Course Overview
About me as your tutor
With a "B.Ed Hons", I am a trained Physical Education teacher and have been teaching Circle Dance full time since 1987. I have been leading Circle Dance Teacher Training Courses in England since 1999. I have also developed courses exploring ‘Beyond the Steps’and ‘and ‘Going Deeper into the Dance’….. and more!
I am known for my ability to take those who dance with me ‘beyond the steps’; to discover a deeper understanding of the movement within the dance - of finding a new relationship with their body. I believe that my real teaching can begin once everyone has learnt the steps.
My teaching style is to work with awareness and precision yet with a lightness of touch that comes through my sense of and use of humour.
I am also a choreographer and musician, having released four compilation CDs (and DVDs) of my own dances – ‘Other People’s Dreams’; ‘The Wave’, ‘Moving in Time’ and ‘Earth’. As part of the band, Serendipity, I released three recordings, ‘Past and Present’, ‘Finely Tuned’ and ‘By Arrangement’.
I teach abroad as well as at home in the UK.
This course will cover a wide and varied range of topics - both theoretical and practical.
~ time will be spent working on the skills needed to teach a dance; guiding each participant through teaching dances; gradually developing the necessary physical vocabulary and communicative techniques to culminate in each participant feeling confident to step ‘out there’ to lead sessions.
~ other areas addressed will include notation of dances; teaching in rhythm; dance patterns; teaching and learning styles – and more!
~ there will also be ‘open’ spaces to allow discussion, debate and exchanges of ideas and experiences.
~ every day will begin with an hour of dancing into our still centre.
Handouts will be provided for every topic covered.
Teaching sessions
During this training week there will be the opportunity for you to teach a dance.
I will be commenting on your teaching, offering you feedback in a safe and supportive environment. I will also help you to analyse the dances you bring from a rhythm point of view, demonstrating and encouraging you to practice speaking the steps in rhythm - giving you a whole new dimension to your teaching.
Teaching in Rhythm
Circle Dance offers a diverse collection of musical styles and rhythms.
These sessions will be a discovery of those rhythms: an experimentation with ‘phrasing’ and ‘punctuation’ and the application of this experience to teaching dances and writing accurate dance notation.
Much of the learning is practically based as you find your way into the rhythms through dancing, moving and experiencing speaking in rhythm.