As an instructor, I aim to understand what my students need, and then adapt to their needs. By means of adaptation, I can infuse all of my knowledge into my students in the most effective way possible according to each individual. Adaption allows for the instructor to teach the student while also learning from them by blurring societal hierarchies in educational spaces and bringing all persons onto the same level.
Lesson Plans
My Philosophy
Teaching is one of the hardest and least recognized professions. From instructing and being instructed, and especially from maintaining both at the same time, I have developed a few points I find vital for instructing dance. I feel a strong need to articulate technique and begin the discussion of what technique means, to arrive prepared to adapt to all possibilities while also having a strong outline for my lesson, and also to have adaptability when entering any instructional space in order to cater to all of my students’ needs individually and as a whole.
I have found through my instructors and instructing students that one of the things I value as a dancer is understanding technique and what it means to us dancers. It is a subject many dancers struggle with and I am no scholar with it either. While in a discussion about this with Toni Pierce-Sands, we discussed what it is like to learn new techniques. We concluded together, that each time one begins to learn a new style, technique or set of movements, the structure on which you stood on so comfortably crumbles beneath you. All you can do is grab the tools you think will help you in your learning process from past techniques and movements and use those them to jump to the new area and begin building up from the bottom all over again. Dancers need to understand at a young age that technique is not just one thing, because if you get too stuck in what technique is, it can restrain the dancing rather than support and further it. With that said, I am not looking to teach my dancers what technique is but rather what it means and most importantly to begin the conversation so they start investigating at a young age what technique is and means to them personally and also what they are studying.
I learned from Molly Breen during my practicum how important it is in the dance classes to constantly have a dialogue with the dancers, about dance technique, dance as a career, and the dancers lives outside of dance too. During my practicum in particular, I learned that asking descriptive questions encourages them to actually answer the question rather than making it seem rhetorical which at times causes confusion and miscommunication between the dancers and teachers. I have learned over the years that dancing isn’t about just the movement but about the thought involved with the dancer moving. It is up to the instructor to facilitate that discussion and thought process and to break down that barrier between the instructor and the students and this idea of “I talk and you do.” When an instructor creates their lesson plan, they need to think of questions they could ask their students prior to the class in order to ensure their main ideas for the lesson are resonating. In general, preparedness is essential for teaching.
While reading books and articles required for the course I took at the University of Minnesota, I realized more and more how important it is to have a plan. Plans not only help the one teaching, helping them relax knowing they know what comes next, but it helps those learning from them. Creating a constant for the class, whether it be a full warm up series they repeat or just a basic continuous outlines can be extremely supportive in a classroom. For instance, a ballet class is structured a certain way to facilitate a strong warm up to prepare the dancers for something later in class. The outline of the class provides familiarity but also is pliable enough to manipulate it in the way necessary to cater to what the class needs at that point. Erkert, a modern dance teacher in the Twin Cities states in her book, "A dance class is a ritual, providing an environment where one searches for the soul” (39). The ritual a teacher creates in a dance class, whether barely noticeable or a structured warm up, allows the dancers to then move deeper in themselves during the class, something I find vital to a dancer. Another dance instructor, Gilbert also expresses her faith in preparedness.
Gilbert uses outlines for movement lesson plans in her book just like Erkert uses intense tables. Both seem to believe that the more detail and thought you put into the lesson to come and the lesson after prior to giving the lesson produces a better outcome (34-35). Gilbert especially uses a structure that guides her in her lesson planning but a student may not realize is a continually used outline for all of her classes because of how the outline is utilized. The director of the dance program at Four Seasons Elementary School uses Gilbert’s strategies as guidance for all of her lessons. I could see Gilbert’s influence and how ingrained it is in Sydney’s vocabulary and opinions just in the way she talked. In particular, Syd mentioned how often she used visual help, whether it be an object or a words on a note card for international students. She is a prime example of always being prepared and catering her ways to what her students need as a whole and individually.
