Day Nine

Today went pretty well. I came prepared with a dance for them to learn, and they got most of it down! I kept it pretty simple because I was worried about the younger dancers being able to remember it and execute it, but with the older girls leading it's going well.

The youngest dancer still refuses to do a lot of the things. She starts to pout when we do the combinations but she came and did them (if in an upset manner) after I told her they would be in the dance. She did the first part of the dance well and happily, but when we added kicks and turns she started to pout and wouldn't do anything. I didn't really baby her today; I wanted to get through as much of the dance as I could, and didn't really want to stop the other girls learning by stopping class to convince her to participate. I'll probably try and do more next class to help her, but I'm not sure what...

I had each dancer pick a stretch to do after warming up today, and that worked pretty well. I wanted to keep everything quick and simple, so we could get to learning the dance, and we were still able to stretch pretty well in all directions. I kept all the practicing technique pretty simple and quick since most of the steps were in the dance.

After the other girls left we practiced chaines and pirouettes and then did some free dancing and walking through the jungle. I wish we had more students that stayed longer so that this one student could experience imagining and dancing with others her age better, but it was still fun.

Day Eight

Today went well. We did the Rhythm game to warm up (a song that has you move and rest for specific times) which was more aerobic than I'd expected, but it was good. Nest we did some stretching, and I tried to do some less strenuous stretched and do a little bit more fluid movements. We worked on pirouettes, kicks, leaps, and chaines. Then we learned a new combination (eight counts of kicks and one pirouette) which they didn't like but that they did very well with and then practiced our combination from last time. We ended with freeze dance because they seemed a little worn out in mind and body. 

Having the girls freeze dance while coming back from drinks has worked pretty well. It makes me feel like we aren't wasting time, but that none of the girls are missing anything either. 

After the other girls left, we played the Jungle Game, the Rhythm Game and did some stretching (only one of the late comers came again). Both of us were pretty tired, and it was hard to come up with things to do that filled the time enough but didn't take up a ton of energy. 

The youngest girl didn't actually cry, but she hid behind some chairs and wouldn't come out until I offered to let her "be the teacher." I had her tell us when to start our combination, but she didn't really perk up much or dance with us again until freeze dance at the end. I am not really sure what was wrong. One of my friends suggested that she is doing it for attention, and maybe I'll have to single her out a little bit more, but my natural reaction to people seeking attention is to ignore them. I don't want to baby her or stop the class for her, but I want her to dance and learn as well...

It has been kind of a struggle for me energy wise lately. It has been hard to find the energy to do all that I need to do body wise (I have 3-4.5 hours of dance before each day of teaching) but the students seem more worn out as well. I wonder how to help with that... Maybe do some yoga or slow sustained movements? I am hoping to teach maybe one combination more and then put together the dance. It's cutting it a little close, but I think we can make it work. Hopefully. I think a good deal of it will be poses or tricks, and then the two combinations that I have already taught them. The girls decided to name the one with the fan kick "The Happy Combination" and the one with the kicks and pirouettes "The Straight One." It was pretty cute. 

It has been so exciting to get to work with these girls and see their progression and excitement. I am realizing that if they come back for next session I am going to need to have a lot more lesson plans and a greater variety of movement and activities for them though!

Day Seven

We did the usual exercises today, but we went through them faster so we could learn new material. The students are beginning to remember how to do each step and how they start, which is very exciting because it means we can focus more on technique and begin adding other concepts and steps.

We learned a simple combo today (it was very cute to see how wide-eyed they got at the new word) and it went very well! They learned it quickly, and were able to do it by themselves by the end of class. It was quite fun and exciting!

The main technique we focused on was spotting during all of the different types of turns that we practiced. We talked about spotting without tilting our heads and I used the image of your chin staying on a table, but I think it was a little difficult for the dancers to understand. I think I might try a book or something on the top of their heads, and see if that helps.

