Do you want to understand the most effective way to progress as a dancer? This guide will allow you to understand the best methods for receiving helpful corrections from your instructor, ultimately leading to fun and success in the study of classical ballet!
ALWAYS do your best to apply the corrections you have already been given. When an instructor sees that you apply rather than ignore the correction, she or he will notice and make an effort to guide you through the most effective corrections possible. Your instructor may decide to video your dancing in order to show you where the improvement needs to be made. A picture, or video, really is worth a thousand words.
ALWAYS ask for clarification if you are confused. You can't correct what you don't understand, so don't nod your head "yes" when your brain is saying "no".
ALWAYS write down every correction you can remember, immediately after class in your ballet notebook (this is why notebooks are required), and review those corrections on the drive or as you warm up in the hallway for every class. Even better, write down corrections that others are given as well. Rarely is only one dancer in a class making that mistake, but they may only be the one corrected in that moment.
NEVER cross your arms when given a correction, this sends the message that you are closed off to improving, and does not encourage the instructor to spend time creating effective corrections to help your progress.
NEVER pout when you are given a correction. Practicing pouting just makes you better at pouting. If pouting is a regular behavior, your instructor may feel you are not mature enough for the level you are enrolled in, and may suggest a change of level, or a redirection.
NEVER quit in the middle of an exercise, always finish to the final pose, regardless of how badly it may have gone. Your instructor cannot give you an effective correction if you quit altogether. In addition, practicing quitting makes you better at quitting. Who has that behavior as a goal?
NEVER argue with your instructor about a correction. No instructor needs to invent things to correct you about, we all have faults, and most instructors could correct our own dancing for days. Also, remember that the instructor's job is...wait for it...to correct you! Read that again...:) Please note that if you have an issue worthy of a discussion, please come into the office and we will schedule an appointment to have a chat with our artistic director and your instructor.
ALWAYS thank your teacher when they give you a correction, they are trying to help you! Without corrections in ballet class, every single one of us would still be sickling our feet and sticking out our bottoms, as we did during our very first days of ballet study...TRUTHBOMB. Thanking the instructor lets her or him know you are open to corrections, which encourages them to create effective corrections for you.
Work hard, accept and apply corrections, and you are sure to progress in your studies!
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