Article - Choosing the Best Dance Studio
Choosing the best dance studio for your child can be complicated. Jayme Klinger Host, Owner/Artistic Director of the Lewisburg Dance Conservatory, provides some guidelines to help you make an informed decision.
Some of the questions you should ask include: Does the dance teacher have proper training in the genre s/he is teaching? Does the teacher have a college degree in Dance?
Also is the studio space equipped adequately for dance classes? These are all questions to be considered.
Does the teacher have professional experience performing? Do they have teaching certification? Are they familiar with State and National Standards for dance in education/ public schools to augment students learning connecting information that is grade appropriate?
As a student, I earned my Bachelor of Arts Degree with Honors and Distinction in Performance & Choreography and Dance History & Criticism at Goucher College. Then proceeded on fellowship to the University of Utah where I earned my Master of Fine Arts Degree in Modern Dance, Phi Kappa Phi.
As a dancer, I have performed professionally with companies on three continents; as a choreographer, my dances have been commissioned by professional companies in the U.S. and Panama, even being performed at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C.. As an educator, I have over 12 years teaching experience at the University level and six years experience teaching in the Baltimore County Public School system at a Performing Arts Magnet High School. I do have secondary teacher certification and was a two time grant recipient of the Maryland State Board of Education to help with teacher education of arts integration in the everyday classroom.
Lewisburg Dance Conservatory's 2200 square foot studio is conveniently located in downtown Lewisburg on the corner of St. Catherine St. and South 4th St. We are equipped with a quality Harlequin dance floor, full length mirrors, and permanent ballet barres. Most importantly when looking for quality dance education for your child, let your child try a class. Do they feel at home in the space? Do they feel comfortable with the teacher, enough to risk personal inhibitions and truly grow as a dancer? Please take this as an invitation to visit the Lewisburg Dance Conservatory and try a class.
Some of my Teaching Philospohy
Teaching becomes exciting when individuals share their diversity to create an open and responsive learning experience. It is this coming together of diverse individuals that creates a dynamic learning atmosphere. In this atmosphere, education, specifically dance education flourishes.
Much of dance education is recognized as affective learning; relating to, arising from, influencing feelings and emotions – a becoming. For me, that is the core of dance, a becoming. It is about the process, about an inner awakening. Dance does improve physical elements such as coordination, flexibility, and muscular strength, but more importantly, dance is a mirror through which a person’s true image of being comes into clear focus. Noticing how people approach a creative problem, discover movement tendencies, recognize personal influences, and identify individual reactions to structured movement, all help to clarify the image in the mirror. That is what learning is all about, learning about ourselves and the world around us. This personal belief informs my philosophy of teaching dance.
My teaching philosophy is based on the development of students physically, creatively, scholastically, and professionally. I strive to broaden each student’s understanding of dance as an art form by weaving together the elements of dance, and the individual’s creativity to offer a holistic approach to movement. Through an anatomically sound technique, it is vital for students to recognize their kinesthetic sense, for it is through this physical perception that one gains a critical awareness and self-discipline. It is also of paramount importance to challenge students to discover new meanings of movement, consciously make selections, and organize them into an expressive form of dance. As a dance educator, I set the stage for dancers to embrace the art of dancing as a lifelong process. I provide them with the tools they need to shape their own individual contribution to the art of dance and to society at large.