We also attempted to do kicks on a beat, which was fun, if a little messy. There was definite improvement from last class though! Mostly it is a struggle to get them to do the step before the kick on a beat as well, but we'll keep working on it. It will be exciting to see them continue to improve.

After we practiced each exercise I had the dancers try and do it on their own (without my verbal ques or physical example). They did quite well and I was very impressed with their willingness to step up to a challenge.

Our youngest dancer got discouraged at one point, but she cheered up after we did silly high fives. I think she is doing better at facing new steps and not getting discouraged.

It's very funny and interesting to see the different parents who are so involved in their child's dancing and proper technique. In a way it is very exciting and fun, but it also worries me. If a child has too many authoritative figures giving them corrections it is easy for them to become discouraged, but so far the children have seemed fine.

One of the late comers was absent today, so I only had one student until 5:30. We did some simple games (freeze dance, a rhythm game, and a creative game involving jungle animals). Then we stretched and left a little bit early because we were both a little worn out.

Overall I am pleased with the progress that these dancers are making and I really enjoy keeping them on their toes and trying to not do the same type of class twice in a row. I think it makes the class more engaging for the students and for me as a teacher.

Day Six

For the warm up today I simplified counting game. We did hops and steps and then another set of releves and skips (not smooth transition) and did four to one and then one to four. Worked better than four different things (it was hard for me to call everything out in the right order). I was still very out of breath while calling out the next movement, and overall this game not work as well as I'd expected.
We tried to do kicks to beat today. It was a struggle. I may need to try some rhythm games first so they can gain a better understanding of rhythms and beats and then try again.

We also did the "purple mud" again and it helped the newest girl and one other girl (who has been doing pas de papillions instead of leaps) but a little pointless for the other students. I almost wish I could split them up, but I think the youngest dancer would just see that as her not being good enough and the age difference really isn't that different.

We didn't get to chaines with whole group (three of the dancers had to leave) because I lost track of time, but we got through a lot of other things, so that was good.

I felt like today got a little out of control. One of the girls is pretty hard to get to pay attention, or to listen to all of the instructions. As soon as I say we are going to do kicks across the floor she'll just go without the rest of the instructions. Perhaps I can better present my information so that she doesn't think I'm finished before I am, but I think she also has a short attention span.

I think I need to start preparing a dance or combonation for the girls. I have noticed in the past that I tend to lose control when there is too much of a routine and the kids can predict exactly what will happen next. They start trying to take control and getting a head of themselves and I have five children going different directions. It helps having the two older girls there, but it is still a struggle. Maybe we should start playing the shape game and combining things together so that they can progress and their interest is kept.

I am feeling frustrated with my choreography and ideas in the dance world a little bit...

Day Five

I created a counting game to warm up for this day. I was planning on having us do four different movements four times each and then three and then two and then once, to create a fun and silly environment and to help each girl develop a sense of internal counting and rhythm. I planned on doing it once slowly, a few times more quickly and then a few times with music that had a strong down beat to help them practice counting. I created two sets the first was hop, run, jump, and wiggle and the second was releve, skip, spin, and a hamstring stretch (this latter one had movements that would take two counts so we would approach it at half time).
When I began to execute it, I realized that these students would need more time to understand and execute this game, so we only did the first set and did not advance to doing it with music. I may simplify it for next week and see if the students can do it on their own.

I was also hoping to get done with pirouettes before the second set of students came (so that the rest of class would be less rushed and we would have more to do after the first group left), but one girl came at about fifteen after so we had just finished stretching. The rest of class went smoothly, and we revisited pirouettes after the first group of students had left. The student who came early had to leave early as well, so the last fifteen minutes I only had my newest student, which turned out really well. We were able to work on her leaps (using a large scarf as "purple mud" to help her visualize and embody the concept of going from one foot to the other instead of a more skipping motion), and do a small amount of stretching which greatly helped her technique.

