Thread: Teaching for the first time, advice please.

Hi, My name is Maria and I'm new to this site. I have be dancing for almost 3 years. I was taught by a professional dancer on a one on one basis. I did that for 6 months 3-4 days a week for 2 hours a session. After that I moved and continued to practice. I used mirrors to watch my moves and I used instructional CDs to practice with. I know this does not make me an expert. I practice 1-2 times a week.
Recently I was asked to give mini lessons at a fund raiser. At that event I had many women ask to sign up for classes. I mentioned I don't teach, but looking into starting soon. Well soon is now apparently. I have bee wanting to do this but never got such a push from people like this before.
I plan on starting with just beginner classes. I feel that I need more instruction to teach intermediate or advanced classes. I am looking for a space to rent right now. I don not know what else I need to start classes. Do I need insurance? I have never run a business, let alone a dance class.
I still plan on getting more instruction for me to continue my knowledge. I want to be a good teacher and I want to do this right.
Thank you for any and all advice.

there's some threads you can search on here that will give you some info. consider what kind of class you want to teach and what you are capable of teaching. think of how you'll break the movements down, about your ability to see technique on another person's body (you can probably recognize neutral pelvis on yourself, but can you tell if someone with a big booty is in proper alignment? how about the rib cage alignment on someone with a large bust? very small bust? you have to be able to recognize the underlying alignment without letting the flesh that is, or isn't, on top of it distracting you)

consider what you feel is important to teach them at this time. there's a lot to balance (and i'm still finding it, having only been teaching a year):
-you have to let them know there is so much out there to learn, without overwhelming them.
-show them that professional dancing takes time, training, and dedication, without making them feel like they can't do it if they want/without making them feel like they have to do it if they don't want to (ie: without giving the impression that "just" being a social dancer isn't enough)
-give them enough to practice to keep them interested, without giving them too much so that they get sloppy and miss important details.
-provide enough review that they feel like they're "getting it" and making progress without letting them get bored.
-and of course, balance the movements with the music and culture (the latter two they might not be expecting, and it's your job to show them not only how important they are to the dance, but that they are fun and interesting topics that will enrich their dancing, rather than tedious academics that will turn into "buzz kills" ^_~)

i think it's really important to encourage students in improv right from the start, there are some threads about "improv v choreo" that can give you food for thought and help you find your position in it.

last: teach because you want to, because you're ready to, and because you have something to offer the dance/dance community. NOT because someone is pressuring you to. you'll only regret it if you get pushed into it and realize that you weren't ready later. if you do it on your own terms/ when you're really ready (which you might be, im just saying this for consideration. if you're not sure ask your teacher.) then it can be something really joyous. don't assume that you have to teach at any point.

Have you actually done a Beginners class along with other students, or is all your experience of learning in one-to-one situations? If you haven't been in a Beginners class with a whole bunch of other beginners, then I would strongly recommend finding a teacher who runs such classes, and asking if you can take her classes, and see how she deals with a bunch of beginners, with differing abilities and different reasons for being in the class, so different attitudes to learning. If you can get that teacher to mentor you, then so much the better.

Yes, you need insurance. You also need to know what the business and tax requirements for your state are. You also need a licence for the use of music in your classes.

There are a few articles online about starting to teach, which I think every aspiring teacher should read:
Kawakib's Preparing to Teach article on Gilded Serpent
http://www.gildedserpent.com/article...onteaching.htm
Kawakib also has a very useful Guide to Teaching MidEastern Dance.
http://www.kawakib.com/page-6.html#guide

Shira has a couple of articles in the Advice section of her site:
http://shira.net/advice/menu-business.htm#Teaching

NEVER think of your students as "just beginners". In order to teach Beginners, you really do need to be certain that you are teaching them right. So many of us have had to unlearn bad habits, gained from early teachers, and some really resent those first teachers, for not teaching them the right way in the first place. Beginners are, in many ways, much harder to teach than experienced students, who are already committed to the dance, who are already body-aware. Beginners need to learn how to relate to their body in a whole new way, and you need to keep them enthused, and encourage them into this sparkly world of ours. They are our biggest responsibility, because they will be the dancers of the future.

As well as working out your class plan, give as much thought to the admin side of things. Make sure your processes for taking enquiries, collecting money and keeping class attendance records are as smooth as possible. Allow yourself time to attend to this between classes and at the start of each class. I mention this because, if you're running classes yourself, you'll find it takes as much (if not more) of your time as teaching. And, no matter how good a dancer or teacher you are, if you don't attend to the money side of things, your classes are not likely to succeed in the long-term.

- Work out your policies on enrolments, refunds, missed classes, etc. in advance and write them up for all to see. (For an eg, mine are at www.jewelbellydance.com.au/classes.php and scroll down under 'Prices').
- Know the minimum numbers of enrollees required to cover your costs and run the class. Encourage prepayment. Of those that say they'll turn up and pay on the day, expect 50% to do so.
- Have a written contract with the venue you're hiring and expect that it may take some time and lots of communication to develop a happy hirer-hiree relationship.

Also, if you haven't heard about different learning styles, start researching now. You'll be a much more effective teacher if you can adapt how you teach to the needs of your individual students. Because you've been with one teacher until now, I'd highly recommend attending classes or workshops with other teachers, to see how else teaching can be done, and to observe what you think are more or less effective methods. You can learn this by attending a class at any level.

If all goes well and you continue teaching, one day your students will need you to move to the intermediate and advanced level. So continue your own education, and start thinking about how you'll do that, while you're teaching beginners. Continue to grow, and you'll be ready for them.

Originally Posted by jewelbellydance

Of those that say they'll turn up and pay on the day, expect 50% to do so.

around here it's more like 10%.... and the more enthusiastically they insist they are going to take your class, the more you can count on never hearing from them again.

Originally Posted by jewelbellydance

Because you've been with one teacher until now, I'd highly recommend attending classes or workshops with other teachers, to see how else teaching can be done, and to observe what you think are more or less effective methods. You can learn this by attending a class at any level.

yes, just like when you dance you should take from all sorts of sources and combine it to be your own style. when you teach it should be your own take (well, not your own take on posture, but your own way of explaining it) so that (just like dancing) you don't turn into a clone of your teacher. like when in school they told you to explain things in your own words to show that you really understand them. think about why they would go to you instead of your teacher. "in order to be irreplaceable one must always be different" (Coco Channel)