Please stay at home if you are ill, have a fever, are coughing, and sneezing.

What do I do on the first day of my group lessons?
Arrive 15-20 minutes before your scheduled group lesson. When you arrive, check-in at the lessons office located in the lobby area.

Parents, guardians and caretakers of new students must attend an orientation. The orientation will be held in the lobby during the first 10-15 minutes of the students' first day of class and will go over important information.

For your second class and the rest of your classes, students should proceed to get their skate on and meet their coach on the ice.

What should I wear to class?
Wear clothing that will keep you warm and dry, and is easy to move in. Wear thin or medium weight long socks, gloves and a jacket. Dressing in layers is recommended.

Helmets and protective gear is strongly recommended for beginner skaters of all ages. We have free helmet rentals available at the skate rental desk for all ages. Students may bring their own bicycle, snowboard or ski helmets that are round in the back. Knee and elbow pads without an outer plastic shell, and padded shorts are recommended. Beginner level students can expect to be sitting and kneeling on the ice, and touching the ice.

What is included with the group lessons?
Depending on your skating level, classes consist of 7 or 10 30-minute lessons once a week, skate rental for use during the student's registered class, 7 or 10 practice sessions which are public skate session admissions and skate rental; and a test on the last day of your class.

Do I need my own ice skates?
Skate rentals are included and will be available to registered group lesson skaters to wear during class time.
Parents/skaters can get skates at the skate rental desk. Let the staff at the skate rental counter know your shoe size. We encourage parents and guardians to know skate fit and how to properly tie their student's skates.

Skate fit is important and critical to a safe and successful skate: Skates come in full sizes only. You will need to get skates that are a half to a few sizes smaller than your shoe size. Skates should fit snug and tied all the way and tied tightly enough so that your ankle is supported.
Shoe size example: if you wear a size 6 in shoes, you will be handed a size 5 skate rental. If you wear a size 6.5 in shoes, you will be handed a size 6 in skate rental.
If you have your ice skates on and are finding it difficult to walk off the ice, you will need a different pair. Simply return the ice skate rental you have and exchange them for a different ice skate rental. Let the staff at the skate rental counter know what was wrong with the pair that you are returning so they can better assess your needs.
HOT TIP: if there is a pair of ice skate rentals that you like skating with, there is a number on the bottom of the sole of each pair of skate rentals. You can ask for this number, and if they are available you can get the same pair to skate with for your class

When are group lessons held?
We offer group lessons on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays or Saturdays during our Fall, Winter and Spring seasons. During our Summer season, we offer group lessons on Monday, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

Hockey clinic classes are held on Sundays.

Each series of group lesson and hockey clinic is held once a week during the specific day and time with a starting and an end date.

The schedule for available upcoming group lessons are online.

What level should I sign-up for?
Group lessons are divided into age groups (4–6 year olds, 7–13 year olds, and 14 & up) and levels. Levels begin at Tot 1 and 2 for ages 4–6, and Pre Alpha for ages 7–13, and 14 & up. Beginner levels are recommended for individuals who have had little to no professional instruction.

If you are not a beginner and are unsure of which level to register for, please contact us.

How do I know if I graduated a level and what level I should go to next?
Students receive a test on the last day of their group lesson series. Each student receives a graded test sheet where the coach makes a recommendation for the next group lesson level to register for.

Students in our freestyle group lessons are tested for the maneuvers section only and can register for the next level without the program section of the test. However, you cannot purchase your ISI freestyle badge until you complete a solo program. During the class, ask your instructor for more information on how you can be tested for the solo program portion of your freestyle level test.

If you have completed skating lessons at another ice rink and are unsure which level to register for with our group lessons, please contact the Lesson Office at (703) 323-1132 Monday–Friday, 11 a.m.–7 p.m.

Can you tell me who my coach is for the class?

Instructors may be assigned as late as the day of your class. Instructor assignments are not guaranteed and are subject to change.

What do the skaters learn?
Skaters will learn the skills and maneuvers of the level they are registered for. On the last day of class, skaters will be evaluated for their level and their coach will make recommendations on what level the skater can go to next.
View the skills and maneuvers of levels (PDF).

How can I help my skater learn?
Parents are encouraged to:

Ask your skater what they have learned in class
Be proactive about knowing what the maneuvers are called and how they are executed. Hot tip: use the list of maneuvers of levels as a checklist. A list of these maneuvers are also available in the lobby area on the tv to right of the fireplace.
Ask your skater to show you what the maneuvers look like both on the ice and off the ice. Ask where their arms are supposed to be and where they should be looking when doing the move; etc.
Speak with the coach at the end of your skater's class to get an idea of what your skater is doing well, what needs improvement and how to help your skater improve.

Can I stay to watch my skater?
Parents and guardians are welcome to watch their skaters during group lessons. We ask that you do not disturb the group lesson, skaters, coaches and staff on and off the ice while group lessons are in session.

How many times should students practice?
We recommend that students practice on the ice at least once or twice a week and off the ice daily. Parents can speak to the instructor directly after class for any practice recommendations.

What are practice sessions / practice card and how do I use it?
Practice sessions / practice card is a physical punch card for public session admissions and skate rentals for the skater currently registered for group lessons. It is included with the purchase of your group lesson ( i.e. a 7 week program receives 7 public session admissions and skate rentals).

The Lessons Office issues a card of practice sessions to current students on their first day of lessons. Your card can only be picked up on during check-in on your first day of class at the Lesson Office. The practice card is valid for use only by the student whose name is noted on the card. The practice card expires on the last day of class noted on the card. Students and parents / guardians of students are responsible for their practice cards. Fairfax Ice Arena is not responsible for unclaimed, unused, forgotten, lost, stolen or damaged practice cards.

