Posts Tagged ‘class’

Walking out of that studio that day, I felt like nothing could take me down.

By Samantha Rueter

I was 3 years old when I stepped onto a stage for the first time, dressed in a red tutu and tiny ballet slippers, covered in glitter, with my hair in a perfect bun. Since then all I ever wanted was to be the perfect prima ballerina, to sparkle and shine. 

I continued taking classes, juggling sports with dance until I realized that the soccer field or softball diamond just wasn’t where I wanted to be. All I wanted was to be in that studio. The music could take me anywhere I wanted to be, could make me whoever I wanted to be.

Dance became a serious part of my life. At age 10 I was dancing and performing with 18-year-olds. Not only was it hard being with them due to my lack of maturity, but knowing that they had so much more talent and experience discouraged me. Then the director of my studio, The Dance Emporium, explained that a teacher from New York City would be teaching our summer intensive workshop. I was terrified. Little did I know that this one week of dance would change the way I saw things for the rest of my life.

Kristin Sudeikis was small framed, with blonde hair and freckles. She was beautiful, in her early 20s, and her smile gave off so much energy that you couldn’t help but smile back. She pushed us harder than I had ever been pushed before. Nothing was easy. The steps were intense; our muscles were tired, our bodies weak. I remember going home that night in shock. Barely able to walk because I was so sore, I told my mom I didn’t think I could go back. I felt like a nobody. I lay in bed wondering why I began dancing in the first place.

I still don’t know what made me go back the next day, but I can’t imagine how my life would be now if I hadn’t. The rest of that week was grueling. Seeing the girls I had looked up to for so long struggle was difficult for me. Kristin never lost her patience. The last day of the week rolled around and she told us how much we had improved.

Then Kristin asked to see me alone. My heart raced as I walked over to her. “Sam,” she said, “I am so proud of you and all you’ve accomplished this week. Being in here with all these girls so much older than you can be challenging. But you’ve stepped up to the plate and haven’t been afraid. Keep it up and you’ll do big things.” I smiled. Walking out of that studio that day, I felt like nothing could take me down. I had worked all week to improve, and someone as talented as Kristin had noticed it. From that day forward I never looked at dance the same way again.

It’s been seven years since I first took class from Kristin. Each summer she pushes us, giving us more challenging choreography and steps along with more confidence. Every day she reads an inspirational quote for us: “If your ship doesn’t come in, swim to it”; “Never leave lonely alone”; “Work through it.” Those are some of the quotes that kept us going when we felt too weak to take one more step.

I have never heard Kristin raise her voice, even when we misbehave or lose focus. If we don’t understand something, she’ll show us how to do it until we have it down perfectly. If we lose confidence or focus, she’ll remind us why we love to dance. And sometimes when you’re down or too tired to make another move, that’s really all you need.

At competitions I’ve taken classes from some of the most talented people nationwide. I’ve learned amazing things from them, but Kristin has inspired me the most. She has taught me how to free my emotions, release stress, and get through emotionally challenging times in my life through the gift of dance. I’ve learned to forgive, to forget, to breathe, how emotionally straining life can be on the heart, the head, and the body, and how you should never let it keep you from following your dreams.

Kristin has changed me more than anyone, because class is never just about dance to her. She has taught me that dance lessons aren’t just about learning to dance. They’re about life.

Knowing what to teach and when to teach it helps you deliver in the classroom

By Brian Foley

Teachers, how often do you walk into your dance class with the thought, “What am I going to teach today?” Dance teachers have many responsibilities, but one of the most important is accountability. And being accountable means developing and implementing quality class plans.

The strategies and formulas we use in our class plans help us fulfill our needs as teachers. But more important, they allow us to address the needs of our students in a well-thought-out, progressive curriculum that anticipates their development as dancers and allows for their growth.

Too much too soon
Often, because of our students’ participation in dance competitions or showcase performances, we feel forced to teach steps and tricks that are beyond their technical abilities. We show our students “what to do” and then spend hours of class time watching them struggle as we challenge their lack of technique and physical understanding of the movement. We push our students to improve, to acquire the required skill levels, without taking time to communicate the “how to do,” often creating bad habits instead of good technique. We forget (or ignore) the fact that we must teach an understanding of the technique and muscle memory requirements.

