Dance for AdultsDance in SchoolsEducating DanceSchoolsTeacher TrainingTRS TeachersLeap Training
As a Level 3 TRS teacher, I had the opportunity to lead the Leap Training that took place this month. I have led training before but this was the first training for TRS and I loved it! I had a wonderful group of TRS Teachers who all shared their own experiences and ideas throughout the 2 days of training to make it a collaborative experience – which was my aim!
The Leap Training was about two separate elements that we found could intertwine very well. The first aspect was about incorporating more fitness and vigorous elements into our dance lessons to support people to meet government guidelines. The second was props and resources, we explored how to be imaginative when creating them and how to use them to best affect.
Click HERE to find out more about the lessons that will be influenced by this training.
During our first day of training, we looked at how to implement more activities into our lessons to allow the children to become more physically active in accordance with government recommendations for children’s daily exercise. This is something that I strongly believe in as it is so important to encourage physical and mental health and well being. We started by looking at the differences between Fun Fitness and Dance Fit then focused on each on.
First was how to use Dance Fit in our lessons and it was great to give the teachers a task and see the wonderful ideas they produced. It was a really hot day and we certainly worked up a sweat!
“A very helpful training that has given me lots of inspiration for classes going forward. Delivered in a fun, interesting way. Thank you Jenny!” Lara
Next we looked at how to incorporate lots of Fun Fitness ideas into our lessons using different props and games, I shared some ideas that I have used in my lessons and then we all shared different ideas and spoke about how they could be adapted for different age ranges and groups. My favourite activity that I use in my lessons is the ‘Jump the hoop’ game. We had lots of hula hoops on the floor and had to jump in and out of them in different patterns working with the music – something I have been using at my dance club this term. We had lots of fun finding different combinations and patterns and trying them out. We certainly got our physical activity in for the day!
“I learnt new things what went above my expectations.” Heather
The next part of the training started with us identifying how props and resources can benefit our lessons. We can Enrich, Enhance, Engage, Expand, Enjoy and give Dimension to our lessons through our tasks and resources. First of all we looked at props and how to maximise the use of these props in our lessons. We talked about all age ranges from our EYFS classes through to Active Armchairs and it was great to share how we use them in different ways. I brought literally every single prop I own plus some of the TRS Library props and we had a go at creating new tasks with props we hadn’t used yet. It was great to share these ideas and we all came away with a new task to use in our own classes. I also shared how I make some of my props, how I combine props and we did some activities with these too.
“Participating in many practical tasks, sharing ideas with each other and feeling reassured with the ideas we came up with… it was all super beneficial!” Emily
The last part of our training was looking at resources, how we can produce and use resources to maximise our lessons. I shared how to use things such as toilet rolls, kitchen rolls and egg boxes in different ways to create games and tasks. I love creating resources to help children expand their choreographic skill and am a great believer of the power of the chance method to create movement. The teachers did a task using these resources and we shared how we could go forward with this idea in our own lessons. It was great to hear how some of the teachers have already implemented some of these ideas into their lessons.
I then brought along lots of different materials for the teachers to make their own resource which I hope they will use in their future lessons and even gave them a challenge to make their own prop.
“Leap Training was energetic and fun, everything we aim for our lessons to be. Jenny has taught us how to make this happen in an inspired and imaginative way” Rebecca
It was wonderful to be able to share between us a wealth of knowledge and I really enjoyed being able to share my experiences too after being a dance teacher for nearly 20 years! I have learnt so much over the last 4 years of teaching with The Right Step and I love being able to continue to learn and share ideas with my fellow TRS Teachers.
“This has enabled me to think outside the box more and hopefully give my participants a more enriched experience.” Erica