If a teacher does not cater to his/her students, there is a hierarchy in the room caused by the fact that the teacher gives a sense of “I am here to teach you what I know and how I know it.” When a teacher cater and adapts to the students and how they learn, and how they need help, the teacher also rediscovers what they are teaching because they have to constantly think about it in new ways. I am taking what I know, and looking at it from all sides in order to take from the side I need to teach a particular child. In turn, I receive a much deeper understanding of the material I am teaching. Not only do you have to cater to your students in terms of teaching the movement, but you needs to adapt to their personalities and their experiences.
For instance, when a physical education teacher came to speak with my class at the University, he said, “Because of where my students come from, I have to have a thick skin and a short memory” (Westby). He realized the necessity of altering his natural tendencies to better accommodate his students. Maggie Bergeron also talked a lot about adaption in the teaching space based on the energy of the class. One cannot expect the students to be driven by the way a teacher wants to naturally teach. At times, it is required that the teacher feel and observe how the class as a whole responds as well as how each individual responds in order to facilitate proper motivation.
The over arching idea for my teaching philosophy is adaptability. What makes a strong teacher is his/her ability to adapt before and during a class, allowing her/him to facilitate movement in her/his classroom as well as discussion. An instructor not only is adaptable oneself, but also must teach adaptability via movement and technique. One prepares a lesson plan based on what the class or an individual needs. When one arrives, the energy of the classroom may change the plan just slightly. After seeing an individual struggle, one may add an extra exercise or alter an exercise. When a dancer is stuck in an old technique, the instructor must figure out a different way for the student to approach the movement given to teach adaptability. Teachers are pliable and hyper sensitive to students. They understand how a students learns, and how they are motivated. Using that information, they lead, guide or support a student in order to ensure they learn the material provided.
Works Cited
Bergeron, Maggie. University of Minnesota. Barbara Barker Center for Dance, Minneapolis, MN. 2015. Lecture
Breen, Molly. University of Minnesota. Ballare Teatro Performing Arts Center, Minneapolis, MN. April 2015. Lecture.
Erkert, Jan. Harnessing the Wind: The Art of Teaching Modern Dance. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 2003. Print.
Gilbert, Anne Green. Creative Dance for All Ages: A Conceptual Approach. Reston, VA: American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance, 1992. Print.
Pierce-Sands, Toni. Personal Interview. March 2014.
Pudwill, Sydney. University of Minnesota. Four Seasons Elementary School, Saint Paul, MN. 10 April 2015. Guest Lecture.
Westby. University of Minnesota. Barbara Barker Center for Dance, Minneapolis, MN. 15 April 2015. Guest Lecture.
I have found through my instructors and instructing students that one of the things I value as a dancer is understanding technique and what it means to us dancers. It is a subject many dancers struggle with and I am no scholar with it either. While in a discussion about this with Toni Pierce-Sands, we discussed what it is like to learn new techniques. We concluded together, that each time one begins to learn a new style, technique or set of movements, the structure on which you stood on so comfortably crumbles beneath you. All you can do is grab the tools you think will help you in your learning process from past techniques and movements and use those them to jump to the new area and begin building up from the bottom all over again. Dancers need to understand at a young age that technique is not just one thing, because if you get too stuck in what technique is, it can restrain the dancing rather than support and further it. With that said, I am not looking to teach my dancers what technique is but rather what it means and most importantly to begin the conversation so they start investigating at a young age what technique is and means to them personally and also what they are studying.
I learned from Molly Breen during my practicum how important it is in the dance classes to constantly have a dialogue with the dancers, about dance technique, dance as a career, and the dancers lives outside of dance too. During my practicum in particular, I learned that asking descriptive questions encourages them to actually answer the question rather than making it seem rhetorical which at times causes confusion and miscommunication between the dancers and teachers. I have learned over the years that dancing isn’t about just the movement but about the thought involved with the dancer moving. It is up to the instructor to facilitate that discussion and thought process and to break down that barrier between the instructor and the students and this idea of “I talk and you do.” When an instructor creates their lesson plan, they need to think of questions they could ask their students prior to the class in order to ensure their main ideas for the lesson are resonating. In general, preparedness is essential for teaching.