We must constantly remind ourselves that achieving technical excellence in our students does not happen overnight. Technique needs to be taught slowly and with confidence, communicating the “how to” information in such a way that our students understand the physical feeling and muscle memory logistics of each important position or dance move. Teaching in a way that reinforces learning through repetition in every dance class means thinking in terms of a never-ending time line—one that includes the “how to do” technique and steps and pays attention to age appropriateness.

Parental pressure
One of the biggest challenges for dance teachers is communicating to (and then reminding and convincing) our students’ parents that quality training for their children includes technique, repetition, reinforcement, and age-appropriate steps and style moves, all supported with motivating choreography.

Often, when schools participate in competitions, winning becomes the parents’ priority. They compare their children’s competition results with those of other studios. Even in observing daily or weekly classes, they compare their children’s achievements to what other students can do. Instead of focusing on what their children have accomplished, parents question our motives for teaching while challenging our ability to teach.

Part of our role as teachers is educating parents about the importance of quality training. With a class plan in hand, you can sit down with every child’s parents and show them the projected arc of their children’s learning and what they can reasonably expect. Explaining why you follow a dance syllabus will help them understand the strategies and training standards you teach to in delivering age-appropriate, quality dance education to their children.

School owners should implement overall class plans and training-standard requirements. However, if class plan formulation is left up to the individual teachers (as it is in most studio operations), they should prepare the plans early enough to share them with assistant teachers and studio owners.

Though we strive to help our students achieve at the highest level possible, it takes time to get results. Many parents don’t realize that professional dance teachers teach for the future, not for today.

Remember: Plan the work, work the plan, and teach until the teaching is done!

Sample Class Plan

This outline is based on the structure of one 60-minute dance class, held once a week over the course of 36 weeks (therefore, 36 hours of training).

All technique and dance steps taught should be age appropriate, taking into consideration the physical growth, amount of previous training, and the mental focus and discipline of the students.

Barre/center warm-up:
First 20 minutes of each class (12 hours of the 36-week dance season)

• encourages mental discipline and focus
• provides training for correct placement, alignment, and posture
• reinforces stretch/flexibility and muscle strength
• promotes development of muscle memory through repetition

Across the floor:
Second 20 minutes of each class (12 hours of the 36-week dance season)

• allows practice of new steps and dance vocabulary
• enforces use of space
• enforces style dynamics and change of body directions
• trains students in traveling step techniques
• allows for repetition of steps and movements

Combinations:
Third 20 minutes of each class (12 hours of the 36-week dance season)

• allows time to “train the brain” to think and react faster
• prepares students for routine choreography
• teaches the students to dance together, for each other, not just with each other
• enforces style needs and musicality for choreography

Week-by-week breakdown
Weeks 1–12: Show and teach what to do.

Weeks 13–24: Review material from the first 12 weeks, reinforcing the “how to do” process.

Weeks 25–28: Review steps and technique; teach new steps. The goals for these weeks are to have fun, teach new and challenging material, and teach students to be more aware of each other. This segment also serves as a transition period leading into learning the recital dance.

Weeks 29–36: Routine/recital/performance. This is when you can deviate from the structure of the plan.

A recital dance routine (at the recreational level) typically consists of eight combinations. If you follow the plan and teach usable combinations during the first 24 weeks of classes, detailing and working them to make them routine worthy, you will have at least 12 usable combinations to choose from. (A dance combination is usually 8 bars in length; it should not take more than 8 hours to choreograph and clean a routine.)

The last 8 weeks: This is a special time in your dancers’ training. Because there is not much time for technical training, it’s important to continue with the 20-minute barre/warm-up portion of class in order to reinforce technique and placement throughout the dance season.

2-classes-per-week structure
When students take two classes per week, you have some flexibility in the class structure.

Barre
First 20 minutes

Work on root movement and body alignment and strength for steps in dance routine.

Traveling steps
Second 20 minutes

Work on style, flair, and root step technique necessary for the choreography.

Routine
Third 20 minutes

Work on choreography, cleaning, and pattern requirements for the routine.

Tips
If you do not follow through with your class plan, you are being inconsistent with muscle-memory training, which requires repetition of movement and constant technical reinforcement.

If your studio competes or conducts dance exams, you must add extra classes and make them a part of your master plan. You must also develop mini plans for this content within your master plan.

