Suzuki Method < Policies & Perks < Tuition < Enrollment Process
DETROIT YOUTH VOLUME 2019/2020 Parent Handbook
Let’s make the world a better place!
DETROIT YOUTH VOLUME is a non-profit organization providing music education that is
accessible, equitable, and relevant to our city since 2010. We utilize the Suzuki Method and
social justice pedagogies to nurture students' abilities to persevere, be creative,
collaborate, and empathize with others. Tuition covers private lessons, group classes,
special workshops with local musicians from Detroit-centric genres, concerts, community
performances and more!
DETROIT YOUTH VOLUME is a non-profit organization providing music education that is
accessible, equitable, and relevant to our city since 2010. We utilize the Suzuki Method and
social justice pedagogies to nurture students' abilities to persevere, be creative,
collaborate, and empathize with others. Tuition covers private lessons, group classes,
special workshops with local musicians from Detroit-centric genres, concerts, community
performances and more!
The Suzuki Method
1. Private Lessons & Group Class - both are required. This allows for a rich music
education in which students get individualized instruction and also learn to play with
a group, developing empathy for others.
2. Parent participation - one caretaker is required to attend every lesson, take
notes and facilitate home practice until child is able to practice independently. This
job can be shared by more than one caretaker but they must communicate with
each other consistently to best support the child.
3. Early beginning - traditionally between 3 & 5 years old but children can begin
anytime.
4. Positive learning environment - teachers usenurturing language and
strategies to encourage confidence and emotional resilience which leads to will for
mastery. Parents are guided to use the same language and approach at home
during daily practice.
5. Ear before eye note-reading - students learn to read notes after they have a
solid foundation of musicality,strong posture and are reading words at school
6. Repetition - often skills are learned by practicing a section or exercise over and
over
7. Review - we play the songs we know every week during practice and performances.
Songs are not “done” and forgotten after they are memorized. This allows students
to keep all of their techniques sharp to support them in learning new songs. It also
keeps confidence up for children to hear themselves play songs beautifully while
they are learning more difficult songs simultaneously.
8. Step-by-step & layered learning - students given small, achievable sections of
the new song each week, instead of the entire piece. Before they have memorized
this song, teacher begins a “preview” of the next songs. The child sees themselves
constantly progressing with this approach and develops a will for mastery, always
excited and happy to learn more because they are confident they can do it.
9. Internationally-used repertoire - Songs from Suzuki books 1 through 10 are
played by children all over the world!
10. Listening - students are expected to listen to the Suzuki songs daily to support
their learning.
education in which students get individualized instruction and also learn to play with
a group, developing empathy for others.
2. Parent participation - one caretaker is required to attend every lesson, take
notes and facilitate home practice until child is able to practice independently. This
job can be shared by more than one caretaker but they must communicate with
each other consistently to best support the child.
3. Early beginning - traditionally between 3 & 5 years old but children can begin
anytime.
4. Positive learning environment - teachers usenurturing language and
strategies to encourage confidence and emotional resilience which leads to will for
mastery. Parents are guided to use the same language and approach at home
during daily practice.
5. Ear before eye note-reading - students learn to read notes after they have a
solid foundation of musicality,strong posture and are reading words at school
6. Repetition - often skills are learned by practicing a section or exercise over and
over
7. Review - we play the songs we know every week during practice and performances.
Songs are not “done” and forgotten after they are memorized. This allows students
to keep all of their techniques sharp to support them in learning new songs. It also
keeps confidence up for children to hear themselves play songs beautifully while
they are learning more difficult songs simultaneously.
8. Step-by-step & layered learning - students given small, achievable sections of
the new song each week, instead of the entire piece. Before they have memorized
this song, teacher begins a “preview” of the next songs. The child sees themselves
constantly progressing with this approach and develops a will for mastery, always
excited and happy to learn more because they are confident they can do it.
9. Internationally-used repertoire - Songs from Suzuki books 1 through 10 are
played by children all over the world!
10. Listening - students are expected to listen to the Suzuki songs daily to support
their learning.
Policies & Perks
Location Everything happens in our sunny, art-filled classroom of Cathedral Church of St Paul.
4800 Woodward is located at the corner of Woodward and Warren. We love making music in the
Cass Corridor where artists have been creating work for many years! Sharing an intersection with
the Detroit Institute of Art, Wayne State University, Detroit Public Library, Charles Wright Museum
of African American History, and the Detroit Science Center is awesome and convenient for field
trips - planned or impromptu!
Private Lessons & Group Class It’s a big commitment and well worth it! Every child
receives a weekly private lesson: 30 for Book 1 students & 45 minutes for Book 2 students.
There will be 30 lessons between the 2nd week of September through Memorial Day in
May. Group Class will happen once a month on a Saturday. DYV embraces the above Suzuki
tenets along with other transformative teaching methods:
detroityouthvolume.org/teaching-approach.html.
