* Brisbane and Interstate*
Locations and Contact Details
Wedding Steps BN18991956
www.weddingsteps.com.au
* Brisbane and Interstate* |
Wedding Steps BN18991956 |
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Dance Program Your Dance Program is the overall set of lessons planned for you by your teacher. Your teacher will create your Dance Program based on your initial Interview and Chat. This system ensures your learning is as effective as possible - minimising your time and expense and maximising your success.
'When the student is ready, the teacher will appear' This old proverb illustrates part of our teaching philosophy, but there is more to say about making the learning process as successful and efficient as it can be. The proverb is talking about the student's state of mind. If the student is ready to learn, then learning can take place. Or, more pointedly, learning is impossible (and teaching effort is futile) if the student is not ready to learn. This proverb places the responsibility of success in learning squarely on the shoulders of the student. A fair point, but a good teacher can do much to enhance this readiness-to-learn. Most of us can remember at least one teacher, perhaps from high-school or primary school, less often from college or university, who really inspired us. It wasn't so much that this teacher knew the most, or was the most organised, or really did anything extraordinary. It was more that they connected with us. They seemed to understand how we felt as learners, and the particular difficulties each of us were having. They were able to show the value in what we were learning. Inspirational teachers are empathetic. They understand the learner's point-of-view and they put us in a state of mind ready to learn. Some do this naturally as a consequence perhaps of their own personaility or enthusiasm. But this approach to teaching can itself be taught and developed as the core skill of a teacher. Our staff of dance professionals have been carefully selected to foster this approach to teaching. They truly understand how learners feel - every fear and insecurity that may be a block to success. They will put your mind at ease so that you are ready to learn. If your goal is elegance then you will achieve it with ease. Interview and Chat (go to page top) Planning your dance program begins with a chat. We need to ask about a few details but mostly we listen to how you would like your wedding dance to make you feel. We can then talk about the style, mood and rhythmn of your dance and match it to your music. Here is a checklist your teacher uses to plan your dancing.
This greatly depends on your starting point and goal.
These factors are carefully considered at your initial interview and discussion. Your dance professional is specifically trained to find out your needs, goals and likely learning speed. That said, most couples would need 4 to 8 hours of tuition to prepare a dance which looks elegant and one which they feel confident doing on the day. The lessons should be scheduled no more than one week apart, and you need to practice at least as many hours as you have tuition. The overall plan should allow the final lesson to be mainly revision and polishing. The final lesson should be no more than a week prior to the big day. This approach ensures the best balance of learning something worth presenting, and gaining enough confidence in your new skills to present it well. Remember that you must allow practice time to develop the skills and build your confidence. There is a question of whether you should attempt a set routine or fixed sequence of dance steps, as opposed to a more freeform approach based on simpler step pattern building blocks. Your dance professional will help you decide, and here are some considerations. Set Step Pattern Routine (Choreographed) Some teachers advocate learning a set routine or pattern of dance steps (choreography). This does work well for some couples under some circumstances, and it can allow a more elaborate dance presentation to be achieved. However the set routine approach is more suited to experienced, or at least more confident, dancers. You need much more practice time because you are depending more critically on your memory. It is more risky since, if you feel nervous on the day and forget one part of the routine (usually the start), then it is difficult to recover (or begin). It is also difficult to adapt to different dance floor shape and size, especially for beginners. The set routine approach is an all-or-nothing strategy. It either works very well or not well at all. The final disadvantage is that you can only dance with each other, not other guests because they won't know the pattern and you (the gentleman) won't have learned how to lead. Freeform Dancing The alternative freeform or led (from to lead) learning approach gives you a number of very simple dance steps that you can put together any way you like, much like building blocks. Rather than putting effort into memorising an elaborate set pattern, the focus is on developing skill and confidence in leading and following (partnership). The end result is slightly less flashy, but this approach is far less risky for beginners. If you forget one or two building blocks, you still have the others. You would also have the skill and confidence to steer around the floor, whatever its size and shape, as well as cope with other couples dancing around you. Finally you have a better chance of being able to use your new dance knowledge with other partners through the evening. Your Choice Both learning approaches are valid and available, and the final choice is yours. Your dance professional will advise you which is best suited to your situation, and will then honour your choice. However as you may have guessed, since most couples are beginners, we would most likely recommend the freeform learning approach. Flexible Programs Designed for You Your wedding dance program is designed to suit your needs and wishes. We provide advice and guidance after carefully