Articles

How to Set Up Your Virtual Ballet Classroom

March 25, 2020

Teaching online is a hurdle we are all facing right now as dance teachers. It’s something that comes naturally to some, but most of us are in a whole new world. I’d like to offer support to all of you;… Read More

How to Set Up Your Virtual Ballet Classroom

Scheduling Online Dance Classes with Zoom

March 25, 2020

It’s a challenge we’re all facing in these recent weeks: how do we organize the madness that is our dance class schedule? In no way am I going to pretend that I can simply provide a solution that will work… Read More

Scheduling Online Dance Classes with Zoom

Zoom Basics for Teaching Ballet Online

March 25, 2020

We are living in unprecedented times as dance teachers, parents, and human beings on this earth. Not only is there a mostly-unknown virus spreading in our countries and the resulting fear and isolation, but we, as professionals are having to… Read More

Zoom Basics for Teaching Ballet Online

Five Tips for Transitioning Back to Work

January 8, 2018

Teaching is hard. It is a selfless act requiring enormous amounts of patience and passion. It is no wonder that, after months of work, teachers feel as though they have transformed into zombies—crawling towards whatever break is on the horizon,… Read More

Five Tips for Transitioning Back to Work

The Introverted Ballet Teacher

October 30, 2017

Truth be told, I am not one for placing labels on people. When someone attempts to apply one to me, I instinctively pull back in horror. However, there is one label that applies to me without a doubt. I take… Read More

The Introverted Ballet Teacher

Addressing Parents

September 11, 2017

Go to any ballet teacher forum and you will find a slew of threads discussing the topic of parents. Teachers willingly pour hours of work into their students and still have energy left over to go home and choreograph until… Read More

Addressing Parents

Helping Teacher Assistants Be Successful

August 1, 2017

Like most teachers, I began my career in teaching as an assistant to the lead instructor. It was an aggravating time for me. More than anything, I knew I wanted to teach ballet, but I felt held back in a… Read More

Helping Teacher Assistants Be Successful

Choosing Which Correction To Give

June 29, 2017

I had a teacher oh so many years ago who was helping me learn how to teach. She observed me giving class one day and afterwards we had a little chat: “So, Robyn. Well done. However, I noticed you didn’t… Read More

Choosing Which Correction To Give

My Simple Method of Ballet Notation

June 9, 2017

Writing ballet down on paper. What an ordeal. When I was younger, I used to make up little dances all the time, as most young dancers do. I would try to write them down but it never turned out too… Read More

My Simple Method of Ballet Notation

Just a Job

May 16, 2017

When I write about ballet, I tend to become impassioned. My fingers move across the keyboard with fierce speed and adrenaline surges through my body. This is because I am in love with ballet. Talking about ballet, doing ballet, writing… Read More

Just a Job

Self Care for Ballet Teachers

March 23, 2017

Throbbing feet, bone tired bodies, and exhausted minds. Being a ballet teacher is not easy. When I first launched my teaching career, my energy levels were sky high. Nothing was going to bring me down. Six straight hours of teaching… Read More

Self Care for Ballet Teachers

Teaching While Injured

March 16, 2017

A few weeks ago I did a stupid thing while teaching ballet. This stupid thing landed me on crutches for about a week. Fortunately, there was no serious damage done and the healing process rolled right along. However, I can… Read More

Teaching While Injured

How Friendly Should We Be?

February 17, 2017

More specifically—How friendly should we be with our students? As is almost always the case, this question has as many answers as there are ballet teachers in the world. These are my thoughts. The Ideal Situation Obviously, in the ideal… Read More

How Friendly Should We Be?

What Do Teachers Wear?

February 3, 2017

I vividly remember my first year of ballet. I was nine years old, and my teacher, whom I adored then and still adore to this day, had an assistant. She wore a blue camisole leotard, black tights, and a long… Read More

What Do Teachers Wear?

Teaching Ballet Really Isn't About Ballet At All

December 23, 2016

When I was five years old I decided I wanted to be a teacher. My kindergarten teacher was my hero and if I could do what she did then I figured I could possibly be a hero to… Read More

Teaching Ballet Really Isn't About Ballet At All

How Much Should We Expect?

December 5, 2016

What a loaded question. In all things. Right? From our hair products to our relationships, and everything in between, we walk through life with expectations needing to be fulfilled. In my personal life I have found conflicts arise… Read More

How Much Should We Expect?

How to Survive Observation Week

October 14, 2016

Around this time of year, many dance schools are preparing for parent Observation Week. It’s a very special time for the students and their parents, but it can be a time of high stress and… Read More

How to Survive Observation Week

So, You're Just Teaching Them to Dance?

June 1, 2015

I bid adieu to a classroom of 8 to 10 year old students this morning. It was our last class before the recital, and it was so wonderful to have had the opportunity to teach them… Read More

So, You're Just Teaching Them to Dance?

6 "Must Haves" for Teaching Ballet

May 15, 2015

Not everyone can teach, and not everyone should. As I press on in my journey as a ballet instructor, I find the truths found in the “Level 1 Curriculum Book” to be so very pertinent and… Read More

6 "Must Haves" for Teaching Ballet

Training Your Dance Assistant

March 6, 2015

Teachers have gone back and forth on this issue forever: Is it a good idea to use a teacher’s assistant in class? Some are like I was and would prefer that the teacher be the sole authority in… Read More

Training Your Dance Assistant