Teaching Holiday Recital Dances

Recitals are an important tangible goal for our dancers. They are also crucial to our business success. 

This week, we are busy preparing for our upcoming Dancin’ Holiday Magic and Nutcracker shows. I make it my goal to get as many of my dancers to participate in two shows per season - holiday show and spring recital. 

Here are some teaching tips to prepare your preschool and school-aged dancers for the stage: 

Spatial awareness is as important as teaching the steps in the recital dance and will continue to be crucial in their dance training as they grow up. I recommend using the following:

• Single line marley tape in the studio

• Glow tape line onstage

• Have dancers hold hands and pull apart until their arms are extended

• Imagine a “Pretend dancer” in between each “real dancer”

• Dancers practice in the same space each week in class

• Practice entering and exiting stage in class

Sing the song with them with arms while seated before you stand up to teach the dance. Sometimes when they are standing and facing the mirror they become distracted and miss the choreography. They can only learn if they are focused. When standing they are also thinking about what their feet are doing. Learning the words with arms first is best.

When teaching them, talk through the dance until you see their attention start to fade. At that point do the dance with the music and continue past the section that you taught them. They should be able to follow along with you and do that dance. 

They will give half of what you give them. When you teach babies you have to give 200% energy and enthusiasm for the movement as well as exaggerate your arms and steps.

Only work on the recital dance for 10 minutes max in each class. This should be a part of what they are learning and running the dance 2-3 times in each class will keep them excited and eager to come back to class the next week. 

Free Webinar

On top of offering the Twinkle Stars and Showstars Curriculum and Choreography subscriptions, Tiffany strives to provide real-time business insights from her experience of owning and managing multiple dance studio locations. Each month she holds free webinars. Learn more: https://www.twinklestardance.com/webinars

Meet Tiffany Henderson 

Tiffany Henderson is an industry leader and dance business expert. Tiffany owns and operates multiple Tiffany's Dance Academy locations in Northern California. Her video-based teacher training system and curriculum, Twinkle Star Dance, is currently implemented in 300+ dance studios worldwide.

Adding Magic to Preschool Dance Classes

Bring a fresh, exciting look to your preschool and school-aged dance classes in the New Year! Curated class materials like Passports and Dance Journals as well as the Adventures of Twinkle Bear Book Series increase student enrollment, engagement, and retention. 

PASSPORTS AND DANCE JOURNALS 

Add fun to your classes each month and track dancer progress with the Twinkle Stars Passport Books and Showstars Dance Journals! The Passports and Dance Journals are used with the Twinkle Stars and Showstars curriculum as your guide. We provide an outline each month for each age level and class. Coordinating stickers accompany each Passport and Dance Journal.

Passports and Dance Journals help preschool and school-aged dance teachers organize lesson plans with a focus on specific Skill Building each month. Center Movements keep the class fresh and introduce dancers to new and challenging material throughout the year. The Just For Fun section provides videos that follow the holidays and seasons.

The Passport and Dance Journal also serves as a monthly scrapbook for the dancers, with a place for a photo or writing prompt. Concluding with a Certificate of Completion for the class The Twinkle Star Dance Passports and Dance Journals are the perfect companion to your Twinkle Star Dance classes.

ADVENTURES OF TWINKLE BEAR BOOK SERIES 

The Adventures of Twinkle Bear Book Series are dance-along adventures that introduce monthly themes and narratives into your Twinkle Stars dance class. 

Instructor books are printed on high quality, thick, 11 x 17 paper. They are colorful and delightful! There are 4-6 dance exercises in each of the books and they come with an audio version too that is perfect to use in your dance class. Purchase individually or purchase the entire series. Series includes:

• Twinkle Bear Goes to Ballet

• Twinkle Bear Goes to Tap Class

• Adventures of Twinkle Bear: Twinkle Bear Goes on a Picnic

• Adventures of Twinkle Bear: Twinkle Bear Hosts a Tea Party

• Adventures of Twinkle Bear: Twinkle Bear Goes to the Zoo

• Adventures of Twinkle Bear: Share the Love

• Adventures of Twinkle Bear: Pumpkin Party

• Adventures of Twinkle Bear: Nutcracker

Learn more about Twinkle Star Dance and our live teacher certifications: https://www.twinklestardance.com/how-it-works

Free Webinar

On top of offering the Twinkle Stars and Showstars Curriculum and Choreography subscriptions, Tiffany strives to provide real-time business insights from her experience of owning and managing multiple dance studio locations. Each month she holds free webinars. Learn more: https://www.twinklestardance.com/webinars

Meet Tiffany Henderson 

Tiffany Henderson is an industry leader and dance business expert. Tiffany owns and operates multiple Tiffany's Dance Academy locations in Northern California. Her video-based teacher training system and curriculum, Twinkle Star Dance, is currently implemented in 300+ dance studios worldwide.

Nurturing your Studio Community

Happy November! Now is the time of the year when the number of new enrollments start to dwindle as we transition into the busy holiday season.

Not to worry, we know inquiries from new students will pick back up in January. We have exciting promotions to capture new friends to enroll in our Twinkle Babies and Twinkle Stars classes at the start of the year.

I like to remind myself the months of November and December are a great time to focus our attention on marketing internally to the dancers currently enrolled and help nurture our studio community. 

