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Less Email, More Dancing: 4 Ways to Tame Your Inbox

Suzanne Gerety — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 13:20:01 +0000

Email. Love it or dread it… it gives you the ability to instantly communicate with your students, parents, and potential customers.

The trouble is that your email about classes, performances, and registration deadlines are just a few of the hundreds that your customers receive on a weekly basis. As valuable as email can be, if you are not careful it can also be a constant demand on your time and attention taking away from the most important tasks required in running a successful studio.

What can you do as a busy owner or teacher to do to master this communication tool so that the messages you send get read and you get back more time?

Here are some tips to help you become more effective and in-control of your email inbox.

#1. Guard your time: What’s urgent for one parent or student may not necessarily be urgent on your end.

While we often feel like we need to be accessible and available for our students and families during most waking hours of the day, I could literally sit at my computer and on my iPhone all day and field inbound requests.

Resist the temptation to play ping-pong with your inbox! Now is the time to establish some parameters around when you will respond to emails.

If you have staff working for you in your office it is also key to establish a general response time for emails, ideally in 24 hours or less, excluding weekends or holidays. If you can’t take the time for a thorough reply in that time frame, just let the person on the other end of your email know that you received their message and give them an idea of when they can expect either a phone call or an email reply. It closes the loop and prevents that ‘did they get my message’ uncertainty.

Useful Tip: There is a difference between checking in to know what is going on versus being in the mode of reacting and responding to every inbound request throughout the day. When you schedule time to reply, you’ll be much more effective when you do. You’ll find that this focused effort makes you much quicker at getting the important messages handled.

#2. Don’t reinvent the wheel: Use frequently asked questions and similar info web pages to reduce your email time.

Have you noticed that many parents just don’t read notices? I’m convinced that even if we stapled memos and announcements to the dance bags of some of our students that the parents would still call on the day of the recital wondering if they needed to buy tickets.

The good news, you can leverage your important information and announcements that you give out in class and send by email by creating a Frequently Asked Questions page on your website. FAQ pages are handy for general information or even a Recital FAQ.

Wondering what to include? Go back into your sent mail and notice some of the repetitive replies you send.

Do the questions include:

“My child has ever danced before what class should they take?”
“Do you send bills for tuition?”
“When is the recital again?”
“When do I need to buy tickets”
“Is the studio open during xyz week/holiday” the list goes on and on.

By having these kind of questions answered on your website you can confidently hand out memos while also letting parents and students know that the most important information they will need to know is always posted on your website.

Useful Tip: When we began online registration we noticed we were getting a lot of emails from parents who were unsure of what class would be best for their dancer in regard to style and level. For years these questions were answered by phone or in person. To increase our customer service and assistance we took these emails and created a “how to choose the proper class” page on our website. Not only has this page helped people make the right choice, but it has increased registrations into our beginner programs and we reduce redundant emails.

#3. Make it easy for people: Write subject lines and messages that are specific.

If you need someone to remember an important date or deadline, lead with that info! For a busy mom like myself with two school-aged kids in dance, karate, gymnastics, piano, and more just managing their schedules feels like a full time job. Many of your parents and students are likely the same and the recital details are just one of hundreds pinned to their calendar.

When it comes to crafting emails, be specific with your subject lines. Nothing is more frustrating than an email subject such as: Subject: Important info for you. Ok, important info for what?!?! More specific is much better: Subject: Important details for 1:00 PM Matinee on Sat. June 24th.

Write the details of your emails with the perspective of someone who has never experienced this event before. What could you explain more clearly? Where could you cut out any unnecessary info? You’ll be well on your way to emails that get read and understood.

Useful tip: When we write our studio emails we run them through a who, what, when, where, why, and how test. If our email answers all of those questions then we send it! If anything is missing we go back and clarify before emailing hundreds of our families. It makes life so much easier and while it can seem like you are stating the obvious at times, these steps help to reduce possible confusion in an email message.

