Relapsing, that is what I did Saturday. Before you jump to your assumptions let me say it's not what you think. You see, I am trying to dance 365 days straight, and Saturday...I didn't. Even though it would have only been day 3 I decided to start over. Sunday being my new official 1st day. I had an hour and a half practice at a studio some friends and I rent. On Monday I went to another class to observe another dance teachers teaching skills. Today, I taught my 3 year old class, and afterwards I had my own ballet class, a hip-hop class, and then my private class. An hour of teaching dance and then 3 hours of DOING dance. Needless to say, I'm pooped. That was my relapsing story, now for the venting.
Like I said earlier, I just started giving 3-5 year olds dance lessons. Tuesdays are the 3 year olds. The 1st class I taught, 2 weeks ago, went okay. The Toddlers screamed, not cried, screamed as soon the parents left the room. Because of this, I allowed the parents to sit in the studio and watch. They were not a distraction, in fact the kids performed better with the parents there. I mean how independent can you expect a 3 year old to be?
The 2nd class, last week, a mother insisted on all the parents staying out of the room for it was an unnecessary distraction to the learning. I disagreed and allowed the parents that had attached kids to stay in the studio, while all the parents were more than welcome to sit outside the room. That "more that welcome" I just stated, was for a certain mother if you catch my drift.
Frustrated the...assertive(?) parent sat outside the room and complained to the other parents. If you ask me THAT'S an unnecessary distraction.
Fed up with the class, the mother withdrew her kid fron the class. Yes, she took out her kid because I allowed the parents to be in the studio. I could understand if they were a distraction or if I al around failed as a dance teacher, but that is not the case. Let me tel you however, I felt terrible. It was only my 2nd time teaching and I really did feel like I failed. Hence, the reason why I decided to go to another dance class and observe the teaching. Guess who I ran into.
As I walked into the much bigger and nicer studio I saw, Mrs. Assertive. Pretending like we didn't see eachother I walked right into the studio and watched. Come to find the more experienced teacher used skills similair to mine. I certainly need improvement, but I realized I did't fail at all. After talking to the teacher I felt much better. She said there will always be a parent who disagrees, a child who will push my buttons, and a lesson plan I can barely deal with. I just need to see that, for an 18 year old, I am doing fabulous. My dream is to teach dance...and here I am. I may not have a big class, it may not be the best studio, but I'm teaching. I'm starting my dream and I won't let one parent's opinion get into my head and ruin my confidence. There is my venting, despite the fact I only have 2 followers, one of them being my mom, I feel better.
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"Tiny Dancer... count the headlights on the highway" - just make sure you do it from the SIDE of the road, not the middle of it. Ha ha!
ReplyDeleteI think you are a remarkable person, and are pursuing your dreams with more zest and determination than most people I've known. You spend more hours doing what you love than I spend doing things I don't, and I have to wonder who is the wiser of us two.
Be proud of what you are accomplishing (it doesn't matter that your dance students still poop their pants). And as for the many "Mrs. Assertives" you will encounter in your life... you can always push them down a flight of stairs.
P.S. The above quote is from "Tiny Dancer" by Elton John. If you've never heard it, download it - it will be one of your favorites for the rest of your life.