Food tips for a hectic lifestyle

By Suzanne Martin, PT, DPT

Staying healthy while being in a studio all day and eating on the run is one enormous challenge. And wouldn’t it be great to go beyond maintenance by achieving optimal health?

People who live the performing-arts life prolong their youth by being so active in their 20s and 30s. Yet what an effect it has on the body. Dancers who start at age 8 or 10 and pursue a teaching or performance career have packed in a lot of mileage by age 30. And just think about 40- and 50-somethings! So if you’re going to go into the sunset in your dancing shoes, how can you stay the course?

Any worthwhile project requires R&D, research and development. Knowledge is powerful. But a little knowledge plus the plethora of trendy eating diets, articles, and supplements can be dizzying. Thinking simply, life boils down to three physical requirements: water, food, and rest. How do you regulate, and enhance, all three while multitasking?

When it comes to being on the go, strategy pays off. One of the biggest pitfalls for even the most dedicated health nut is being caught off guard. Plan, plan, and plan some more, so that you not only have nutrients and water within your grasp but also time for rest. Let’s look at water and food. Being nourished and hydrated are two great ways to boost your energy level and keep up with a busy lifestyle.

All-essential water
Drinking plenty of water is one of best ways to stay afloat. Your body is 75 percent water; losing as little as 2 percent of that can cause foggy thinking. Physical performance starts to decline. Slowness can be dangerous when you need to be mentally alert: driving, crossing the street, bicycling. Slurring words impairs your ability to command authority and confidence. Slowed reactions make preparing a class, organizing, and doing analytical tasks take longer than necessary.

To make sure you get enough water in your busy day, drink one tall glass in the morning and one before bed. Have another glass if you get up during the night. In general the advice is to drink eight glasses per day, although the new thinking is that consuming water-rich foods such as fruits and vegetables contributes to this amount.

Try keeping a pitcher of water available with sliced lemons or strawberries in it for an extra lure. When traveling, fill your own big bottle or buy one after you pass security at the airport. We often mistake thirst for hunger, so next time you feel a hunger pang, reach for a water bottle before heading to the fridge.

Dancers lose a significant amount of water when performing under the lights, and they feel it in their legs. But it doesn’t happen only onstage—that heavy-leg feeling you sometimes get from teaching and rehearsing means you’re getting dehydrated. Another way to stay hydrated is to take Epsom salts baths. Mix about a half-cup of salts in a warm bath to hydrate and soothe muscles. They’re especially helpful after a flight.

We often mistake thirst for hunger, so next time you feel a hunger pang, reach for a water bottle before heading to the fridge. 

Hydrate and energize
Another quick energy/hydration tip for morning jumpstarts, afternoon lows, and jet lag is Emergen-C®. A combination of vitamins and minerals available in health food, drug, and grocery stores, each packet has 1,000 milligrams of Vitamin C. The Joint Health formula includes glucosamine, recommended for dancers because it may protect joint cartilage.

Emergen-C’s carbonated formula fizzes up in water, which gives it a quicker entry into the gut. (That’s why champagne gets you high so much more quickly than wine.) The minerals potassium and magnesium replenish electrolytes, which are essential to recovery after exercise. If you can refrigerate it, try adding it to a homemade carrot juice smoothie. The carrot juice stabilizes blood sugar and the fruit gives a quick jolt of energy.

Meals
What about solid food on the go? Again, it breaks down to three categories: home packaging, pre-packaging, and restaurant food. With food, there’s truth to the adage that if you want anything done right, you have to do it yourself.

Strategy pays off when you crave a meal. As I mentioned in the January issue, preparing food—chicken, salmon, or tofu for protein, plus veggies and a dressing—in containers for the upcoming week will ensure lean, healthful meals. Taking a salad with you is easy. Combine the salad and eat it with green tea, which contains antioxidants and is a safe metabolic accelerator (weight-loss agent). It also has caffeine for a boost of energy. If you can’t mix the ingredients on site, fix a single-serving salad in the morning and take it with you. Try cottage cheese, fruit (strawberries, papaya, avocado), walnuts, and low-fat crackers for a quick, easy-to-digest lunch.

