serTA

A presentation from Muriel Johnstone, giving us an insight into Roy Goldring and the dances he devised, which included some which give a simple introduction to more complex formations and others which focus on the interaction between dancers.  Ian Robertson added illustrated examples of some of the tunes that were used in Goldring dances.

Ken’s presentation was “Keep your class moving with music”, aiming to reduce the amount of walking and talking, prioritising dancing.  He illustrated each element of his talk by dancing and calling himself and asking the class to dance to his called instruction. Ken produced a detailed handout for the presentation which was distributed to the group.

Deborah Draffin, a former primary school teacher who herself danced as a child and has been teaching children for 27 years presented a session of tips and teaching aids for teaching children's classes.  Sarah Whillis also contributed on running one-off sessions for groups such as Brownies.

Pat Houghton, with musician Adam Brady, provided tips on teaching advanced dancers including more challenging dances, more challenging formations and more challenging techniques, so that the dancers get a higher sense of achievement.  Dance examples throughout the day were from the newly published RSCDS Book 53.

RSCDS Centenary Chairman, along with musician Sandy Nixon, presented a very enjoyable day of hints and tips to make our classes enjoyable so that dancers will indeed want to come back next week

serTA celebrated its 16th year with a weekend of workshops and social dancing in Suffolk, 23-25 Sept 2022, with workshops led by Jimmie Hill, short talks by serTA members, and excellent music from Ewan Galloway and Ian Robertson

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Read the Kate Thomson's summary of the weekend here.

Jimmie Hill gave us two very interesting workshops during the weekend.  The first focussed on teaching tips and a report of it can be read via the link below.

Ian Robertson, musician, gave a short talk with discussion, from his perspective of playing for dancing, on the gradual move over the years to having more complex dances on programmes and therefore longer recaps and how this impacted on the band.

Most groups had experienced a drop in numbers when resuming after the pandemic lockdowns.  Hilary Maidstone led a discussion on what were the most effective ways to reach potential new dancers and how to retain them

Kate Gentles teaches in Cambridge, including a group comprised largely of university students.  Teaching this demographic brings different pleasures and challenges from the classes most of us teach - a higher turnover (though many do continue dancing elsewhere), but quick learners keen to improve.

Mervyn Short challenged us to continue to develop our teaching skills, particularly outlining the importance of instilling good technique in all levels of dancers and this might involve continuing to develop our knowledge of areas such as physiology (and also gave a book recommendation on safe dance practice)

Sue Last had attended online presentations in America during the pandemic, including some on Gender Neutral Calling during the pandemic and shared with us what she had learned and how she had put it into practice. 

Lizzy Conder, serTA member and RSCDS Treasurer, outlined for us the celebratory events that would be taking place in the 2023 RSCDS centenary year and artwork for producing centenary publicity and some special commemorative items that could be purchased

The Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing published 5 books of dances 1971 to 1990s devised by their members for the annual McConachie Sword competition and including either a new formation or a variation on an existing formation.  These have now been republished in two volumes by the RSCDS.

Lynda Hughes, Physiotherapist and Scottish Country Dance teacher, took us through exercises and simple dances to warm up joints and muscle groups to help protect dancers from injury

A full day First Aid Course for potential injuries at dance sessions, including resuscitation, use of defibrillators and injury response.

Mantras help in the demonstration and learning of formations, these mantras are so good they have been handed down teacher-to-teacher and now you can have them too.

An interesting presentation of the role of the MC including the sins to avoid and a detailed to-do checklist of actions.

Part 1.  How digital music works and some of the different options of storage and playback systems you can use to bring modern music solutions to your Scottish country dancing classes.

Part 2.  Presenters gave their experience of different methods of using digital music at classes and for social dancing.

Engaging with your dancers during lockdown.  Four presenters recounted how they thought SCD would work for enthusiastic dancers in a socially distanced environment.

Workshop postponed - rescheduled for Sept 2021

Anne shared some of her knowledge gained through many years of teaching both adults and children and discussed the standards of dance needed in the new Dancing Achievement Awards (DAA).

Dancing is music made visible. Making the most of music in your dance classes and working with musicians. Techniques to get the best from sound equipment.

Teaching dancers with various abilities, thoughts on adapting the use of space, music and formations to the dancers' best advantge.

Derek Haynes' dances' key attribute is that they are basically simple but with innovative variations, creating exciting new formations.

Sharing knowledge to raise awareness and reflective thoughts when reviewing the teaching experience.  Followed by highland steps, starting with the more familiar and advancing to technical steps.

Keeping it social with good phrasing, elegance and musicality.

The interface between the dancer, the teacher and the musician. Integrating music and teaching, and what the musicians and teachers can expect from each other.

The interface between the dancer, the teacher and the musician. Integrating music and teaching, and what the musicians and teachers can expect from each other.

Making it fun, group enthusiasm and growing confidence for younger people in Scottish country dancing.

Helping to improve dancers' technique by demonstration, looking at posture, core strength, hands and feet.

Smile, eye contact and engagement between the dancers with good posture, good covering and being at the right place at the right time. Knowing the chosen dances well helps too!

There are no rights or wrongs, we don't know exactly how old dances were performed or old instructions interpreted. We attempt to marry the dance with contemporary music and dance manuals.

Up front is good class preparation, a positive manner, enthusiasm and humour, and appropriate dress.  Consider the music, the venue and the dancers in your class.

Scottish country dancing resources on the internet, how to set up your own website and publish infromation on it.  Once you have a site, keep it up to date, there is nothing worse than an out of date site.

Prepare and think about how to present dances, consider the likely standard of dancing, plan the timings and leave time for encores. Do work closely with the musicians and understand the sound system

Exploring what makes a good dance programme, the contribution of music to enjoyment, variety and atmosphere. Also the dark side, what makes a nightmare programme.

Teaching techniques including using your voice. listening to yourself, keeping the mood lively, all based on planning ahead, flexiblity of approach and keeping dancers engaged.

Working with dancers of various ages, the benefits of dancing for health and not making too many high technique demands of dancers, perhaps learning later in life, there for the fun of it.

Awkward sections of dances and how to dance them well. Easy when you know how!

How to care for teachers' voices with vocal exercises, water, honey and blackcurrant, not caffeine and alcohol. Breathe correctly and project the voice. 

Ways of motivating dancers with fun, praise, fair sharing of the action, achievable targets during classes; all will enthuse dancers.

A musician's view on Scottish dance music, how the musician can help the dancer and the partnership between the teacher and the musician.

Lot of know-how on teaching after-school clubs, private classes and teenagers with a review of some challenges and ways to get the class logistics and motivation right.

At ceilidhs and weddings remember you are probably working with many non-dancers, don't teach footwork, just make it fun.  with good demonstrations and call the dance right through.

serTA members tried out Wendy Mumford's very practical demonstration of how to teach dances and manage ceilidhs.

Encourage dancers to listen to the music, use helpful counting, develop teamwork and correct phrasing.  The challenges of foot positions, posture, body weight and alignment.