♫ Miss Melanie's Music Studio
Contents
Welcome to the studio

Family Guide

Everything you need to manage your student's lessons, swaps, and makeups, all in one place.

A Message from Melanie

Dear families,

Teaching your children, and a few of you as well, is the joy of my working life. Watching a student travel from first notes to real music never gets old, and building that year after year with each family is why I do what I do.

For a long time I ran the studio's scheduling by hand and by heart: a text here, a phone call there, an email chain to sort out a cancellation or find a makeup time. I never wanted to be rigid, so I kept everything informal. But as the studio has grown, that informal approach quietly took over more and more of my evenings and weekends. Last-minute changes, open-ended cancellations, and all the back and forth to coordinate them were taking time and energy I would far rather pour into preparing and teaching lessons. I also came to realize that "anything goes" is not actually fair. It is not fair to the students who plan ahead, to the families waiting for an open time, or to me.

So I have done two things. First, this app: a simple home for your family's schedule, where you can see your lessons, cancel or reschedule, swap times with another family, and claim makeup times yourself, with no phone tag and no waiting on me to reply. Everything lives in one place and is visible to both of us.

Second, for the first time I have written the studio's policies down, the expectations I always explained in person but never put on paper. You will find them in the Studio Policies section that follows, covering how cancellations, makeups, and scheduling changes work. They take effect in Fall 2026. They are not meant to be strict for its own sake. They are meant to be clear, fair, and sustainable, so that I can keep giving every student my very best.

None of this changes what matters most: the music, and the relationship we build in each lesson. If anything, handling the logistics cleanly means more of my attention lands exactly where it belongs, on your child. Please take a few minutes to read through this guide, and never hesitate to reach out if anything is not clear.

With gratitude, and real excitement for the year ahead,

Melanie

New

Your options if a scheduled class time does not work for you

If your student cannot make their usual time, you have four options, and you can handle every one of them yourself in the app. Try them in this order.

1

Switch to online Always available

If your student can still have the lesson but cannot come in person, switch it to online in one tap. Nothing else about the lesson changes.

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2

Swap with another family

Request to trade your time with up to 3 other families whose lessons are the same length. The first to accept is confirmed automatically, and the others are released.

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3

Move to an open time

Look for an open slot on the calendar and move the lesson there yourself. If a time that works is open, it is yours right away.

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If none of those work
4

Cancel and join the waitlist

Cancel the lesson in the app. Your student is placed on the makeup waitlist automatically, and you will be notified as open times come up (see Makeups and the Waitlist).

Please do all of this in the app. Reschedules and cancellations by phone, text, or email cannot be processed and will not place your student on the waitlist. There is no separate way to enter them by hand, and doing it that way is exactly what the app is here to replace.
Genuine emergencies Melanie always understands that real emergencies happen, and you will never be penalized for one. Even then, please cancel in the app so your student goes on the waitlist automatically. The app is simply how the studio keeps every makeup fair and organized. It is never a barrier to reaching Melanie in a true emergency.
Effective Fall 2026

Studio Policies

Starting in Fall 2026, all scheduling (cancellations, makeups, and swaps) is handled in the studio app rather than by text, email, or phone. These policies keep scheduling fair, clear, and manageable for every family.

  1. Your lesson time. Each student has a reserved weekly lesson time, held for that student throughout the term.
  2. Making a change. Cancellations, reschedules, and swaps are all done in the app, so everyone works from the same schedule and nothing gets lost in a text thread. You can make a change yourself, anytime, without waiting for a reply.
    1. a. All scheduling changes are made in the app only. Please do not send reschedules or cancellations by phone, text, or email. They cannot be processed, and only a cancellation in the app places your student on the makeup waitlist.
  3. Notice and same-day changes.
    1. a. You may cancel or reschedule freely up until 10:00 pm the night before your lesson.
    2. b. From 10:00 pm the night before through the lesson's end, a change counts as a same-day change. The app will ask you to confirm it is a genuine emergency (for example, illness). Melanie is always glad to accommodate a real same-day emergency. Please still cancel in the app so your student is placed on the waitlist, which is how makeups stay fair and organized for everyone.
    3. c. Same-day changes that are not for emergencies are not eligible for a makeup.
  4. Makeups.
    1. a. Melanie will help arrange up to 2 makeup lessons per student, per term.
    2. b. A student may cancel more than twice, but beyond 2 a makeup is not guaranteed. Additional makeups are offered only at Melanie's discretion and as the schedule allows.
    3. c. When a lesson time opens up, you claim it yourself in the app. How it is offered depends on timing:
      1. (i) Not same day: every student on the waitlist whose makeup could fit in the open slot is invited at once. If more than one student is interested in the slot, the time goes to the family highest in the waitlist order. You will hear the result once it is decided, usually within a few hours.
      2. (ii) Same day: there is no time for the fairness process, so it is first-come, first-served. Everyone who could use the time is notified at once, and the first to claim it gets it.
    4. d. Makeups depend on a suitable open time existing, so it is possible that a slot compatible for your student does not open up. Melanie will make every attempt to clear the waitlist (up to 2 makeups per term) before the end of the term. Unused makeup opportunities expire at the end of the term.
  5. Swaps with another family.
    1. a. A new, and hopefully exciting and useful, feature of the app is that you can always request that other families in the studio trade lesson times with you. If it works, it reduces the need to cancel and use up your makeup quota for the term.
    2. b. A student may request a swap from up to 3 other families at once, for lessons of the same length. The first to accept is confirmed, and the rest are released automatically.
    3. c. A swap must be requested at least 4 hours before the lesson, and it expires 2 hours before the lesson if no one has accepted.
  6. Online and in-studio. Lessons are in-studio unless otherwise arranged. Some lesson times may be online-only; the app marks these clearly, and you can switch an eligible lesson to online in the app.
  7. No-shows. A lesson missed with no cancellation in the app is not eligible for a makeup.
  8. Reaching Melanie. Day-to-day scheduling is self-serve in the app so Melanie's time stays on teaching. For anything the app does not cover, email Melanie at melanie@missmelaniesmusicstudio.com.
Getting started