Energy bars
What about the darling of pre-packaged food, the energy bar? There are a staggering 900-plus bars on the market, ranging widely in nutrient content, ingredient quality, and calories. Select a bar that has protein, carbohydrate, and fat in a ratio of, respectively, about 40/40/20. It should be high in fiber and low in saturated fat, with no trans-fat. A bar with 200 to 300 calories can substitute for a meal, especially when combined with a glass of dairy or soy milk and a piece of fruit.

But should bars make up most of your meals? Registered dietician Nancy Clark, in private practice at the Boston area’s Healthworks Fitness Center, has plenty to say about energy bars: Look for quality bars made from whole foods such as fruits, nuts, and fiber. Analyze the name—some bars may be dessert substitutes rather than healthful, compact nutrition. Remember, by law the first ingredient listed is the most plentiful.

Choose a bar that is as unprocessed as a processed food can be. My favorite does have a dessert name: “Cherry Pie” from Larabar. However, this brand is all fruit and nuts, with no added sugars, fillers, supplements, or flavorings. They are gluten- and dairy-free and kosher to boot. Even the most discerning vegan (but not those with peanut allergies) can partake of these raw bars. Clif® is another high-quality brand that is organic and trans-fat free, although it’s higher in fat content than others.

Another pre-packaged fast food I cannot live without is oat cakes (often confused with hockey pucks). I carry them on trips for an inexpensive breakfast or quick meal when stranded at airports. Listed as having 2 points in the WeightWatchers® system, they might be sweet for some tastes.

Variety: key to good nutrition
Clark cautions that eating bars on the run is one thing and good, wholesome nutrition is another. She advocates consuming 20 to 30 different foods per week. Variety ensures that we get the nutrients, vitamins, and minerals necessary for optimal functioning. And don’t forget those five portions of fresh fruit or vegetables each day.

Eating a variety of foods also ensures that we don’t develop allergies over time to cultural favorites like wheat. Counting on energy bars to regulate your caloric intake will get you into a nutritional rut, and eating them in lieu of desserts or whole foods will take away the skill of portion control when navigating social events and emotional highs and lows.

The restaurant trap
One surefire way to double your weight is to eat every meal in a restaurant; think the freshman 20, or as my relatives in New Orleans say, the Katrina 40. When you’re traveling, or even just busy, it makes sense to eat out—but restaurant fare can pack in all kinds of hidden calories, saturated fats, and other enemies of healthy eaters. Restaurants have improved their listing of heart-healthy meals, but they may add calories, salt, and sugar to enhance flavor. Another difficult ingredient is MSG, which provides flavor but can cause headaches and water retention.

The best strategy when dining out is to not eat all the bread on the table. Instead, order a bowl of soup—the warm liquid feels good in the stomach and the volume helps you feel full. Avoid cream soups unless you’ve really got to have that chowder on a wintry day. For entrees, choose grilled meat or fish and vegetables over combination foods such as lasagna, cream dishes such as fettucine alfredo, or even pizza.

What to eat when
The order in which you eat makes a difference in literally trimming the fat. Eat meat and veggies before baked potatoes, rice, and french fries. The starches are the fillers of nutrition, depending upon your caloric needs. If you are a farmer, or an endurance athlete like Lance Armstrong, you should eat pancakes, bread, eggs, bacon, and grits for breakfast—easily a 1,000-calorie meal.

Yet for most people, filling up on starches prevents you from eating the foods with the most nutritional value, such as fresh vegetables for vitamins and roughage, protein for building muscle and bone, and minerals. Another mind-blowing fact, according to performance researcher Dr. Clyde Wilson, is that the liver can metabolize only small amounts of food at a given time. The rest gets stored away for future use—read: fat.

Vitamin D
Next month’s column will focus on the crucial role of Vitamin D for a strong musculoskeletal system and in helping our bodies cope with cancer risk and autoimmune disorders. So stay tuned for more on Vitamin ‘D’ancing!

I have faith in you.

Quick Tips for Healthy Eating

• Keep hydrated. Drink a glass of water first thing in the morning and again before bed. Aim for eight glasses a day. Make water more enticing by adding sliced lemons or strawberries. Try Emergen-C for an energy and nutrition boost.
• Use energy bars sparingly, and choose those with a 40/40/20 ratio of protein, carbohydrate, and fat. Opt for the least-processed bars on the market, such as Larabar and Clif bars. Oat cakes are another good option.
• Prepare healthy meals ahead of time to grab and go: Proteins (salmon, chicken, tofu, cottage cheese), nuts, veggies, and fruits make good salads and snacks.
• In restaurants, choose lean meats, soups, and veggies. Eat the protein and vegetables first to avoid filling up on carbohydrates like bread and potatoes.
• Take a good-quality multivitamin that includes 1,000 milligrams of Vitamin D.

