Patience is a virtue

Patience is a virtue, so the saying goes. It's a phrase I've often used to gently mock the frustrated or the over-excited, knowing full well that I'm incredibly impatient myself. At least I thought I was. As I get older I find myself slowing down a little bit. Or rather, trying to make life slow down so I can have a longer ride. The knock-on effect must be that I'm mellowing.

I remember attempting to assistant-teach for a previous instructor. I didn't know what to do with myself or my mixed-ability group. How to handle a new beginner with a smart mouth, who insists he's doing everything right and needs to be taught the Michael Flatley steps now please? How to get the prelims and champs, who I'd always danced alongside, to suddenly accept me as a teacher and not think that being put in my group was an excuse for a mess-around. The groups I was given got smaller and smaller and eventually I was phased out. I think I was frightened to show any authority. I felt too shy to stand up in front of them and tell them what to do. In hindsight I was being tested and I failed.

I'm a different person now. I must be. Last night my mixed-ability group told me I was a very good teacher, and very patient. Patient? Me? How did that happen? Where did that come from?

My achilles are aching and will do for some days to come, but I'm taking so much away from those comments. I've still got to learn how to be a teacher, of course, but now I know that I at least have some of the right attributes to build on. I'm learning how to explain things in a hundred different ways until suddenly you see it click in their brain and their feet do the right thing. I'm learning to encourage without being false. I think I'm learning how to make it fun.

I'm starting to think I might be able to do it.

Proud moment

I'm so proud of my little class! I had three dancers this week; the two newbies got through a whole reel and the girl from last week remembered all her dances, even the heavy jig. I didn't want to overload the newbies with dances right at the start so I decided not to attempt the hop jig and to try a ceili instead. Best decision ever! They were absolutely fantastic at the Four-Hand Reel - we got through the lead and all of the body, and they got it all, even the chain and the bits I thought they might find difficult. Very proud :)

But also quite proud of myself. I managed mixed abilities which I used to struggle with, taught a ceili correctly without the book (I just checked!) and had a lot of fun as well. They all paid for next week up front as well which I was so pleased with as often people say they'll come back but never show again. I'm just so glad they enjoyed it. Because that's the whole point, isn't it?

My First Class

After last night, Monday the 10th of January 2011, I suppose I can call myself an Irish dance teacher. Unqualified, but teaching dance nonetheless. Yes, I've finally done something practical towards my exam and I've opened an adults class!

Don't get too excited. I only had one dancer show up. But she's danced a little before, so we steamed through my brand-new beginners steps and she learned all of my baby reel, hop jig and light jig. Shamefully I forgot my slip jig (remembered it as soon as I stepped out into the car park) and could only teach her lead and second, but she got it all. I even started her on my experimental beginner's heavy jig.

I'm sure it will pick up. I've had interest from elsewhere, and the aim is eventually to have enough for ceili. There are some bits of advertising I can do that I haven't got around to yet. It'll pick up.

I was so nervous all day, and second-guessed myself because of it. Yet again, I considered jacking it all in. But when I came home and Significant Other asked me if I'd enjoyed myself, I didn't hesitate to say yes. I'm pleased with myself for taking that step - if you knew me and knew how shy I was, how little teaching experience I have, you'd know how hard it was for me. It was a real giant's step in some ways and a baby step in others...but it's done. The first class is always the hardest.

Happy New Year! ...back on it

I suppose like most people (except the LA candidates...good luck people!) I've done less TCRGing and more overeating over the New Year period. So it's time to get a little bit stricter with myself - my plan is to put in for the first possible exam in 2012, and if that ends up being January I have just one year. Considering my dancing is so very rusty, that isn't actually very long. I wish I'd just taken the thing as soon as I retired from competitions like everybody else does! Sadly all of those sets and steps are long since forgotten and all conditioning woefully lost.

Here are my New Year's Resolutions, dance wise:

1. Open a ceili class
Practice in teaching them will be invaluable for the practical element of the exam of course, but being able to visualise dances is helping me to remember them. When I write them out I never, ever forget the ceilis I've danced, so teaching them will help create a stronger memory come written exam time.

2. Learn the rest of the trads
I've left this one shamefully long. I haven't touched them since April (!) and gave up in a huff - see here and here. I focused on the ceilis, and then got too ill to dance. Thankfully I will have help with this and won't have to rely solely on Olive to get me up to speed. I'm just praying I take the exam before they put the 'new' traditionals on the syllabus; four is quite enough for me thank you! I'll learn the others in my own time, afterwards.

3. Sort the sets
This is HUGE. I never really choreographed any of my own hard shoe material, and I'm not really sure how to go about it. Luckily I never struggled with rhythm (one of the few things I didn't fight with!) so I'll be able to manage a mix of jigs and hornpipes, but you can bet your ass I'm picking the short sets. White Blankets yes, Blackthorn stick NO NO NO. I have help with this as well in the form of a fellow candidate/sucker for punishment. I've completely neglected the "own dancing" element of the exam and with my current level of fitness after illness, that just won't do. I actually do think it'll take me a year to get everything back up to a level. It's just been so long!

4. Work
On everything...

So here's my start at number 4 (typical, starting with the booksmarts!) - I just can't live without my lists and charts.

I am SO chuffed with my 86% today because I made a complete hash of one of the 10-pointers and scored no points at all. The question was "Describe in detail the movement which follows 'Full Chain' in the Cross Reel". I steamed in and described Back to Back almost perfectly...only it's not Back to Back, is it? It's Gentlemen Interlace which to be honest I'd completely forgotten. I could have been into the 90s there if I'd described the right movement. D'oh! Read the question thoroughly before diving in with your answer!