Thread: WWBD?

Hi, I need help with something that I'm wrestling with.

I've been studying and loving bellydance for five years. The first two were mostly through video-type instruction, then I took classes and many workshops for the past three. I practice daily. I own an embarrassingly high amount of vhs and dvd instructionals and performances, watch them all the time. I'm a dance maniac. My fellow students have noticed, even in my beginner classes, that I was somehow more “advanced” and would often corner me after class to explain to them my “secrets”. At first, I was laughing: there no secrets! Just keep your knees soft and your hips will move! Just drill your shimmies sitting on the floor! Just... (insert point of form or technique breakdown here.) Then something dawned on me. Teachers in my area are not learning from anyone else but this one teacher, which teaches in a very dated manner (pulsing a stretch to warm up, not a peep about posture or proper body alignment, strength conditioning instead of proper stretching and cool down after dance, that sort of thing). Personally, it doesn't bother me because, I know what I need to do to be dancing in a way that will not cause injury and, while unsafe, these teachers offer a very “pure” Lebanese style that is to die for. (BTW, I did approach one teacher about posture and she pretty much blew me off.) Some classmates asked me to set up my own class. I flat out refused. I felt like I didn't have any business teaching since I haven't performed in public yet (and felt guilty/bad about our teacher). So I kept doing my dance geek thing. Read tons of books, not just bellydance related, but other stuff too, like choreography theory and dance anatomy. I just love it. I like to understand how things work, compare, slice and dice, try it out many different ways... geek. And happy.

Now here's my issue. (will continue)

Someone from my area has called me (one fellow classmate apparently referred me, without my asking or knowledge btw) and asked me to teach a beginner class. At first I was floored. Me? Teaching? But I'm a beginner! “Well, think about it. We don't have anyone else and you were recommended.” So I'm thinking about it. The scary part is that, without even thinking too hard, I had moves broken down in families, a rough idea of how to spread them over a ten week session, how to drill them (alternate breakdowns included!), how to string them into combos (which would string them into a choreo at the end), the music, the group exercises, and ending with a semi-hafla thing. The other scary part is that I'm already teaching, in a way, bc of the people that I have to explain “what I do” to after each class.

I'm tempted to say yes, but I'm afraid. 1-If I were to teach, my format would be very different and prob more interactive, like group exercises and with more one on one attention (almost non existent right now). I'm concerned that other teachers might not like that. I don't even know if this is justified or not, just a feeling. 2-I have never performed. There's not a lot of opportunities to do so in the area (which is why I'd do a hafla at the end for the girls, to give them the opportunity to perform) and, quite honestly, I'm happy just geeking it out. But what if the students ask me to perform and I suck? 3-I feel horrible saying this, but I'm afraid that my attention to proper form might make the other teachers look bad. They are awesome dancers, their style is fabulous but the instruction is... well, if it was alright, then I wouldn't have to explain stuff in the parking lot of the studio, right? I like them, and would never dream of stepping on their toes and I'm concerned how this would be received.

I know I would have a total blast doing this. It does pay, not much, but it does. However, I don't care about the money. Being able to communicate my love of ME dance and ME music is enough for me. (I make a substantial living at my IT job, I don't need this money, but I don't want to set a bad precedent for other teachers by doing this for free.)

I'm completely confused, feeling guilty and, although I'm not a six week nipple wonder, I'm also not deluding myself into thinking that I'm a star teacher. I'm not thinking myself any better than other teachers. I'm good at biomechanics and explaining stuff, but I can't hold a candle to their Lebanese style, and I shudder when I think that I may have to perform for the students (I do dance well, but I haven't worked on stage presence or any performance skills bc I was always just happy being a geek).

WWBD?

If you have had training in teaching any other forms of motion, you may be able to apply those teaching techniques to BD. I am a former tai chi instructor, and I based a lot of my classes on posture and weight balance. I still do when someone can't keep their weight on one leg in order to drop the other hip!

And go ahead and try performing, and maybe find a teacher who is performance oriented. Or act. Or do public speaking. Anything to give you experience in front of an audience, then extrapolate it into dance teaching.

These ideas don't work for everyone, but everyone needs a starting point, and maybe this will give you an idea about how to find yours.

Good luck, and keep on shimmying!

Performance isn't necessarily a requirement to teach. Some dancers I know are MUCH better teachers than they are performers, and some are horrible teachers but wonderful performers. Though you should probably try getting a few performing experiences in now (public performance helps a lot of us grow as dancers). If you love it, and you feel that you know enough to be a well informed teacher, then do it. Make sure you don't undercut the other teachers though! Even if you decide to teach, you can still take classes with other teachers and go to workshops, and I would encourage you do do so for your own growth.

it sounds like you are vacilating between over confidence and insecurity. Tell you what. Make a video of yourself dancing a choreography you put together, then make a video of yourself teaching or breaking down a combination of steps, then find an outsider you respect, maybe even somebody here on bhuz who will take a look at it and give you honest feedback. You might not be ready...then again, you might. Other than finding out by trial and error, this is the best alternative I can think of for you.

Hi Anyrani,

I think the question is - how confident are you in your dancing? Can you dance? I don't think public performing matters if you can actually dance, but sometimes it isn't till we get on stage with a bunch of fabulous dancers that we realize how far we have to go. Videoing is a great suggestion - not only to get outside feedback, but to watch and ask yourself "am I OK with teaching students to dance just like me?" Cause they will - pick up both your strengths and weaknesses.

But, on the other hand, sometimes when opportunity knocks, you don't want to miss your chance. I know from experience, my teacher asked me to take over her classes a couple years ago- I should have jumped on it even though I was feeling very similar doubts as you, but I didn't and lost my chance. Sometimes you just have to believe in yourself.