How to make auditioning a positive experience

By Mignon Furman

Since I founded the American Academy of Ballet Summer School, I have held 100 auditions and observed 4,000 dancers from practically every state in America, traveling 100,000 miles to do so. As a result, I’ve developed an audition process that I think is fair to the students and useful for my staff and myself in choosing the dancers for our program. Whether you’re holding auditions for a summer session, a competition team, or a performance, you’ll want to make it a positive experience for everyone involved.

Structuring the audition class
These practices can be used for auditions for any form of dance. Hair should be neat and clear of the face and jewelry should not be worn.

• Give a 1 ½-hour class with a pianist accompaniment, not taped music. Live music allows you to observe the students’ musicality.
• Divide the class into sets of five or six dancers, depending on the total number of dancers. Rotate the lines so that each set has a chance to be in front during the audition.
• Ask the dancers to perform a step on their own, e.g., a pirouette or step across the floor. That way no dancer can complain that the class was not fair.
• Allow all of the dancers to take the complete class rather than eliminating them as you go. I believe they are entitled to complete the audition, especially if they have paid an audition fee. It is unkind to make poorly trained students feel inadequate by asking them to leave the audition prematurely.
• Insist that students get into their places quickly without dawdling. In across-the-floor work, they should be ready to go when the previous students have completed their turn.
• Invite any teachers who are present to watch. It is important for teachers to see their students in relation to other students of the same age, as well as to observe how another teacher gives class (an experience that seldom arises unless they attend a teachers’ course). If your auditions are for a summer program, the teachers can form an idea of what their students can expect from you.
• Do not allow parents in the studio. You may choose to let them watch from the door or viewing window, or ask them to return when the audition is over.

Allow all of the dancers to take the complete class rather than eliminating them as you go. It is unkind to make poorly trained students feel inadequate by asking them to leave the audition prematurely.

What to watch for: ballet students

• Turnout. Many students who can stand turned out in fifth position cannot maintain the turnout in the supporting leg when the working leg moves. With proper training, turnout will be present in linking steps such as glissade, steps like pas de chat, and basic steps.
• Dependence on the barre. Students who have been given too much barre work look presentable at the barre but literally fall all over the place when they move to the center.
• Footwork. Allegro is the true test of dance technique. Students who have the correct control should be able to achieve fifth position. Quick footwork in petit allegro is usually seen only in well-trained students.
• Pirouette technique. Correct use of the head and ability to maintain the pirouette position, with a straight supporting leg, until the end of the turn are important. Pirouettes should finish with a flourish—a bang, not a whimper, as T.S. Eliot might say. Too many dancers get the impetus for a turn by flinging their arms, which is why I start the teaching of pirouettes with the hands on the waist.
• Strength for pointe work. Students who are strong enough to dance on pointe can hold their knees straight and correctly place the weight of the upper body. Those who are not ready for pointe wobble around on bent knees and weak ankles with collapsing or strained upper bodies.
• Expressiveness of the upper body. Carriage of the upper body and arms is an important part of a dancer’s training. The arms should be soft and curving; the head should be inclined, turned, or raised as the style of movement requires.

What to watch for: all students

• Level of training. Some dancers are extremely well trained; others are sloppy. It’s always clear which students have teachers who need to refresh their knowledge and improve their skills.
• Ability to pick up a combination. Some otherwise competent dancers experience difficulty in picking up combinations, even when given ample opportunity to learn them. Often this is the result of a regular routine of classes that progress too slowly or combinations that are not complex enough.
• Musicality. Musical dancers link the music to the movement or move in the style that the music suggests. Students who are used to dancing to taped music (with rhythms they have probably memorized) do not actively listen to the musical accompaniment.
• Presentation. Style, polish, and showmanship are desirable as long as they are not a ploy to cover cracks in technique and do not come across as affectation. A smile or two is not out of place in an audition.