Over the next few weeks, I’ll share various programming ideas you can incorporate at your dance studio to keep your dancers and families engaged.

This one might seem obvious, but I like to use themed props to add fun to dance class!

For example, we have a class set of autumnal-colored scarves that our Twinkle Star Dance classes use along with “Colors of the Wind” a choreographed ballet center stretch and movement. 

This November we are doing a line dance to “The Git Up” in all of our classes. Then during Parent Observation week this month, we are inviting the parents to join in the fun with a Family Hoedown.  

December is a fun time to use jingle bells. Our Twinkle Babies love dancing to “Jingle Bells Opposites” and hearing the jingle of the bells and the tapping of their toes. 

Another great prop is a star wand. Our Twinkle Stars enjoy using star wands and dancing to “Twinkle, Twinkle Christmas Star.”

Learn more about Twinkle Star Dance and our live teacher certifications: https://www.twinklestardance.com/how-it-works. 

Meet Tiffany Henderson 

Tiffany Henderson is an industry leader and dance business expert. Tiffany owns and operates multiple Tiffany's Dance Academy locations in Northern California. Her video-based teacher training system and curriculum, Twinkle Star Dance, is currently implemented in 300+ dance studios worldwide.

Nurturing Super Teachers

As a studio owner and director of your school, it is your job to bring out the best of your Super Teacher. 

Without dance teachers our business simply does not exist. 

You need to be available for your teachers emotional needs - this is attainable by having systems in place as you will have more time dedicated toward your teaching staff rather than playing catch up with the revolving door of teacher turnover. 

When it comes to your teachers, it is important to have healthy boundaries while still being accessible to them. Daily check-ins, weekly meetings, and quarterly training increase touch points with your staff. 

Offer knowledge based on your teaching experience and resources. Try to catch them doing something right, not doing something wrong. 

When conflicts do arise, listen to understand, not to respond. Similar to dancers, every teacher is different, we all carry different sizes of baggage. 

Ask about their lives, family, etc.  Knowing their background will give you key insight to what motivates them, how they feel valued, and how they make decisions. 

You have to customize conversations based on the individual. 

Learn more about Twinkle Star Dance and get your “Super Teachers” certified at Spark New Jersey. 

Meet Tiffany Henderson 

Tiffany Henderson is an industry leader and dance business expert. Tiffany owns and operates multiple Tiffany's Dance Academy locations in Northern California. Her video-based teacher training system and curriculum, Twinkle Star Dance, is currently implemented in 300+ dance studios worldwide.

Part 2: Training the Super Teacher

Another important part of training new preschool and school-aged dance teachers is offering on the job training. Sometimes, we do not have the luxury of having new teachers complete on the job training before they start teaching at our studio. It is still beneficial for them to have some co-teaching hours with yourself or other staff even if they are already teaching on their own.  

There are many benefits to offering on the job training. First, it introduces dance teachers to different forms of dance. I recommend having them complete their training with the class level and age curriculum they are/will be teaching. Second, by offering on the job training hours to new hires it helps you stack your bench at an admin/co-teaching rate. This is a great practice for training new teachers and subs! 

In addition to on the job training, you will have to continue to foster the relationship with your teacher by managing them. I find when it comes to the management of teachers, set clear expectations from day one. You will also want to set a weekly meeting as well as check-ins throughout the year.  

You are the owner of the business, you have all of the risk and responsibility. Set yourself up as the Creative and Executive Director of your studio. All decisions begin and end with you. This starts in the hiring process and helps the dance teachers understand who is in charge and who they report to. If you are onboarding several teachers, hold a new hire meeting prior to training.  

You will also want to schedule ongoing training opportunities for your teachers. Hold weekly teacher meetings at a set day and time each week. Every Tuesday I meet with my teachers to discuss updates to class curriculum, teaching methods, and what’s happening in the studio. Set time aside a few weeks after their initial start date and again mid-season for you to have class observations with your teachers. I suggest completing teacher evaluations and meeting with them for a one-on-one review.  

Dance teachers, much like your dancers, require consistent observation and feedback. When it comes to new season planning, have a set Yearly Check In period. For me this is in January, I have them send me a “Teacher wish list” via email and then set up one-on-ones. This is also a good time for me to find out who needs to adjust their teaching schedule or who may not be returning next season so I know who I need to hire. 

As the owner, I encourage you to have an Open Door Policy for your teachers - make yourself available for private meetings during the year when needed. Schedule weekly meetings which allows you time to assess the physical and emotional state of your teachers. 

Finally, make sure your staff know they are appreciated and valued. You may consider offering Performance opportunities during the holiday shows, recitals, and or professional shows. We host an annual Holiday party and end of season party. You can also add extras like Birthday club and treat your staff to lunch. 

Remember you are their leader - they take all cues from you. If you are too busy, they may not reach out until it is too late.

Check back next week for my tips about nurturing the Super Teacher. 

Learn more about Twinkle Star Dance and get your “Super Teachers” certified at Spark Chicago. 

Meet Tiffany Henderson 

Tiffany Henderson is an industry leader and dance business expert. Tiffany owns and operates multiple Tiffany's Dance Academy locations in Northern California. Her video-based teacher training system and curriculum, Twinkle Star Dance, is currently implemented in 300+ dance studios worldwide.