Category: Class Preparation

Selecting dances

4/3/2016

A lot of what I do as a dance instructor has to do with preparation. As I spend time figuring out who I'll be working with, I think about their skills, the reason for the dance/why they are there, how much time we'll have together... there are several things to think about.

My spring 2016 class got underway last week. Best compliment ever: more than one person commented on how much they liked the dances I selected this term. Yay! Without fail, I always think I've put together a great assortment of dances -- because I obsess over it, make endless changes until the plan is exactly what I think it should be. But to have a dancer - and more than one! - say that they like the selection of dances, well - music to my ears. Thank you!!

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We were just working on our mazurka...

1/17/2015

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One of my favorite dances from last year's Stockton Dance Camp was Pletený a circle dance from the Czech Republic, as presented by Jitka Bonušová. This dance symbolizes the traditional girls’ pastime of weaving wreaths of flowers picked in the meadows in spring. It can be danced by girls or women only or by couples in a big circle. I'm teaching it in my class this session as couples in a big circle. The first part of the dance has a grand right and left done in a moderate tempo waltz step. In the second part of the dance, the music changes and the steps are performed to a mazurka. Like the waltz, a mazurka is done in a triple meter, but it is has a lively tempo.
I have a new dancer in my class this session. It's her first time folk dancing, and I'm so very excited to have her in class! I called her earlier this week to talk about something totally not related to dance - coincidentally, I called her about flowers. She said, "we were just working on our mazurka. I can do it to the right, but then when we turn around and do it to the left..." Well, that presented a difficulty. So she and her partner were working on it. At home. In the middle of any ordinary day.
Admittedly, I put together a CD of all the music we do in class and make copies for everyone who signs up for the session. But imagine my delight to call a dancer at home, and hear that she had just been working on a dance. A highlight of my week.

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Happy Everything!

12/17/2014

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Last night was the last Tuesday night class for 2014. I wanted to do something special, and with the help of Sharon and Gail, recorded some holiday music that we could dance to.
We danced to a recorded mashup of Tzadik Katamar and I Have a Little Dreidel. It was fun to alternate between major key and minor key versions of Dreidel.
Then we danced to a vocal mashup of Ma Na'avu and Sivivon Sov Sov Sov. It was slow and beautiful.
To liven things up, as couples we experimented with our Schottische basic step and variations set to the music of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.
Lastly, we did a contra dance to a mashup of Frosty the Snowman and Jingle Bells (audio track above). Those two traditional songs have the AABB format for a contra dance! I hope the dancers enjoyed dancing to all of these holiday tunes as much as we enjoyed recording them. Sharon opined that the amateur quality of our recordings confirmed their authenticity as folk music.

Dancers signed the Ciuleandra-themed card pictures above and included a wonderful gift. I am touched and immensely grateful by the thoughtfulness and generosity of the dancers in my class. I love dancing, teaching, and the people who dance with me.

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A sense of belonging

9/28/2014

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I can't wait to show Katlin the new name tags we're using in class. Katlin draws pictures for me every week. (Often she brings me flowers.) She's got a big, generous heart. The background for this website and the name tags is one of Katlin's drawings. It's a picture of all the dancers in class. I love that girls have curly hair and boys have straight hair. I love that everyone wears a dress. It's one of my favorite pictures. I can't for Katlin to see her new name tag.

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It's like throwing a party and wondering if anyone will show up...

9/4/2014

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Pouring through old schedules and integrating new material... listening to lots and lots of sound clips... I'm excited to get ready for a new semester of dance class.

Next week is the first class of fall 2014 dance class. Summer has been a challenge to have a class - folks are away, folks are busy. But school is back in session and we're jumping into fall.

Truth be known, I obsess over what material to include in each semester. I want it to be well balanced - slow and fast, material from a variety of locations, lines AND circles AND couples' dances. I spent a lot of time making these decisions. If I spent as much time promoting the class as I did preparing for it, maybe we'd have a better turn out for the party.