While reading books and articles required for the course I took at the University of Minnesota, I realized more and more how important it is to have a plan. Plans not only help the one teaching, helping them relax knowing they know what comes next, but it helps those learning from them. Creating a constant for the class, whether it be a full warm up series they repeat or just a basic continuous outlines can be extremely supportive in a classroom. For instance, a ballet class is structured a certain way to facilitate a strong warm up to prepare the dancers for something later in class. The outline of the class provides familiarity but also is pliable enough to manipulate it in the way necessary to cater to what the class needs at that point. Erkert, a modern dance teacher in the Twin Cities states in her book, "A dance class is a ritual, providing an environment where one searches for the soul” (39). The ritual a teacher creates in a dance class, whether barely noticeable or a structured warm up, allows the dancers to then move deeper in themselves during the class, something I find vital to a dancer. Another dance instructor, Gilbert also expresses her faith in preparedness.
Gilbert uses outlines for movement lesson plans in her book just like Erkert uses intense tables. Both seem to believe that the more detail and thought you put into the lesson to come and the lesson after prior to giving the lesson produces a better outcome (34-35). Gilbert especially uses a structure that guides her in her lesson planning but a student may not realize is a continually used outline for all of her classes because of how the outline is utilized. The director of the dance program at Four Seasons Elementary School uses Gilbert’s strategies as guidance for all of her lessons. I could see Gilbert’s influence and how ingrained it is in Sydney’s vocabulary and opinions just in the way she talked. In particular, Syd mentioned how often she used visual help, whether it be an object or a words on a note card for international students. She is a prime example of always being prepared and catering her ways to what her students need as a whole and individually.
If a teacher does not cater to his/her students, there is a hierarchy in the room caused by the fact that the teacher gives a sense of “I am here to teach you what I know and how I know it.” When a teacher cater and adapts to the students and how they learn, and how they need help, the teacher also rediscovers what they are teaching because they have to constantly think about it in new ways. I am taking what I know, and looking at it from all sides in order to take from the side I need to teach a particular child. In turn, I receive a much deeper understanding of the material I am teaching. Not only do you have to cater to your students in terms of teaching the movement, but you needs to adapt to their personalities and their experiences.
For instance, when a physical education teacher came to speak with my class at the University, he said, “Because of where my students come from, I have to have a thick skin and a short memory” (Westby). He realized the necessity of altering his natural tendencies to better accommodate his students. Maggie Bergeron also talked a lot about adaption in the teaching space based on the energy of the class. One cannot expect the students to be driven by the way a teacher wants to naturally teach. At times, it is required that the teacher feel and observe how the class as a whole responds as well as how each individual responds in order to facilitate proper motivation.
The over arching idea for my teaching philosophy is adaptability. What makes a strong teacher is his/her ability to adapt before and during a class, allowing her/him to facilitate movement in her/his classroom as well as discussion. An instructor not only is adaptable oneself, but also must teach adaptability via movement and technique. One prepares a lesson plan based on what the class or an individual needs. When one arrives, the energy of the classroom may change the plan just slightly. After seeing an individual struggle, one may add an extra exercise or alter an exercise. When a dancer is stuck in an old technique, the instructor must figure out a different way for the student to approach the movement given to teach adaptability. Teachers are pliable and hyper sensitive to students. They understand how a students learns, and how they are motivated. Using that information, they lead, guide or support a student in order to ensure they learn the material provided.
Works Cited
Bergeron, Maggie. University of Minnesota. Barbara Barker Center for Dance, Minneapolis, MN. 2015. Lecture
Breen, Molly. University of Minnesota. Ballare Teatro Performing Arts Center, Minneapolis, MN. April 2015. Lecture.
Erkert, Jan. Harnessing the Wind: The Art of Teaching Modern Dance. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 2003. Print.
Gilbert, Anne Green. Creative Dance for All Ages: A Conceptual Approach. Reston, VA: American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance, 1992. Print.
Pierce-Sands, Toni. Personal Interview. March 2014.
Pudwill, Sydney. University of Minnesota. Four Seasons Elementary School, Saint Paul, MN. 10 April 2015. Guest Lecture.
Westby. University of Minnesota. Barbara Barker Center for Dance, Minneapolis, MN. 15 April 2015. Guest Lecture.
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