Hi All
I know
this is really sentimental and heaven forbid I found it on Facebook, posted by
another very passionate teacher I know…….but it did make me think, and I
thought I would share it with our ‘striving to learn’ community. Hopal, I thought it really poignant
considering the tough time you recently had – and can only hope you were appreciated
somewhere along the line!
THINGS
YOUR DANCE TEACHER MIGHT NOT TELL YOU: BUT YOU REALLY NEED TO KNOW
1. He/She wants all of his/her students to succeed, regardless of who they are or how they look. This reflects well on the teacher, the students, and the studio as a whole.
2. You will never know how hard he/she works outside of the classroom. Research, training, choreography, music editing, costuming, paper work, pictures, parent meetings, etc. There are hours of work that you never see.
3. The greatest gift you can give him/her is to thank them and tell them what you've been able to learn in class.
4. A student being sore or tired, means he/she has done a great job.
5. He/She was once a student too. They understand.
6. Years of training and hours of work go into all of that choreography and all of those classes. Not just anyone can do his/her job.
7. Very few things are as gratifying as a student having an "ah ha" moment.
8. The favorite students are never the ones who have a perfect dance body or have been there the longest. They are the ones who are respectful, work the hardest, and remember corrections.
9. A
dance education is more than just steps. When your teacher shares their life
experiences, take it in and know that it is for your benefit and is a crucial
part of your total education.
10. A teacher's biggest fear is not bad choreography or small classes, but failing the passion of the art. We never wish to cause a child to fall out of love with dance.
11. He/She wants you to ask questions in class about life and about dance. He/She has a need to share their passion, just ask them.
12. He/She will still remember you 10 years after you have graduated out of their dance program and they will want to know what is going on in your life.
It’s
all true; in my case especially the ‘ah ha’ moment (and no I do not mean the
band). There is nothing more rewarding
and inspiring than when something ‘clicks’ with a student and they are able to
improve. A wonderful moment and a great
feeling.
I posted this with respect
for you all - working so hard to be the best you can be. Without dance I
do not know where my life would have led me, and I am thankful that I had a
vocation that has given me so much pleasure, and which has enabled me to share
my experiences with others.
Thanks for this Janet
ReplyDeleteIts great to feel appreciated as a teacher. Like you I feel passionate and compassionate about teaching but more importantly the feeling you get when you have a break-through moment with your students and also with our selves as teachers constantly learning. It is also daunting to think that as a teacher I have the responsibility and ability to affect change and transformation - hopefully in a positive way so that in time when students reflect and look back they can see the journey they have taken with us as teachers on the sidelines guiding, coaching and preparing them for life be it in dance or otherwise!
Great post!
Hopal
Hi again Janet
ReplyDeleteI forgot to mention. I am reading about the work of Jennifer Muller at the moment who I thought you might find interesting. A well knowwn choreographer and teacher in the US and has worked with companies both in the US and abroad commissioning a large body of work. I came across her when she did some work for the Alvin Ailey company in the mid 80's. She devised the Muller Technique which is quite multidisciplinary. She had an impressive range in her formative years as a young dancer of dance teachers both in ballet and modern dance and attended the Juliard school which influenced her approach to teaching and choreography and was greatly influenced also by eastern philosophy. What struct me most was her approach to teaching which involves working from the inside out. She is really big on visualising and encouages dancers to visualise , to make internal pictures not in an anotomical way but a highly personalised picture of the body. She says that she begins to encourage an intimate sense of the body. She usually begins class with a short meditation to encourage the process of the internal gaze as I would call it and in a sense 'check in' and make connections and as I would also interpret begin the dialogue internally through the process of visualisation. She also does a lot of her work on the barre which she feels as essential. She believes that it is the best systems of trainng for the legs but in her technique and pedagogical approach does it differently. I thought you might be interested in this aspect of her work for the use of visualisation,and imagery and the barre. However what impressed and moved me was her attitide as a teacher which chimes in with what you posted earlier. When asked what she thought what was the most important about teaching. She responded by saying that as a teacher you have the responsibility to create change " you have to use whatever you can until you can make an impact...." also " as a teacher you need the knowledge of what you are teaching... you need the knowledge of the principles and you need the passion to communicate it. You need to be egoless to communicate it. You have to know it so deeply and so well that you can convince, get inside people's minds and spirits to convince them to change..."
There was so much of what she said that I would take up a whole page but I wanted to share what I found. She also talks about the teacher student relationship and particularly about atmosphere which she said needs to be supportive in order to encourage risk taking. If she noticies that tension and resistance may surface particularly if a student is struggling then she softens the atmosphere by making lots of jokes and lightening the air. Its funny because in one of my classes I tend to make jokes and deliberately bad jokes to get students response which lightens the atmosphere and change their focus not to get too serious and worry that what they are doing is not right.
Anyway I had better go as my little ones are bored, and there is a packet of pringles poured all over the floor along with all of the cushions in the living room and rugs in a mound on the floor demanding my attention!
The bottom line to this additional post is when I read about Jennifer's work I though immediately of you!
Have a good day!
Hopal
Hopal this all sounds amazing – thank you so much for taking the time to write all this! Jennifer Muller sounds like my kind of girl and I will certainly research her work. Her work at the barre sounds amazing – I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with the barre and often start my classes with centre practice as I am aware of how quickly the time passes and allegro so often gets overlooked. I am really curious to find out how she approaches the barre. With regard to her awareness of the atmosphere in the class and the jokes – well I can relate to that! Sometimes the whole room can change as a result of having a chuckle, or feeling that they have freedom to fail!
ReplyDeleteHaving had a few productive days at home really getting to grips with where my study is taking me I am thrilled to have a new route. I cannot thank you enough. Hope your rugs are still intact!
All for now
Janet