I believe that a dance instructor’s job is to not only train the next generation of dancers, but also share the knowledge and passion of the art of dance from the generation before them.   Because dance is a special and unique art form that has been passed down orally from generation to generation, much of one’s dance education comes from one’s instructors and their instructors’ dance ancestors. While it is important to share the knowledge of the past, it is also equally important to stay up to date with what new practices performers and choreographers are presenting in the current time.

An ideal teaching and learning environment acknowledges multiple intelligences in the classroom.  As an art form, dance is perceived and comprehended differently and students have many different viewpoints of dance concepts and understandings of material.  While it may be difficult to acknowledge multiple intelligences in the classroom, celebrating students’ differences is a way to acknowledge their approach to learning and movement execution.

Teaching in the classroom is not only about teaching students dance steps and movements, but also preparing them for performances and helping them find their artistry through personal development.  Regardless of a student’s technical ability, performance techniques can be taught to develop a student’s confidence performing movement in the class and on stage.  Preparing students for the demands of the stage in a classroom environment allow students to have another part of themselves to focus on, rather than executing movement.

 

My goal as an instructor is to not only prepare students for the demands of a performance but also instruct students in how to maintain a healthy, low risk for injury body.  I hope to not just provide students with adapted athletic strength and conditioning for a dance environment, but assist students in finding a healthy mind-body balance and body awareness.  I want my students to feel comfortable and confident with what their body can do, whether it is capable of 180 degree splits and leaps, or using their fast twitch muscles that allow them to transition quickly from one movement to the next.  As a dancer not gifted with natural turnout or advanced flexibility, confidence in my dancing did not grow until I realized the strengths of my body was a low center of gravity and the ability to move through space quickly.  I want to assist students in finding their strengths and using them to counter their weaknesses to provide for a more enjoyable and confident dance experience.

Class Phrases

In my classes, I aim to build dance phrases for students that allow for moments of improvisation and artistic styling balanced with athleticism and appropriate technical elements.