On Teaching Movement
On Teaching Movement
Recently I’ve been exploring group exercise classes in my new city. I feel like a kid in a candy store; there are so many new things to try. This exposure to many new teachers made me reflect on the art of teaching movement.
What makes a good teacher?
What makes a GREAT teacher?
These are my thoughts.
If you are a teacher (of anything), I’d love to hear your ideas on what makes a GREAT teacher.
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A boot camp class versus a Yoga Nidra class demand very different skill sets, but at a high level, the teacher requirements are the same – voice, energy, cues, props (weights, bands, balls) curriculum design (the choreography) and technology management (music/DJing).
Take the boot camp class example. Here a teacher must bring and maintain a high level of energy for over an hour, memorize a precise sequence of exercises and cues, manage a timer (in an HIIT/interval class), as well a rotating set of music tracks, each played for a short time. It’s a lot.
In a Yoga Nidra class, the elements of voice, energy, cues, curriculum design, and music management still apply. The style of the class couldn’t be more different from a boot camp class, and yet at a high level, the demands of the teacher remain the same.
Neither type of class or teacher is greater or lesser than the other. They are the same–just a different experience offered to the student.
These elements–voice, energy, cues, curriculum design and technology management are the basic requirements for competency.
In other words, one could have mastered all of these but still be a competent, but totally average teacher.
So what makes an extraordinary teacher?
I don’t have the whole answer, but I have some ideas.
Passion for the subject.
Curiosity to learn endlessly, including from students.
But what is behind the passion and the curiosity?
LOVE, LOVE LOVE!
The energy of love propels the teacher to seek out new things…a lifelong student.
The energy of love drives connection between teacher and student.
The energy of love is contained within the teacher’s historical connection to the subject matter.
The energy of love is transmitted from teacher to student.
The energy of love lifts students up–it spreads encouragement.
The energy of love creates gratitude in both teacher and student i.e. you are grateful they are in your class, and they are grateful to be there.
You cannot learn love from any school or degree certification process. Of this I am certain.
I don’t have all the answers but I know you must connect to your heart space and from there, everything flows.
This is a deep topic and has made me think about teachers from 20 years ago, phrases I can still recall and the experience of being in their classes. I remember a Political Theory class at Cornell taught by Isaac Kramnick, a Mystical Literature class taught by Ira Rabois, and Iyengar Yoga classes I took at age 19 from a teacher whose name I forgot, sob!
If you feel touched by any teachers in your life, I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Namaste,
Catherine
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