Barb:
I love those two phrases. Sometimes I say: "Here comes a really cool move."
I have also said 'this is tricky' to get the attention of experienced
dancers who talk during the walk through. Although I know better I hadn't
thought clearly about the effect on newer dancers. I'm pretty sure
These differing views of swing posture remind me of the old question of whether
galloping horses ever had all four legs off the ground at once--a question
settled by the innovative photographer Muybridge. I wonder if anyone has made
slo-mo video of experienced couples swinging. It would be
Must disagree about leaning backwards (resisting each other, leaning away
within reason) and swing/allemande speed. The physical shapes that spin best
are cones (children's tops), small at the bottom, wider at the top. Couple
turns and pivots (in other social dance forms like waltz), have the
In case you're calling on Thursday
Salute to Betsy Ross
Duple PROPER (because Betsy was proper)
A1 Long lines ("stripes") go forward and back (8); Ones swing in the
center, face down and pick up your 2s (8).
A2 All go down the hall (6), Thread the Needle** (4), come back up the
hall, bend
THANKS for bringing up this important teaching technique.
the way you phrase something can make ALL the difference.
instead of "this is a little tricky", i go with "this LOOKS a little bit
different, but you'll be surprised how easy it is!" or "here comes the fun
part!"
if you ACT like
Great stuff, Greg!
I learned many important things from some of the great callers early in my
career. Larry Edelman taught me to teach about "places, not faces" while
teaching squares. This can also apply to contras. Ted Sanella taught me to
first tell who we were to look for, then what we
I just listened to "RadioLab" on NPR
http://www.radiolab.org/
The current show on "Inner Voices" is fascinating and has information about
how the expectations of teachers (or callers) can affect performance. The
impacts of simple word changes in how a task is described can make a
dramatic