Lesson slots are available Monday through Friday, 3-5:30pm. Summer lessons are optional.
There are no Group Classes over the summer. Summer music camps are encouraged and
usually inspires an increased feeling of ownership for students! They want to practice more
and more strongly embrace being a musician as part of their identity.
Parent Participation As is traditional to the Suzuki method and essential to musical
progress, the caretaker who facilitates daily home practice with the child will attend each
private lesson to take notes and learn alongside the student. Parent lessons are optional.
Parents are also expected to attend and engage in Group Classes. A parent-teacher
conference will happen once in the Winter, during your child’s private lesson slot.
Performances This year, there is only one mandatory performance: the Spring solo
recital! DYV is often invited to play community performances at random throughout the
year. You’ll receive an email or text to sign-up for these fun, voluntary shows.
Listening to Good Music Listening to the Suzuki CD & quality music at home is highly
recommended. Hearing the Suzuki songs helps the student learn much faster, which
means they are happier, more confident and excited to move forward! PLUS, DYV often
receives free and discount tickets to local shows for our students. These will be distributed
on a first-come-first-serve basis.
Make-up Lessons You will receive 30 private lessons and 9 group classes between
September and Memorial Day in May. Group Classes canceled due to weather will not be
made up. Up to three missed lessons can be made up during May/June or beforehand if
schedules allow.
Attendance Tardiness of more than 10 minutes will be considered an absence. If a
student misses more than three times per semester (September-November,
December-February, March-May), the Director will reach out to see if any changes need to
be made. Attendance must improve in the following season, or the student risks losing
their slot to someone on the DYV waiting list.
Dropping Out In the event of mid-year cancellation, you will be charged half a
month's-worth of tuition following the date of the termination (date the family informs
Director of their decision by phone, email, text or in-person). Scholarship students will be
expected to return all music materials and instrument you received from Detroit Youth
Volume within two weeks.
Working with Clara I am the Founding Director of DYV & I love teaching! I’ve been
working with youth since I moved to Detroit in 2006 after college. I started DYV & teaching
violin in 2010 with the goal of nurturing beautiful humanity & beautiful talent. All of my life
experiences, education & trainings factor into this.
4800 Woodward is located at the corner of Woodward and Warren. We love making music in the
Cass Corridor where artists have been creating work for many years! Sharing an intersection with
the Detroit Institute of Art, Wayne State University, Detroit Public Library, Charles Wright Museum
of African American History, and the Detroit Science Center is awesome and convenient for field
trips - planned or impromptu!
Private Lessons & Group Class It’s a big commitment and well worth it! Every child
receives a weekly private lesson: 30 for Book 1 students & 45 minutes for Book 2 students.
There will be 30 lessons between the 2nd week of September through Memorial Day in
May. Group Class will happen once a month on a Saturday. DYV embraces the above Suzuki
tenets along with other transformative teaching methods:
detroityouthvolume.org/teaching-approach.html.
Lesson slots are available Monday through Friday, 3-5:30pm. Summer lessons are optional.
There are no Group Classes over the summer. Summer music camps are encouraged and
usually inspires an increased feeling of ownership for students! They want to practice more
and more strongly embrace being a musician as part of their identity.
Parent Participation As is traditional to the Suzuki method and essential to musical
progress, the caretaker who facilitates daily home practice with the child will attend each
private lesson to take notes and learn alongside the student. Parent lessons are optional.
Parents are also expected to attend and engage in Group Classes. A parent-teacher
conference will happen once in the Winter, during your child’s private lesson slot.
Performances This year, there is only one mandatory performance: the Spring solo
recital! DYV is often invited to play community performances at random throughout the
year. You’ll receive an email or text to sign-up for these fun, voluntary shows.
Listening to Good Music Listening to the Suzuki CD & quality music at home is highly
recommended. Hearing the Suzuki songs helps the student learn much faster, which
means they are happier, more confident and excited to move forward! PLUS, DYV often
receives free and discount tickets to local shows for our students. These will be distributed
on a first-come-first-serve basis.
Make-up Lessons You will receive 30 private lessons and 9 group classes between
September and Memorial Day in May. Group Classes canceled due to weather will not be
made up. Up to three missed lessons can be made up during May/June or beforehand if
schedules allow.
Attendance Tardiness of more than 10 minutes will be considered an absence. If a
student misses more than three times per semester (September-November,
December-February, March-May), the Director will reach out to see if any changes need to
be made. Attendance must improve in the following season, or the student risks losing
their slot to someone on the DYV waiting list.
Dropping Out In the event of mid-year cancellation, you will be charged half a
month's-worth of tuition following the date of the termination (date the family informs
Director of their decision by phone, email, text or in-person). Scholarship students will be
expected to return all music materials and instrument you received from Detroit Youth
Volume within two weeks.