To use your practice card, the customer must present their practice card to the Box Office for public session admission and present it to the skate rental counter to claim their public skate rental. The card is only valid for use by the student and must be used before the expiration date which are both written on the card.

Customers who do not have a practice card to present to the Box Office and skate rental counter, must pay for admission and skate rental to be admitted to the public session and rent skates. The sale of public session admission and skate rental is final sale and no refund or credit will be issued at a later time in exchange to mark your practice card.

I forgot my practice card, can I still skate the public session?
If you do not have your practice card to present to the Box Office, you must pay for public skate admission and skate rental. The sale is final and no refund for the paid admission and skate rental will be issued at a later time in exchange to mark your card. Fairfax Ice Arena is not responsible for unclaimed, unused, forgotten, lost, stolen or damaged practice cards.

I have used up all my practice card and my class isn't over, but I want to skate a public session.
If you have used up your practice card and would like to attend more public skate sessions, you must pay for public session admission and skate rental. You may also purchase a discount skating card at the box office during public skate hours. The discount skating card is good to use for 10 admissions at any of our public skating sessions. The discount skating card does not include skate rental fee.

I have lost my practice card. Can I get a new one?
You may purchase a replacement practice card for $10. The issued replacement practice card will include one practice for every remaining class left from the date that the replace practice card was issued. A replacement practice card can only be purchased once. Students and parents / guardians of students are responsible for their practice session cards. Fairfax Ice Arena is not responsible for forgotten, unused, lost, stolen or damaged practice cards. To attend public skate sessions, you must pay for public session admission and skate rental. You may also purchase a discount skating card at the box office during public skate hours. The discount skating card is good to use for 10 admissions at any of our public skating sessions. The discount skating card does not include skate rental fee.

My practice card has expired, but I have unused practices on my practice card. Can I use the unused practices?

No. The practice card expires on your last day of class and is noted on the practice card. Unused practices are not valid past the expiration date. Fairfax Ice Arena is not responsible for unclaimed, unused, forgotten, lost, stolen or damaged practice cards.

Can you extend the expiration date on my practice card?

We do not extend the expiration dates of practice cards. Fairfax Ice Arena is not responsible for unclaimed, unused, forgotten, lost, stolen or damaged practice cards.

FIRST DAY OF CLASS FAQs

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FIRST DAY OF CLASS FAQs

Group Lesson Policies and Frequently Asked Questions

Contact
(703) 323-1132
officemanager@fairfaxicearena.com

Frequently Asked Questions

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Location
3779 Pickett Rd.
Fairfax, VA 22031

Group Lesson Policies

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Group Lesson Payment and Refund Policy

Group lessons, hockey clinic and other class fees offered and purchased at Fairfax Ice Arena must be paid in advance to ensure a space in the class. At least two weeks advanced registration is recommended.
There are no waitlists. Registrations are first-come, first serve online, by phone, or in-person.
All refund and credit requests must be submitted by email to lessons@fairfaxicearena.com.
A refund is defined as the amount paid for the cost of the group lesson series minus fees returned to the purchaser's credit card that was used to make the purchase, or by check if paid in cash or check. A refund can be issued to a customer who wants to cancel their registration of a group lesson series before the start date of the series up to the first class taken in a group lesson series. No refunds are issued after taking more than one class in a group lesson series. There are no refunds issued for missed classes.
A credit is defined as the amount paid for the cost of the group lesson series minus fees. The credit amount is issued to the purchaser's Fairfax Ice Arena account. The credit amount can be used towards the purchase of future group lessons, public sessions or private lesson payments. Credits expire one year after the credit was issued. No credits are issued for missed classes.
Your practice session card must be returned before any refund or credit is processed and issued. Failure to return will result in a practice card fee.
Refund and credit fees include the cost of a class or classes in a group lesson series that were taken, a $25 service charge and a practice card fee of $15 (Beta and below) or $25 (Gamma and above).
There are no credits or refunds issued for missed classes.
Group lessons must have a minimum of 5 students enrolled in the class. If a class does not have the minimum amount of students enrolled, the class will be cancelled.

Group Lesson Make-Up Policy

One make-up lesson is allowed per currently enrolled student in our 7 or 10 week group lesson series based on class availability. A make-up lesson is not guaranteed and based on availability.
There is no make-up for hockey clinic classes, and other special classes such as camps and holiday shows.
No credits or refunds are issued for missed classes.
The make-up class must be done before the last day of your current class series. There are no make-ups for missed sessions after your class series has ended.
There are no make-up for missing the last day of class. If you know ahead of time that you are going to miss the last day of class, ask your instructor directly to test you.
To schedule your make-up class, call the Lesson Office Sunday-Friday, at (703) 323-1132, after you have missed your class.
On the day of your scheduled make-up class, check-in at the Lesson Office.

Cancellations Due to Inclement Weather

During inclement weather, Fairfax Ice Arena posts cancellations on the top of the home page of our website. If you would rather not attend class regardless of class cancellations, refer to our group lesson policies for missed classes. Fairfax Ice Arena does NOT follow county public school or local federal office weather-related cancellations.

Group Lesson Holiday

Group lesson holidays are dates when group lesson will not be held. These dates are built into the schedule of group lessons and does not affect the number of classes for your class series. These holiday dates are posted on our website lessons page, and at the lesson office. Also, students are reminded about holidays during class.

Fairfax Ice Arena does NOT follow county public school or local federal office holidays.