#4. Take time before you hit send. Never respond to an email when you’re angry or frustrated.

We’ve gotten our fair share of email from upset parents even when it feels as if we have gone above and beyond to make things easy and enjoyable for them. Trust me, it’s tempting to reply with a not so nice response to a hurtful message. But it’s better to just walk away from the computer and take some time to process what has happened.

The trouble with email is that the emotion or tone cannot be fully interpreted. In that moment it can be difficult to know whether you’re dealing with an unreasonable parent or a student with a legitimate concern or complaint.

Save yourself the regret and upset by not responding right away, but instead give yourself at least 24 hours to process your own range of emotions.

Useful tip: When it comes to replying to a less than pleasant email, ask someone on your staff or a close family member to read it out loud to you to see if what you wrote comes across the way you intended. Circumstances vary and the sting of complaints can hurt. Only put in writing information and communications that maintain the same level of professionalism you are committed to upholding.

Email can be one of your best tools in running and growing your studio. But just like you schedule your classes, meetings, and daily appointments, it helps to take back control over your inbox.

I encourage you to take on one or more of the above strategies so you can get more focused work done on email to be more efficient during times of intense demands and also when it’s slow. You just might find you’ll have more time to spend with family, friends, and dancing!

What have you found to be most effective when it comes to managing your email?

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Is The Snap, Crackle, or Pop of Your Hips Cause For Alarm?

Lauren Warnecke — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 13:30:21 +0000

Snapping Hip (also called Clicking Hip) is a relatively common problem among dancers.

Generally, snapping hip is characterized by a pop or cracking sound (not dissimilar to “cracking” the knuckles of the hand) as you move from hip flexion to extension - in other words, when going from a position with the knee bent and pulled up towards the torso to the knee extended down toward the other leg.

I first noticed that I had snapping hip when I was about 16 and tried my first Pilates class. Every time one or both legs were extended out a few inches from the floor (while lying on my back), I’d hear a pop in my hip joint. Snapping hip is often a result of a tight tendon rolling over protrusions of the femur or pelvis.

While it can be annoying and a little disconcerting to hear that popping sound, there is not necessarily any cause for alarm.

In an article by Joseph P Garry, MD, he points out that nearly half of the female ballet dancers seeking treatment for hip complaints were experiencing snapping hip, but only one third of those were experiencing pain. A 2008 article in Current Sports Medicine Reports found that (...)

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© Lauren Warnecke for Dance Advantage, 2012. | Permalink | Category: Blog, Dancing, Featured, Health and Wellness, Understanding the Body | Who's talking about this article?

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Confessions of an Anonymous Dance Teacher: Adult Ballet’s Dark Side

Guest Contributors — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 14:30:38 +0000

Today’s article is by a guest author and dance teacher who, for what will probably be obvious reasons, would rather remain nameless. I know who this person is but my lips are sealed.

Besides, real names, faces, and places don’t really matter in this ultimately universal context and are withheld to protect the innocent… and the guilty!

Dealing with Adult Personalities in Ballet Class

Warning: This article is not for the faint-of-heart or for those who believe all ballet instructors are made of spun sugar and sprigs of lavender. If you are a teacher, you will recognize some of these personalities. If you are a student, you may be one. You have been warned.

Let me begin with a caveat. I adore all of my students. I truly do. I teach newbies and pros alike, teens through adults. I am proud of every single one of their achievements and am grateful for their hard work, dedication and generous spirits. I have never had more fun in my life than when I am with my adult students.

That being said, I have to vent.

We all do. We teachers meet just about every type of personality in our classes. The vast majority of them are positive and fun, sincere and gracious,

…but then there are the more unusual ones, the quirky ones, and the downright nasty ones.

1. “Me, me, me. I have a question.”

Photo by Ta Duc

She always has a question. You could have given her a tendu, en croix combination and she has a question. She never pays attention to the questions someone else asks – and then she repeats them as if you never answered. She always has a question after class. Always.

Only answer if you have nothing else better to do.

