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| Finally, my hyper active baby ballerinas managed to behave and sit in a circle |
When I first suggested to the
school to start a baby ballet class (i.e. toddler from 2 ½ - 4 years old) as
Salaree will need to attend one, I was like, “OMG!! What did I just get myself
into?”. I have been teaching ballet for the past 20 years on a part-time basis
and have never, and swore never to teach baby ballet. I have no choice now;
especially as I need to teach Salaree.
So prior to starting to teach the
class, I did some research by watching baby ballet on YouTube, reading lots of articles
and the best thing of all, observing Salaree and trying to teach her some steps to see how she responded.
So after all my research, here are some tips to teach an effective baby ballet class:-
Music
Music plays a very important role
in baby ballet class. You will have to get familiar tunes such as nursery rhymes
and songs from Disney, where you can effectively see the little ones singing,
giggling and being extremely happy, especially playing their favourite songs.
For example, Twinkle Twinkle Little
Star will always be one of the little ones’ all-time favourites, along with Let it Go as the
current trending cartoon song for toddlers.
Props
Props such as hoops, ribbons, fairy
wings and wands, teddy bears and flower petals make a huge difference in
the child’s development. Not only do they get to play with the props but they are able
to develop their motor-skills and co-ordination at the same time.
Attention
Now, toddlers get bored after a
while playing with props. What is the next step? You can either change the props
when you see the little ones getting bored or yawning or start relating your
steps / exercises by telling them stories. For example, you want the little
ones to walk around the room. If you ask them to walk around the room, they
will start playing catch with the other girls. So in order to avoid that, tell
them stories like we go walking in the jungle and we saw a “Lion”, “Tiger”,
“Elephant” and so on. And you will see them start walking the way you want them
to.
Praise
The little ones love to be praised
all the time. Of course, if they were able to point their toes, straighten
their knees, create a diamond shape (i.e. plié), give them praise from time to
time using simple words as “good job”, “very nice”, “well done”. This will
certainly encourage them to continue to do better.
Rewards
after class
The little ones will definitely be
tired after an hour class and looking forward of going home. Give them
something to bring home like candies (sometimes better to check with parents as
some parents do not allow their children to have candies), stickers or rubber
stamps on their hands.
Parents’
intervention inside and outside of the class
Sometimes, parents can be a
distraction for the little ones. Strict rules must be in place depending on each
toddler.
Some can be seen as very clingy to
the mother and if there's a peeping hole at the studio door, toddlers will tend to
peep out and start waving at their parents who are waiting outside.
It would be advisable to talk to
the parents and inform them that strictly only 1 parent is allowed to enter the studio while
the class is ongoing and even then only for the 1st 2-3 lessons, for the child to get used to the
teacher and other students.
After the 2-3 lessons, talk to the parents and ask for their permission to allow the toddler to stay in the class alone, even if they cry. At this time, parents should go away from the studio and not come close, even if they hear their child cry. The parents must be willing to co-operate with the teacher, otherwise it will not work.
After the 2-3 lessons, talk to the parents and ask for their permission to allow the toddler to stay in the class alone, even if they cry. At this time, parents should go away from the studio and not come close, even if they hear their child cry. The parents must be willing to co-operate with the teacher, otherwise it will not work.
So to all teachers, good luck in
teaching baby ballet.