The youngest dancer cried and had a bit of a melt down when I tried to help her do her chaines correctly (she was flipping back and forth instead of making complete circles). I'm not really sure what to do with her. I want her to be comfortable and happy, but I also want her to be able to learn and do the exercises correctly.

Day Four

I began class with a game to warm up (free dancing with different challenges; fast, slow, high, low, together, separate, etc) and added some new stretches. I liked having a moment to collect myself at the beginning of class and let the students dance some of their energy out to get warm.

We continued to work on technique for pirouettes, kicks, chasses, leaps, and chaines, and we got an new student! She hasn't danced before but is willing to try everything and will be coming from 4:30 to 5:30 which will be so much fun for the other late comer to have a friend instead of being stuck with just the teacher for her last half hour.

I have also discovered that when I allow them to do fast chaines the momentum helps them continue to go in the correct direction instead of flipping back and forth. They are doing pretty good, and it was very exciting for me to realize that they were doing better than expected!

Day Three

We did a little bit of a creative warm up today. I turned on different music and had them dance different speeds, feelings or styles depending on the tempo and emotions of the music. It was pretty fun, and good to change thing up a little bit.

We did all of the normal exercises, and I was able to clarify the kicks a little bit better. We really emphasis the step before each kick and they all got it! They did really well.

The youngest dancer only cried once! She slipped when she landed a cartwheel and hurt her toes, so it wasn't even because of the material! I was very pleased. I feel like she is really making progress.

Day Two

Combining the classes was a little more complicated than expected. One girl's mother is a teacher and could not get her to class before 4:30 and the other girls' mother had another commitment at 5:00. We ended up doing a compromise, so some of the girls come at 4:00 and some come at 4:30 and I make sure they all get an hour of dance in. It will be different, but I think it will work.

I planned to stretch, do pirouettes and kicks and then do freeze dance at 4:30 so that the girl who had to come later would be able to warm up her body and do the other exercises with us without injury. The youngest dancer still cried a lot, but she was better than last time. Her mother practiced with her at home so she was more confident at first, but I kinda learned that for her getting her to do something across the floor or any type of turn is an accomplishment even if it's not the same thing everyone else is doing. Hopefully we can build her confidence and get her to a point where she will be able to feel safe and do well in future classes.

I introduced the idea of spotting to them as a break for the youngest dancer when she got frusterated and it seemed to really help. I might have to break up the class with small things that will build her confidence before we go do things that are harder.

The sisters brought their neighbor so we ended up with a total of four girls! Which while still small, is still pretty fun. I'm excited to get to continue to work with this group of girls.

When the other children had to leave the last dancer was a little bummed. I think she really enjoyed having other children to play and dance with and it was kind of sad for her to be all alone again. I'll have to come up with some games and other fun things to help her enjoy that last half hour after the others leave.

Day One

I was planning on teaching the basics of pirouettes, jazz kicks, leaps, chasses and chaines, in both jazz classes and was planning on teaching a basic ballet class for the general dance class, but we only had three students sign up total, so we had to combine classes. Luckily they were all in the younger age group (from 5 to 8).

For the first day I taught some basic stretching after we did a little bit of cardio to warm up our bodies. Then we worked on pirouettes, kicks, leaps, and chaines. The youngest girl struggled a bit after the stretching. She was in the class with just her sister which helped, but she still cried most of the class. I think she took gymnastics in the past, and picked up on that very quickly and was just not sure how to deal with not knowing how to do things yet. We took turns doing our favorite tricks (she did some very impressive cartwheels) to help her calm down and gain confidence, and did a bit of freeze dance. Hopefully I'll be able to help her calm down and do a little bit more each class so that she can improve and not feel like she can't do any of it.

The last class only had on girl, and she picked up on things very quickly. I taught her the same things so that she would not be behind or feel lost when we combine the classes next time. She had lots of energy, but was able to focus and follow instructions very well. She responded well to imagery, and it was a fun class!