listening to you describe what you want. We can help you – whether you need to learn quickly or if you have lots of time, whether your dance is to be simple or elaborate. In your dance program, although we do not ask you to sign a contract, we may recommend a minimum number of hours of lessons. This is simply to ensure that you achieve your goals within the timeframe and budget. Our advice and guidance to you will always be realistic and practical, as well as enthusiastic and supportive. A series of lessons allows us to plan for you and teach you much more effectively than is possible on a lesson-by-lesson basis – thereby saving you time and money. It is important that you attend your appointments and follow our advice. Although you may choose to learn lesson-by-lesson, our guarantee applies only to our dance packages. Wedding dance programs are available to suit Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced couples as well as groups. Most beginner couples would have about five lessons. Depending on their needs and wants, the couple may then just practise what they have learned. Else they may continue building their knowledge and skills to add more dance step patterns, or even more dance styles. You choose the level of knowledge and skill that you wish, and we make it possible. Packages - Learning Building Blocks Your dance program is made up of one or more of these packages depending on your situation – your starting level, time and budget, the dance styles you wish, etc. Individual Lessons (go to page top) We are happy to teach you on a lesson-by-lesson basis, however your teacher will be restricted to giving you only what can be completed in each single lesson. They can't, for example, introduce something which takes two or more lessons to perfect. This severely limits what you can achieve. See also lesson-by-lesson below. Beginners Minimum Lessons Package This is for beginner couples, who just can't manage the time or budget for more lessons. It is an introduction in 1 dance style of your choice for a chosen wedding focus dance to your music. You would be comfortable performing a 2 minute wedding focus dance in the spotlight. You could later dance socially at a basic level with anyone with similar or better skills. Beginners Comfort and Elegance Package This is our normal starting package for beginner couples, getting them feeling comfortable and looking elegant. It is an introduction in 3 dance styles of your choice with some refinement in one of those styles for a chosen wedding focus dance to your music. You would be quite comfortable performing a 2-4 minute wedding focus dance in the spotlight and most onlookers would see two confident, elegant dancers. You could later dance socially with anyone with similar or better skills in the learned dance styles. Most beginners will need 5 hours in weekly 1 hour sessions. We recommend you take further lessons to at least practice and maintain your skills up to your wedding date. One session per fortnight should be enough. If you wish to add more knowledge and skill, we recommend you take Advanced Packages. Advanced Package This is our main package for intermediate and advanced couples looking for something extra. You are building flexibility and adding confidence and flair, step patterns and variations into your dance skills. You will be comfortable with a greater variety of music, dance styles, and dance partners of different skill levels. Most learners will need 3-4 hours in weekly 1 hour sessions to add new dance material and properly integrate it into their existing knowledge and skills. Your teacher will explain this more fully during your enrolment chat. See also lesson-by-lesson below. If you wish to continue learning social dance as a hobby you can keep purchasing this package indefinitely and your teacher will create a long-term plan for you. Last Minute Package This is for emergencies such as late arrivals of your wedding party members. You get something basic and easy to learn in one dance style. It is suitable for beginners dancing socially but not recommended for a wedding focus dance as it is too little time. Please book well ahead to ensure your teacher can be made available at the time you wish. Groups can be catered for by negotiation, and may be at a small extra cost. Although a good way to share costs, individual attention is much less and expectations must be realistic. Beginners will generally need 5 hours minimum to learn the basics of a single dance style through group lessons (as opposed to three hours in private lessons). You may take dance tuition on a lesson-by-lesson basis. However this is generally less effective and a less efficient way of learning. Your teacher can not safely assume you will continue with lessons, and so they can only introduce new material which can be completely taught within the one session. This severely limits what material they can teach, affecting both beginners and experienced learners. We strongly recommend you give your teacher the freedom to plan at least 3 to 5 lessons ahead. Wedding Dance Planning Checklist Wedding Date and Reception Venue Details Are other people to be taught (eg bridal party or parents)? Do you have any physical difficulties? Do you have previous dance experience? Dance floor size, shape and surface. Song/Music, Artist, Tempo, Beat (copy for teacher?). Style of Dance/s (smooth, latin, up-beat, dramatic, speed, routine or freeform) How long will the dance be? How many lessons do you anticipate? Are you walking onto the floor during the music or will the music start once you are on the floor? What will happen just before and just after the wedding dance? Would you like to be able to dance socially with other people during the evening or afterwards? Dress and Shoes Can the groom move easily in his shoes
Dance Packages were modified on 14 Jan 05 |
Affiliations Wedding Industry Association of Queensland Wedding Ideas Centre, South Brisbane Bridal Resource Centre, Loganholme Danzon Dance Sport Kingdom |
Site Major Update 1 Dec 2006