One of my favourite ways to mix up a warm up or actually just to engage play in the dance classroom is to make a dance obstacle course. For little dancers, I include lots of balance and jumping onto or over activities, walking on tip toes, standing on different textures etc.
For middle sized dancers I tend to focus on dance conditioning activities but make them playful using different equipment to build balance skills (with eyes closed is an extra challenge), using upper body, using core by getting low on the floor and precision work. I might also include some basic plyometrics too. For my senior dancers my favourite obstacle course is actually to get them to do it blind and barefoot (with a fellow student guide) to really hone in on their proprioception and get them to use their feet for feedback. I love this as it really makes them concentrate but can also link back to theatre skills of entering and exiting the stage in blackout. Obviously keep things safe and simple and exploring different textures is great for this. Also let them see what they are doing first before they negotiate anything eyes closed and keep a guide (another student) in arms reach as they move through the obstacle course.
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Okay, dance educators, let's turn the spotlight back on ourselves this week. We all know that teaching, whether studio or school, is a demanding profession. So, my question this month is: how do you fill your own creative well? What do you do that lights you up and is just for you, not about your students at all?
In the past, I've totally been guilty of calling the things I was doing as professional development my creative practice and if I'm really honest it wasn't a creative practice - it was for my students or my business or my teaching practice and not for me at all. After experiencing burnout at the end of last year, I made it a priority to fill up my own creative well in 2023. It has made the biggest difference - such a simple thing has been so revitalising. So, I'd like to share with you some of the things I've found that fill my creative well and maybe they will fill yours or maybe they'll just inspire you to think about what your own creative practice could look like. Here's the list: Dancing with others/performing again: earlier this year I joined a mature womens' performance group and I honestly love it so much. We have an hour and half class each week and, just recently, I got to perform on stage again with them for the first time in, well, a very long time. The group I've joined is filled with dance and drama educators, so I'm totally in my element. Going to the theatre: I am starting to go to the theatre again to see things that I want to see, and not just because I am taking students or have students performing in something (though of course that too). I'm lucky enough to live in Wellington with so many amazing theatres around. I'm also trying really hard to support theatre written, choreographed or composed here in Aotearoa. Journaling: this has been my absolute game changer. I love both morning pages and visual journaling. I'll be honest, my morning pages often end up as evening pages, but I've found them really good for supporting sustained focus, especially in this fast paced digital world we live in. Visual journaling, for me, is about capturing small moments during the day and I do this through text and collage at the end of each day to wind down and reflect. I keep it small; each day is just an A6 size page. Doing something badly for the pure joy of it A.K.A learning to draw: I love colour and texture so learning to draw and let myself play with colour has been a great way explore the arts in a less physical way more abstract way. I know that I'm not great at drawing but because I set it up in my mind as play, it's allowed me to try stuff and experiment and not care whether the outcome is "good" or "bad". I'm finding this willingness to experiment beyond my boundaries is spilling into some really awesome stuff in my creative professional life. Deep diving into inspiring music and literature: Letting myself be inspired by music (hello sweeping orchestral scores) and literature has felt quite indulgent but also a really wonderful reprieve from screen-based media. The things I've been reading and listening to are definitely influencing my creative work at the moment. I've really enjoyed the novelty of finding new material and the familiarity of diving into my literary favourites. The upshot of all of these things? I have more creative energy for myself and therefore for my students, and that in turn feeds theirs. It's not foolproof but it's a good start. I'd love to know, how do you feed your creative well? |
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