While completing my undergraduate degree I decided to turn my passion into a career by going to teacher’s college. This isn’t your ordinary teacher’s college. I applied and was accepted into Canada’s National Ballet School’s Teacher Training Program. The program was rigorous and included studies in various ballet techniques, theory, dance history, composition and anatomy to name a few. Teaching is a hands-on profession and it was an honour to assist professional ballet teachers at the school, who generously imparted onto us their vast knowledge and experience. After graduating I immediately started teaching professionally and haven’t looked back since.

 

As a dance teacher I come to work everyday with a smile on my face knowing I will be working alongside people of all ages and backgrounds, imparting my knowledge, sharing ideas, listening to world class live musicians and of course, doing what I love, dancing! As I have come to learn, teaching is in itself an art just like dancing and requires discipline, intuition, creativity and heightened interpersonal skills. What I love most of all is the interaction with people of all walks of life. Teaching is a very human activity, as is dancing, I look forward to seeing familiar faces of my students, often year after year. The most rewarding part of my job is often the gradual development I see in my students; be it physically or emotionally. There are those who see themselves as athletes and therefore gain great personal satisfaction if they learn to perform a pirouette perfectly. There are others who see themselves as artists. I see the sparkle in their eye when they are required to perform a particular character or involve more expression and acting into their dancing. There are still other students who gain from dance a sense of personal accomplishment, pride and self-confidence the likes of which they never had before.

 

As a teacher it is important that I learn to identify individuals within the class, their needs (in addition to the needs of the class as a whole), learning styles and how I can best support them and help them reach their goals. A teacher’s job is never done. In order to stay on top of my game I seek out professional development in a number of ways, at school, workshops and from my colleagues. Teachers self-evaluate their work on an ongoing basis and ask themselves what can be done to make each class even more successful. All in a day’s work!