Signing in the first time

On the studio website, tap Student Portal in the top menu, then Parent / Student Login. Enter your email and we will send you a one-time sign-in link. Open that link on the same device.

The login screen with a Parent / Student Login button and a Teacher Login button Tap Parent / Student Login

The very first time, you will be asked for your family's Login Security Code, which Melanie gives you. Enter it once and your account is linked. After that, signing in just takes the email link. One login covers all of your children.

Setting your text and email preferences

On your first sign-in you can add your mobile number and choose whether to receive text alerts and email. Text alerts are how time offers reach you quickly, when a swap is available or a lesson time opens up, so we recommend turning them on. You can change these anytime in your Profile.

The basics

Your home screen

After you sign in, your home screen shows your student's next lesson up top, then four tiles:

A small dot on a tile means something new is waiting for your attention.

The family home screen showing the next lesson and the Calendar, Needs You, and Activity tiles Your home screen
The basics

Your calendar

The calendar shows the week at a glance. Here is what you will see:

To make a change, tap your student's lesson. That opens the options covered in section 2 (switch to online, swap, move to an open time, or cancel).

The family calendar: your own lesson shown by name, other families' times marked Booked Your lesson is named; other families show as "Booked"
Makeups

Makeups and the waitlist

When you cancel a lesson, your student automatically joins the makeup waitlist. You do not need to do anything else. As open times come up, you will be notified and can claim one right in the app.

How an opening is offered depends on timing:

Melanie will help arrange up to 2 makeups per student each term, and will do her best to clear the waitlist before the term ends. Your makeup count for the term shows in the app. Full details are in the Studio Policies, item 4.

Makeup and waitlist screenshot coming in the next update
The basics

Activity

The Activity page is your full history: every swap, reschedule, cancellation, and makeup, with the date, what happened, and who did it. Use the filter chips at the top (Everything, Swaps, Reschedules, Cancellations, Makeups) to narrow the list.

Activity screenshot coming in the next update
Staying informed

Texts and notifications

When there is a swap offer for you, an open makeup time, or a confirmation, the studio sends you a text. Tap the link in the text to go straight to the action, with no login needed.

Texts come from the studio's number, which is automated, so a person does not read replies. Reply STOP anytime to stop texts, or HELP for help. For anything else, email Melanie. You can also turn texts on or off in your Profile.

Your account

Your profile and account

Your Profile holds your contact information, your communication preferences, and your Login Security Code.

The profile screen showing name, date of birth, photo, and address fields Your profile
Looking ahead

Key dates and staying in touch

Recitals, contests, and festivals are posted under Key Dates in the top menu of the studio website. For anything the app does not cover, email Melanie at melanie@missmelaniesmusicstudio.com.

Help

Questions and troubleshooting

I did not get my sign-in email.

Check your spam folder. The link expires after about an hour, so if it has been a while, request a new one. Make sure you are using the email address Melanie has on file for you.

The app is asking for a code I do not have.

That is your family's Login Security Code, which links your account the first time you sign in. Ask Melanie for it.

I have more than one child at the studio.

One login covers your whole family. You will see each of your children, and you can switch between them from your calendar.

I am an adult student.

You sign in the same way, with your own email and your Login Security Code.

I did not get a text about an offer.

Make sure texts are turned on in your Profile and your mobile number is correct. If you replied STOP earlier, reply START to turn them back on.

I need to cancel and it is a real emergency.

Cancel the lesson in the app so your student goes on the waitlist. You will never be penalized for a genuine emergency (see Studio Policies, item 3).