Working with Clara I am the Founding Director of DYV & I love teaching! I’ve been
working with youth since I moved to Detroit in 2006 after college. I started DYV & teaching
violin in 2010 with the goal of nurturing beautiful humanity & beautiful talent. All of my life
experiences, education & trainings factor into this.
- Being a “Suzuki kid” from ages five to eighteen in Marquette, MI
- Going to Europe with Blue Lake International Youth Orchestra at age sixteen
- Studying Social Science Theory in undergrad at University of Michigan Ann Arbor
- Working at Capuchin Soup Kitchen’s Rosa Parks Youth Program from 2006-2010
- Training with Mark Mutter (Director Suzuki Royal Oak) for Suzuki Books 1-6
- Facilitating Music Together at Experiencia & Boggs School Kindergartens
- Subbing at Detroit Waldorf School in Music & Early Childhood
- Attending 2 years of community educators’ training with Allied Media Projects
- Playing at “Creative Strings” adult intensive with jazz violinists Christian Howes
- Completing the People’s Institute for Survival & Beyond “Undoing Racism” training
Tuition
Your tuition total of $1,215 (30-min lessons) or $1,665 (45-min lessons) is divided by 9
months September-May: $135 (30-min lessons) or $185 (45-min lessons). Your monthly
tuition is due at the first lesson of each month. Your invoice will be revised with an
added $10 late fee if payment is not made by the second lesson of the month. DYV may
terminate a family with overdue fees of three or more months.
months September-May: $135 (30-min lessons) or $185 (45-min lessons). Your monthly
tuition is due at the first lesson of each month. Your invoice will be revised with an
added $10 late fee if payment is not made by the second lesson of the month. DYV may
terminate a family with overdue fees of three or more months.
Tuition + instrument rental totals $150 per month (30 min lessons) / $200 per month (45-
min lessons) from September through May, including discounted violin rental rate from
DYV’s fleet at Bayberry Music 23430 Woodward Ave, Ferndale, MI 48220. You may choose
to rent from Bayberry’s fleet, which is a bit higher rate but may be nicer. Violin rental is paid
directly to Bayberry Music. Joel at Bayberry sends their invoices monthly by email.
Remember, you may want to continue renting over the summer as well.
Books
Financial Aid may be requested at any level by emailing clara@detroityouthvolume.org
with a note about your needs & submitting proof of income (free/reduced lunch or tax
documents). This will determine the percentage of financial aid you will receive.
min lessons) from September through May, including discounted violin rental rate from
DYV’s fleet at Bayberry Music 23430 Woodward Ave, Ferndale, MI 48220. You may choose
to rent from Bayberry’s fleet, which is a bit higher rate but may be nicer. Violin rental is paid
directly to Bayberry Music. Joel at Bayberry sends their invoices monthly by email.
Remember, you may want to continue renting over the summer as well.
Books
- Suzuki Violin School Volume 1 w/CD (Revised Edition) $20
- Ages 7+ need I Can Read Music Volume 1 (Joann Martin) $14
Financial Aid may be requested at any level by emailing clara@detroityouthvolume.org
with a note about your needs & submitting proof of income (free/reduced lunch or tax
documents). This will determine the percentage of financial aid you will receive.
Enrollment Process
* Returning students To Do list = purple. New student To Do list = orange AND purples.
Make sure you have read the DYV handbook and agree with a DYV policies. Questions? Email
hello@detroityouthvolume.org or leave a message at 313-451-1138.
Schedule an observation of a private lesson or group class. (optional). Our
concerts are always free and open to the public!
Submit an application.
Claim your lesson slot. If your application has been accepted, it’s time to choose your
lesson slot!
Complete DYV registration form after your application has been accepted & lesson slot
has been confirmed.
Attend an orientation meeting. Those joining in the Fall will attend an orientation
meeting with all families before lessons begin. If joining mid-year, your orientation will happen
either over the phone or during your child's first lesson slot. This includes learning about the
organization, Suzuki method, Tuition rate overview, instrument rental / materials needed.
Rent an instrument or take yours in for a check up. Visit Bayberry Music 23430
Woodward Ave, Ferndale, MI 48220 to receive DYV’s special rate of $15 per month. This
comes with a yearly set of new strings and check up. Alternative shops: Psarianos (Troy),
Wilson (Birmingham), Shar (Ann Arbor), Detroit Violin Co (Berkley). We do NOT recommend
renting from a guitar store or buying one on eBay. The time to buy is when the student
needs a full-size. When you’re child grows out of their instrument, it will be exchanged for a
larger size.
Purchase books
- Suzuki Violin School Volume 1 w/CD (Revised Edition) $20
- Ages 7+ need I Can Read Music Volume 1 (Joann Martin) $14
What to bring to every lesson/group class
- instrument, music books, binder for notes unless you choose to use your phone or a
- For first-year & Pre-Twinklers: footchart