Best of luck with your decision!!
Meredith

You don't have to be good at everything in order to teach - in fact, a good teacher will understand what she can't do, be able to admit it, and direct her students to others who can fill in the gaps. So you don't have to be a star performer in order to be able to teach. By the same token, it's OK to teach technique if other teachers aren't supplying that. There's a gap in the market, and you're not denigrating the other teachers simply by filling it. But of course, you should do what you can to try and maintain a good relationship if you do start teaching in the same locale. It'd be best to keep your teacher informed of what you decide to do and keep her onside.

It sounds like there's a great opportunity here for you and your teacher to work together to offer a more complete package. Is that something you might approach her about? She may or may not be open to the idea. I know a local teacher here who got her start in exactly that way - her teacher taught 'follow the bouncing butt' style and she managed to work out how to break down the movements, then showed others in class how to, then took over teaching the beginners. It worked well for all concerned.

I also think that you don't have to know everything before you should start teaching. You must know enough, sure, but you don't have to be a master. What's more important is that you recognise your shortcomings and you work on them - get performance experience, go to advanced and performance-focused workshops, for eg. Keep learning yourself and you'll be able to keep providing your students with fresh material as they advance.

PS - I think Shem's idea of videoing yourself and getting feedback on your 'readiness' to teach is a great idea.

1) You do need to get *some* performance experience under your belt, because dance is a Performing Art. How can you prepare your students for even a haflah performance, if you have never done it yourself? Even if performance is not your forte, you need to know it, to be able to teach it. Also, students *like* to see their teacher performing!

2) There are a whole load of articles out there, on Preparing to Teach, and I trot them out any time there's a "Should I start teaching?" thread (and there are many). Go read them.
Preparing to Teach by Anthea for the Gilded Serpent
Why become a teacher?
Starting to teach
Dear Shira: Any Hints for Someone New to Teaching?
There used to be a couple on Aziza Said's zilltech site, but that seems to have disappeared.

3) Important legal things to think about:
- Insurance- this is essential!
- Licence to use recorded music in classes- this may be covered by your venue, but if not, but if not, you need to check what the licensing provisions are in your local area.
- Awareness of your local health & safety requirements.
- Awareness of your tax position, with regard to this extra income.

4) Be *very* realistic about your own skill level. There's nothing worse than a bad dancer, teaching bad dancing. Beginners deserve to learn good posture and safe dance practice from the off. If they have to relearn basic technique at a later stage, they will curse their first teacher's name! I'm not saying you suck, I've never seen you dance so I couldn't possibly tell what your skill level is, but I've seen a horrendous number of poor dancers who teach, and I feel so sorry for their students, so this is a general comment to anyone considering teaching bellydance. You *need* to get some proper critical feedback from your teacher about your dance skills, I'm not sure from your posts that you have actually had that.

5) Whether you like it or not, you will be part of your local dance scene, and you need to find yourself a place in it somehow. Not necessarily for your sake, but for your students' sake. As a teacher, you are setting yourself up as a Professional, and you need to act as such. You have a special responsibility to your students. You need to make them part of the local scene with you. This means you're going to have to play nice with the other local teachers. Talk to them before you set up your classes, network with them, suck up to them, if you have to!

http://www.bhuz.com/forum/belly-danc...-teaching.html

It is possible to be a good and useful teacher who doesn't perform, but I am suspicious of a teacher who has never performed at all. This is a performing art, and much of what students need to learn are things that go beyond knowing how to do a move. The world is full of dancers who can explain how to do a hip circle, but can't do it in a particularly attractive way themselves, because they have never had to confront the reality that they look disengaged from their music, their arms look floppy, etc. These are the sorts of issues that are obvious in performance, but can hide in the classroom.

There is also an issue of whether you have developed the choreographic skills one needs as a teacher if you have not performed. In theory, one can reach this level without stage experience, but most students don't realize how hard it is to fill up a song in an interesting way until they try to under threat of an audience. Beginners tend to expect and rely on choreography, so whether or not you have danced in front of an audience yourself, you should be able to construct and explain simple combinations and routines.

I think it is unrealistic to believe that you could teach without ever having a moment where your students ask you to perform for them. I know I was quite disappointed that one of my early teachers never performed--never showed how the movements came together--within the context of class. She had lovely technique, but students need to see the big picture, too. I don't think it's a serious problem to be a teacher who's good enough to perform but doesn't actively look for those opportunities. A teacher who lacks the skills to perform is another matter.

Originally Posted by Alaira

If you have had training in teaching any other forms of motion, you may be able to apply those teaching techniques to BD. I am a former tai chi instructor, and I based a lot of my classes on posture and weight balance. I still do when someone can't keep their weight on one leg in order to drop the other hip!

And go ahead and try performing, and maybe find a teacher who is performance oriented. Or act. Or do public speaking. Anything to give you experience in front of an audience, then extrapolate it into dance teaching.

These ideas don't work for everyone, but everyone needs a starting point, and maybe this will give you an idea about how to find yours.

Good luck, and keep on shimmying!

HAve studied karate long time. weight shift=no problem :)

Originally Posted by shems

it sounds like you are vacilating between over confidence and insecurity. Tell you what. Make a video of yourself dancing a choreography you put together, then make a video of yourself teaching or breaking down a combination of steps, then find an outsider you respect, maybe even somebody here on bhuz who will take a look at it and give you honest feedback. You might not be ready...then again, you might. Other than finding out by trial and error, this is the best alternative I can think of for you.

that is an excellent idea, thank you!

thanks for responses! nothing suspicious though, just always did my dancing and choreographing at home, too shy to be on stage. :)

i will do some soul searching. although I am confident in my skills ( i do train people for a living), i want students to have the whole package.

will think on it.

thanks ladies.