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Geared up for summer

6/16/2014

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The background picture on my website is an original drawing given to me by the daughter of one of the dancers' in my class. I like how Kat always draws the men in the class with straight hair and the women with curly hair. I especially love that she draws a smile on everyone's face.

I've approached summer 2014 class with the same care and trepidation that I usually have when selecting dances for a new session. I like to select a balanced blend of fast and slow dances; a variety of circles, lines and couple dances. Typically, I like to select dances from a variety of regions. But this summer, I'm doing something new.

Starting tomorrow, the class will be a 5-week focus on Israeli dance - 12 Israeli dances in 5 weeks. There will be a variety of aerobic dances (Haro'a Haktanah, Od Lo Ahavti Dai) and slow, beautiful dances (Yedid Nefesh, Ma Na'Avu). There will be classic dances and modern dances. Sapri Tama will be our 4-wall dance; Ba La and Ve' David, our couple dances, and Machar, our 3-person dance. Jacob's Ladder and Shav El Admati will round out our circle dances. Terrible pun. Hora Agadati and Cumbia Semena will complete the dozen.

I don't know if we'll learn anything in particular about Israeli dance, if we'll come to any conclusions from dancing these dozen Israeli dances. I'm just striving to replicate Kat's picture - people happily raising their hands into the air with smiles on their faces.

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Dance teachers' exchange

6/2/2014

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Sally Jenkins is a knowledgeable and skilled dance instructor, currently living in Creswell, OR. She is the founder of the community and family dance
"Moveable Feet" held in Creswell. http://moveablefeet.weebly.com/

For the past two springs, Sally and I have gotten together for the purpose of sharing dances with each other. I learn so much from these session. Among other things, this time I learned these dances from Sally: Yesh Lanu Tayish, a cute kids' dance from Israel that could easily be included in a future "Dance Around the World" curriculum; Do Mar Ciften, a groovy Albanian dance; Kune, a Bulgarian dance; Inaduna, a super fun Turkish dance taught at this year's Veselo Festival; and Tritie Puti.
Sally learned these dances in our exchange: Amos Moses, a song made popular in the US in the early 70s; La Plongeuse de l'Ouest, a fun French Canadian dance for 5 couples; Waves; Roata Femeilor, a beautiful dance from Romania with lush music; and Israeli dance Adama ve Shamayim. And together, we practiced and practiced and then practiced some more the challenging sixth step of Bucimis.

Expanding my dance repertoire is valuable, and I'm grateful for this wonderful outcome. But what is most valuable about these teachers' exchanges with Sally is the connection and support from spending the afternoon with someone who has the same passion and drive to share traditional dance with others. Same time next year!

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A new 10-week session

4/6/2014

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I started teaching my Tuesday night class in terms of semesters. It was originally a Community Ed class offered through the local community college. College semesters run 10 weeks, and I'm used to preparing for a 10-week semester. Now that I've parted ways with the college, we're dancing YEAR ROUND! At some point, I may change the format, but haven't yet. It's time for a new 10-week session to start this week.
Some people have taken my class for the past four years. In preparing for class, I want to include dances for them that are fresh and challenging. There are new dancers, and since it is after all a BEGINNING folk dance class, I want to keep it accessible for them. I need to balance aerobic dances with slow dances. And I want to include dances from around the world.
Spring 2014 is ready to roll out this week. I always think each semester is going to be the BEST YET. Two traditions I intend to keep are - having a periodic international potluck in conjunction with a dance party, and providing each dancer with materials, including a step sheet of all the dances and a CD of all the music. We'll see if spring 2014 turns out to be the best yet.

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Selecting dances

We were just working on our mazurka...

Happy Everything!

A sense of belonging

It's like throwing a party and wondering if anyone will show up...

Geared up for summer

Dance teachers' exchange

A new 10-week session

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