Articles

Posture Checklist for Ballet Students

August 14, 2015

“The total picture of a dancer: legs, arms, head, hands, feet, expression, can be compared to a chord on the piano, with all of the correct notes striking at the same time.” — Alan Hooper, former… Read More

Posture Checklist for Ballet Students

Choosing Class Format for Beginning Pointe

August 8, 2015

A very important first step in Pointe class planning is choosing the appropriate class format for your students. Each class is different, and each teacher has her own style of structuring those first lessons. Today we dive into some of… Read More

Choosing Class Format for Beginning Pointe

Use of Feet and Turnout in Pre-Ballet

August 1, 2015

Forcing too much turnout in young children is not only unsafe, it is also unnecessary. Their bodies allow for a gradual progression with a projected 90º turnout achieved by the age of 7 or 8. As they get older, teachers… Read More

Use of Feet and Turnout in Pre-Ballet

Organizing and Running a "Happy Class"

July 27, 2015

Children need structure. This is especially true in the pre-ballet years, as they prepare for a more disciplined class. The less “free time” they have in the class period, the better. They should know exactly what they’re supposed to… Read More

Organizing and Running a "Happy Class"

Hints for a Happy Class

July 24, 2015

Would you say you teach a “happy” class? When your students leave your classroom, are they overly tired and restless, or do they feel a sense of accomplishment? Pacing your class, implementing creative rest periods, and taking your students’ ever-changing needs… Read More

Hints for a Happy Class

Challenge? Or Frustration?

July 22, 2015

My fifth year of teaching was a tough one! I had a class of 9-11 year olds that really stretched me and taught me a lot. One of my biggest challenges was that the students just weren’t… Read More

Challenge? Or Frustration?

Guidelines for Starting a Student on Pointe

July 19, 2015

  Pointe work carries some risk of injury. Far too many students suffer injury in their first few years en pointe, sometimes because we, their teachers, expect too much too soon. Slow, gradual buildup of strength is the best way… Read More

Guidelines for Starting a Student on Pointe

The Power of Teaching Progressions

July 10, 2015

From the earliest of classes, the young ballet student is building the skills they will need to learn more advanced steps later. As a young three year-old, the students learn to stand with their feet in parallel, point their toes… Read More

The Power of Teaching Progressions

Using Inertia to Avoid the "Dead Spot"

July 8, 2015

How frustrating it is to carefully present and explain something to a class, and then find at the next meeting that the students remember very little, if any, of what you took such careful pains… Read More

Using Inertia to Avoid the "Dead Spot"

Win With Threes by Knowing Their Needs

June 26, 2015

Teaching a classroom of 3 and 4 year olds is completely daunting at times! Why is it that these little people can scare the living daylights out of fully-grown professionals twice their size? Most of it comes from… Read More

Win With Threes by Knowing Their Needs

Planning from a Bird's-Eye View

June 19, 2015

As you approach the end of a year of teaching, do you ever get the feeling that there was so much more you could have taught your students that you just didn’t get around to? They were ready for it,… Read More

Planning from a Bird's-Eye View

Why the Wait?

June 15, 2015

So, what do you do when your 7 year-olds don’t want to practice tendu, they want to saut de chat across the room like the beautiful ballerinas they saw in recital last year? I’ve had… Read More

Why the Wait?

Quality in Performing

June 4, 2015

Many of us teachers are in the midst of preparation for recital season. This is such a crazy, wonderful time of year for teachers, students and the school as a whole. Recital week hits and choreography is learned, pictures are… Read More

Quality in Performing

10 Ways to Make the Most of Recital Night

June 3, 2015

An article has gone around the internet with some funny, sarcastic tips on how to make dance recitals “suck less”. In my honest opinion, the whole recital experience can be painful, drawn out and excruciating, it’s… Read More

10 Ways to Make the Most of Recital Night

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?

Progressing into Ballet Technique

May 30, 2015

Teachers sometimes spend much of the year trying to figure out what should logically come next in their teaching. How can we know what they should be learning next? Moving through the natural movement sequences and into ballet technique happens… Read More

Progressing into Ballet Technique

Improving Behavior With Consequences

May 29, 2015

Just imagine: A class full of unruly 4 and 5 year olds that don’t listen, don’t mind you and have a lot of trouble staying attentive. Sound familiar? Sounds like a nightmare! In the teaching help section of… Read More

Improving Behavior With Consequences

Recognizing the Student NOT Ready for Pointe

May 24, 2015

We’ve discussed weight placement on pointe, conditioning principles to improve pointe, whether or not my student is ready for pointe, how to fit their first pair of pointe shoes, and preparing little feet for pointe. Read More

Recognizing the Student NOT Ready for Pointe

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

Games for the Ballet Classroom

May 12, 2015

It’s not just a suggestion, it’s pretty much a tried and true fact that children need to have at least one short break during their 45 minute to 1 hour ballet class. Most children between the ages of 3 to… Read More

Games for the Ballet Classroom

Conditioning Principles to Improve Pointe Work

May 8, 2015

Is there such a thing as pushing your students too far when it comes to pointe work? I certainly believe there is, and I must admit, after reading Ruth Brinkerhoff’s “Pointe 1: An Introduction to Pointe Work”, … Read More

Conditioning Principles to Improve Pointe Work

Teaching Pre-Ballet Arm Positions

May 2, 2015

It’s not easy to create the proper lines and shapes required in classical ballet, but there are many concepts we can impart in class that they can grasp and accomplish even at a very young age. Ruth Brinkerhoff’s Article… Read More

Teaching Pre-Ballet Arm Positions

20 Ways to Create a Comfortable Class

April 27, 2015

Most of us can remember being in a class where we couldn’t focus or understand what was being presented. It wasn’t much fun, was it? A dance class can feel that way to a young child. Childrens’ brains… Read More

20 Ways to Create a Comfortable Class

Understand Your Students' Growth Process

April 17, 2015

The little bodies of children between the ages of 7 and 10 are going through a lot of physical changes. As teachers, we need to understand and respect the body’s need for certain parameters when it comes to teaching ballet… Read More

Understand Your Students' Growth Process

The 7 Basic Principles of Classical Ballet

April 10, 2015

The Rules of Classical Dance were first set down definitively by John Weaver in 1723. Each generation has had its great teachers of ballet who have added insights and details to these rules and principles. These principles are essential for… Read More

The 7 Basic Principles of Classical Ballet