PARENTSDear New Parents to Ballet, In the following letter, Ballet North West Academy tries to inform new and current parents on how to choose the right school. As a new parent, choosing a dance school can be very confusing. We will give some fundamental guidelines on what to look for in dance schools to help you make an informed decision. There are typically three variables when searching for a new school: location, cost and quality. To begin with, let's consider location. If location is the biggest concern, then using the phonebook should answer your questions and help make a choice. However, there are some other facets to choosing a dance school that are also important. At a minimum, you should ensure that the artistic director is qualified and unsafe practices are not taking place. At the same time, schools should value all students equally. Whether the student has professional aspirations or simply loves to dance for recreational reasons, all students should be treated the same. Quality is another important variable and usually the most confusing to new parents. If you are really motivated and have the time, one book we would recommend is The Parents Handbook to Ballet by Angela Whitehill. This book goes into detail about the qualities of a good training program and successful teaching syllabus. For a quicker solution, here are some suggestions. Look for a school which has a clear and concise teaching syllabus. This tells the parents that their teacher has a logical step-by-step teaching process. If asked, the school should be willing to show it to you. You should expect no less from a dance school than you would from a small private academic school no matter what you pay for tuition. At a minimum, the artistic director or ballet mistress of the school should be qualified in a teaching syllabus. Their job is to ensure that proper training is taking place at the school and the artistic direction of the school is being satisfied. There are many types of teacher education programs from university programs to courses that certify teachers in a ballet syllabus. Both of these types of programs can prepare the director or ballet mistress. Many schools entice students and parents to there front doors based on the school's teachers' professional careers. Professional dance experience is another plus for the school's director and teachers; however, teaching and dancing are two different skill sets. In the United States, there are basically four teaching methods that you will likely encounter: Checcetti, RAD (Royal Academy of Dance), Vaganova, and Balanchine-style methods. "Classical Ballet" is a RESULT of any of these training methods, (with the exception of Balanchine-style methods, which results in "Neo-Classical Ballet") "Classical Ballet" is NOT a teaching method. Just as there are different methods of teaching a child proficiency in reading and writing the English language, there are different methods of teaching a movement vocabulary. Whole word learning and phonetics are methods of teaching English just like Vaganova and RAD are methods for teaching Classical Ballet. There is no "Classical Ballet" syllabus or method, although Classical Ballet is the goal of all the methods. Unfortunately, "Classical Ballet" has become a label that a school gives itself if it is not qualified to teach a method. Your child's dance school and its teachers should be able to tell you on which of these methods they base their daily lessons. So now that you are aware of the different methods of ballet, we will discuss correct level placement and advancement through a school's syllabus. Most schools, including BNWA, place a new student in an age appropriate level for initial evaluation. There are many considerations to be taken for proper placement including evaluation of the student's strength, flexibility, coordination and ability to comprehend and follow physical directions. In addition, the teacher doing the evaluation knows what is expected of students in each level. A common improper placement of student is when it comes to putting a dancer en pointe (on their toes). This is typically a very exciting milestone in a young dancer's training but done improperly can result in life-long injuries. When done properly, the dancer achieves the heights of technical mastery - to defy gravity. In our opinion, there are many ways to go wrong with pointe work. One of the big ones is to put a dancer en pointe too soon. This means dancers are too young, do not have the background in technique necessary, do not take an adequate schedule of classes, or any combination of the above. There is no reason to put a child en pointe before age 11. By this time, a dancer's bones are becoming denser and entering into her final big growth spurt. The final typical consideration for choosing a school is the cost. On the average, most schools are priced the same give or take a few dollars. Regardless of cost per class, make sure your child's school puts money back into the dance facility, customer service and teachers' pay. Dance training requires certain equipment - mainly a high quality professional dance floor, be careful of homemade or contractor installed dance floors. A floating floor or sub floor is necessary for dancers to avoid overuse injuries. Finally, your child's dance school, from the classroom to lobby to the dressing room and out into the community, should strive to provide a positive experience in dance to all. Students should be encouraged to be courteous, inclusive of others, and to maintain a positive attitude about their goals and progress. The professional dance world is a tough place sometimes. However, this makes it even more important that dancers be trained to maintain self-confidence and to treat others as they should expect to be treated - with respect.
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