Articles

My Approach to Tricks

April 18, 2017

The thirty-two fouettés. The manège of turns. The continuous entrechat six. These are but a few of the spectacular feats dancers are always trying to attain. And once they reach their goal, the bar is pushed that much higher. Thirty-two… Read More

My Approach to Tricks

Working with Early Intermediate Students

March 18, 2017

We all have the ages and levels we adore teaching. It fits. We are synced in. Our flow is easy, organic, organized—it’s just all lovely. And then… We all have the ages and levels we struggle to teach. It feels… Read More

Working with Early Intermediate Students

Ballet's Treacherous Terrains

March 10, 2017

Ballet is harsh. Unforgiving. Brutal. We love it all the same. Likely many of us love it directly because of these trying qualities. The beauty to be discovered within the challenge of ballet draws us in. Once there, we are… Read More

Ballet's Treacherous Terrains

To Demonstrate or Not to Demonstrate?

January 27, 2017

Before I jump into this topic, I would first like to say that everything I write concerning teaching is based on my own personal experience in the field. I write what I know. Obviously. I can’t write what you know. Read More

To Demonstrate or Not to Demonstrate?

Balancing Discipline and Artistry

January 20, 2017

Two dancers. One possesses all the creativity that could exist in a human being. Put her in a story ballet and she will cause the earth to quake with profound emotion. But look for the briefest moment at her footwork… Read More

Balancing Discipline and Artistry

Teaching the Full Spectrum in the Same Class

January 6, 2017

Stepping into your ballet studio, you allow your gaze to fall over the group of 11 year olds lined up beautifully at the barre. After you give the first exercise, your dancers begin on cue with the music; each one… Read More

Teaching the Full Spectrum in the Same Class

Play and Ballet

December 30, 2016

There is an alert on my phone that goes off each Friday at 11:50am. The alert reads as such:  “PreBallet 12:00-1:15” If that alert reflected my reality, however, it would read: “TIME TO PLAY!!!  (and teach ballet)  12:00-1:15” Anyone who has… Read More

Play and Ballet

My Personal Secrets for Teaching Littles

December 16, 2016

Allow me to paint a picture in your mind… I am sixteen years old. I have had plenty of experience as a teacher’s assistant in ballet class. It is now my turn to take a class on my own… Read More

My Personal Secrets for Teaching Littles

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?

Where Did Their Brains Go?

December 1, 2016

Thanksgiving is over, winter break is on its way. There is so much excitement in the air. The buzz of the holidays brims everywhere. The most wonderful time of the year! Right? We’ve all been there. The chaos of the… Read More

Where Did Their Brains Go?

Away With The Lesson Plan!

November 29, 2016

Twenty something years of teaching ballet has taught me plenty of things. As educators in the arts we speak often about how life lessons are learned so well through the arts. What a beautiful thing. I could probably… Read More

Away With The Lesson Plan!

Introducing the Ballet Barre

November 7, 2016

For our youngest dancers, the barre should be kept a mystery. Little girls rush into their first ballet class and all they want to do is hold on to that barre. It’s a fun part of being a ballerina, but… Read More

Introducing the Ballet Barre

Why Natural Movement?

October 28, 2016

Historically, ballet styling and technique developed slowly from that of folk dances and court dances. Ballet styling was added to those dances by adult dancers, whose basic movement and coordination skills were complete and in place. Children were… Read More

Why Natural Movement?

Maximize Learning Retention

October 21, 2016

If students are not retaining the new skills we teach them, it could be because we as teachers are not honoring their natural flow of learning. Learning new skills follows a logical pattern, and we have to address the “why” and… Read More

Maximize Learning Retention

How Learning Happens

September 9, 2016

Ever felt frustrated in class because you feel like your students are just not getting what you’re trying so hard to teach them? You explain the concepts to them every single class and still don’t see evidence of that information… Read More

How Learning Happens

How Young is Too Young?

August 29, 2016

That 3-year old shouldn’t be spinning pirouettes any time soon. So what should you teach her? What can you do for the dancer-to-be to prepare her for the technical demands of the years to come? Choosing the right age to… Read More

How Young is Too Young?

Teaching the Accelerated Child

August 12, 2016

How can we, as dance teachers, best serve those young students in our classrooms who we notice have some great potential to be more in the ballet world? Sometimes we see that they are progressing well, but we don’t know… Read More

Teaching the Accelerated Child

Why Wait to Teach Ballet Technique?

July 22, 2016

Young ballerinas need strict technique training too, right? Several years ago, I went for an interview for a teaching position at a local dance school. I wanted to expand my horizons and gain experience teaching at as many schools as… Read More

Why Wait to Teach Ballet Technique?

Self-Esteem in the Pre-Ballet Class

May 13, 2016

Self-esteem is an internalizing of who and what you are. Knowing and understanding who we are is essential to the growth process of every individual. Lack of such knowledge or the internalizing of wrong ideas about themselves can cause lasting… Read More

Self-Esteem in the Pre-Ballet Class

Increase Your Effectiveness in Skills Training

April 13, 2016

When do you feel the most satisfaction after teaching a class? When just few of the students have been able to master the material presented at that lesson? Or, when the entire class has succeeded in learning to… Read More

Increase Your Effectiveness in Skills Training

The Ultimate Survival Guide for Teaching Pre-Ballet

February 19, 2016

I can still vividly remember being interviewed for my first job as a ballet teacher. My director asked if I would be willing to teach “the little ones”. One side of me—the arrogant, naive, “I’m too good to teach little… Read More

The Ultimate Survival Guide for Teaching Pre-Ballet

Music and Memory in Pre-Ballet

February 12, 2016

Choreography for our youngest students can sometimes feel like the hardest choreography we do! The skills of moving in time to music, and of being able to remember the order of steps in a dance develop… Read More

Music and Memory in Pre-Ballet

Why is it so Hard to Keep the Circle the Same Size?

January 29, 2016

Choreography for recital season has begun, and teachers all over the world are beginning to plan the specific steps, formations, costumes and music. I’d like to share this tidbit from Ruth Brinkerhoff‘s curriculum books concerning… Read More

Why is it so Hard to Keep the Circle the Same Size?

Dancing with Partner Cards

December 14, 2015

Ever had issues in your pre-ballet classes with students who always choose the same partner? For many ballet students, the experience of class is a very social one that can shape who they become. Not being chosen as… Read More

Dancing with Partner Cards

Using Ballet Terminology and Musicality in Class

November 21, 2015

It gets to me every time. When I begin in September with a group of students who say, “I’ve been dancing all my life” and yet, at the age of 11, cannot dance to the rhythm of the… Read More

Using Ballet Terminology and Musicality in Class