The A-Z of Belly Dance Teacher Training
So its been a little while since my last post
Life has been great over the Summer but really hectic! Firstly, I have been busy transitioning in job, secondly I have been gaining experience performing more Belly Dance which is brilliant- (post coming soon) and thirdly I have been studying at the Melissa Bellydance Teacher Training course.
For four full intense days, I have learnt many things about teaching belly dance. Since I don't know where to start (trust me there is so much to learn!) I have broken this down into the A-Z of teacher training to make it easier
A is for Anatomy- Yes, as a belly dance teacher it is important to know about the different muscles you use not just for your movement by contracting them, but the muscles that stabilise the movement and assist it (synergists). It is also important to know about some of the bone structure as well as the spinal column. Anatomy is a massive part of the course also on the theory exam!
B . Benefits of Belly dance- physical, mental, benefits compared to other exercise.
C Choreography and combinations- how to set these up for the appropriate level you are teaching and when to teach these.
D Drills- different drills you can use in your class to practice a particular move and how to do this effectively and safely.
E Exams- For the teacher training course I did a theory exam (passed! :)) but then there will be a practical exam in 2 months time where you have to teach a real class.
F Forward thinking- This is all about having a plan for your class and roughly how much time each part e.g. cool down may take. One should also have backup things to do or should be able to be flexible depending on how hard or easy the class might find a move.
G Golden Era of Belly dance- one of my assignments was to research this era as well as spot lighting dancers of this period. This is a very important time to know about as much of the dance we do today has been influenced by individuals from this time as well as the spread of belly dance to the West.
H History of Belly dance- for this we did various presentations and research based on the key figures of belly dance and how the art spread across the world.
I Itinerary- Depending on the level or style you are teaching, you will have a syllabus of moves to teach over a number of lessons. These should be done in a particular order as some moves e.g. hip drops relate to hip lifts and some moves should be taught before others e.g. chest lifts and slides before chest circles.
J Job- Good advice was given in terms of what the job entails and how to safeguard yourself as a teacher.
K Knees- There can sometimes be major misconceptions here when doing moves e.g. locking knees is not safe and also when the supporting leg might bounce when doing hip lifts or drops for example.
L Learners- being aware of the different types of learner you may have in your class and how you can adapt your teaching to suit a variety of learners (visual, auditory and kinaesthetic learners).
M Musicality- this is important when creating choreography, combinations or improvising by interpreting different sounds in the music with your body. Some people may hear different things, some may interpret the instruments used.
N No Nos- The course also gave us the chance to reflect upon not just what makes a good teacher/ class but also what makes a bad teacher and class.
O Origins of Belly dance- although this is mostly based on opinion, it is an important thing to learn and research. Also, one of the assignments was based on each style of belly dance (both traditional and fusion) and where the style comes from, how it developed and key figures with the style.
P Posture- the different types of posture people have and how to correct this in order to dance safely.
Q Quadratus Lumborum- One of the muscles of the back we looked at in detail- it is used ALOT when dancing, for example this muscle stabilises you when doing most hip and pelvic moves, it protects the lumbar part of your spine, especially when doing backbends and when you contract it, your ribcage moves forward .YES a very useful muscle!!!
R Rhythms- knowing the Middle Eastern rhythms and recognising them is important, especially when choreographing or improvising to drum solos (my favourite!).
S Safety- as a belly dance teacher, safety is paramount and is the most important thing in your lesson. This is something that should be reinforced in terms of how to do a move safely in order to avoid injury. It is also important to correct and check that members of the class are doing a move safely.
T Technique- this comes in when you teach a move. It is important to know how to brake down a move once you have demonstrated it.
U Unwinding- all about cool downs and why a cool down at the end of a class is important.
V Variety- To keep your students engaged, it is important to have a variety of teaching methods e.g. using imagery, counts, directions etc.
W Warm ups- This is an important part of a class and should always be done safely and effectively to physically and mentally prepare the students for the main part of the class. This includes cardiovascular activities, dynamic and static stretching and strength drills.
X Xpression- how to gain confidence when expressing yourself as a dancer, teacher as well as encouraging your students to express themselves when they dance!
Y Yourself- doing a teacher training course really pushes you to develop your dancing further as well as your knowledge.
Z for the zillion things you need to remember!!
So believe it or not that was just the tip of the iceberg, whilst there is a lot to remember and a lot of practising to do, I thoroughly enjoyed the course and am lucky to have been taught by one of the best teachers. I would definitely recommend a belly dance teacher training course whether you want to teach it one day or you want to develop your knowledge further.
Now its just the practical class left . wish me luck!
Sureya
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