the next class.

Hand sanitizer will be provided at the entrance of class.  Participants must use hand sanitizer before they enter the dance area, and they must use hand sanitizer when they exit the dance area.  Please wash your hands with soap and water for 20 seconds when you get home.

All of our dance classes will be half the size than they normally are.  Depending on the class, the maximum number of students will be 7 or 8 children.

No equipment or props will be distributed by the instructor to the students during class.

Students are allowed to bring the following with them to class in a small bag:  a water bottle (clearly labeled with his/her name) and hand sanitizer.  Students will be asked to put their masks in their bags once class begins.  Hand sanitizing is recommended after students touch their masks. 

Students only can attend the class in which they are registered, they may not attend a different class as a makeup class for an absence.

If class gets cancelled due to inclement weather, we will try to schedule a makeup class.  Otherwise, the County will issue a household credit for the cancelled class. 

Go Bananas Dancing is following the Governor's Forward Virginia Plan which indicates that 10 feet of physical distance should be maintained between participants in exercise activities.  Before class begins, the instructor will use sidewalk chalk or painters tape to clearly mark individual dance spots 10 feet apart.  

During class, instructors will remind participants to maintain this social distance.  Please be understanding and patient as we navigate this new normal with the children.

Among participants, there will be no hand-holding, high fives, fist bumps.  Just curtseys, bows and waving of hands!  

WAVE TO YOUR DANCE INSTRUCTORS!!!  WE LOVE DANCING WITH YOU!!!

DURING THIS TRICKY TIME, WE STILL CAN GO BANANAS!!!