Professional Development as a Lifeline

“Curriculum doesn’t teach people. People teach people.”
–Daniel Ulbricht, Principal Dancer, New York City Ballet

The Journey Begins

I was twenty-three when I had my first job teaching dance to children in a New York City school. I naively figured that given my rigorous dance training and time in a professional company I was equipped to lead engaging classes for children. I spent many hours at night focused on the ‘what’ of teaching – What steps would I teach? What music would I use? What choreography would we create? I felt prepared once I had a very solid curriculum written in my notebook. That all changed, however, once I was in front of a group of dynamic and excited children. I quickly realized that the ‘what’ of my lesson plan was actually less important than the ‘how.’ How was I going to capture the attention of this delightful and challenging group […]