2. “Don’t look at me.”

She hides behind everyone else. She doesn’t mark a combination when you demonstrate. She won’t apply a correction in front of you. She’s afraid to have anyone look at her. She actively cringes when you approach her during class.

Pet her gently and correct her when no one’s around.

3. “Don’t criticize me in front of Juliet.”

I have few adult men in class. Most are usually good sports who like to flirt and enjoy being surrounded by women. Occasionally, these Romeos turn into bad sports, as I had one man do to me.

For over a year, he’d come to class religiously, worked hard, had a good time, participated in our shows – and then he fell in love with a much younger girl in class. Suddenly I couldn’t correct him. He flipped out and caused a major ruckus. He and the girl stopped attending, much to the relief of the rest of the class and me. This was probably the only time I didn’t try to keep a student.

Sometimes, you gotta say good riddance to the bad apples.

4. “Why didn’t someone call me?”

She comes to class infrequently but on the one occasion when the teacher is sick and the class is canceled, she becomes indignant that the office personnel did not contact her.

She’s a very busy woman, you know.

5. “I want to buy your technique.”

You have talent and she has money and she wants to buy her childhood dream from you. She can’t be bothered to take class with the rest of the adults, who are not nearly serious enough for her. Instead she wants to hire you for private lessons, two hours per day, six days per week, until she becomes a professional. If you somehow manage to arrange your schedule to accommodate her (this is not recommended), she will flake after two lessons – having found another ballet instructor who fits her ideal better.

6. “I should be much better than this/her/you.”

She’s so easily disillusioned. She used to dance when she was a kid, two or three decades ago. Or she has taken a lesson or two and expects to succeed in an intermediate class. She doesn’t see her progress, doesn’t understand that ballet is hard. It requires discipline, consistency, and focus.

But she will get frustrated and never return, no matter how much you explain that if it were easy, everyone would be a ballerina in one lesson.

7. “I can’t do that.”

You asked him to do tombé, pas de bourrée, glissade, saut de chat. Everyone else can do it. You’ve broken it down step by step for him even though this is an advanced beginner class and anyone taking it should know this.

You suggest he try a different class and he says…

7A. “But this class fits my schedule.”

Yeah, you can’t argue with that, can you?

8. “That’s my space. And so is that. And that.”

She stands in front, despite not knowing the combination. She stands at the end of the barre despite not knowing the combination. She jumps into the first group across the floor, despite not knowing the combination. And she gets in everyone’s way because she (all together now) doesn’t know the combination.

Zero spatial awareness, zero class etiquette – and she doesn’t see herself in your corrections.

9. “That’s not how I learned it.”

She took class years ago from a strict Russian-trained teacher who used to hit people with a stick and make them do grand plié from 5th position in the center into en dehors pirouettes. You’re not even giving her the correction at the barre but she has to offer her opinion.

When you suggest there are many ways to perform pirouettes, she replies…

9A. “I challenge you, sir, to a duel.”

Do NOT give in. Do NOT waver. Move on quickly. Trust me, this sort of behavior infects the class like a fast-moving virus. One person challenges your expertise and then soon, anyone else who’s having a bad day or feels the need for some attention, will jump on the bash-you bandwagon.

10. “I had a really bad day and I want all of you to know it.”

She swears under her breath. She falls out of a turn and then stalks away with her fists clenched by her sides. She takes every tendu reeaally seriously.

Okay, we all have bad days. If this person is a regular student and this behavior is occasional, I will try to tease her out of it.

Or, ignore it.

11. “I loved it! I’m coming to all of your classes!”

And then she…never…comes…back.

You gave her corrections at the barre. You praised her petit allegro. You chatted after class about her past experience, how she found you, what her goals are for dance, and you gave her your card with your blog and email. You answered all of her questions about getting the most out of her developpe a la seconde, your preferred epaulement for saut de chat, and what you thought of “Black Swan.” She swears she’ll be back. And then you never see her again.

Don’t kick yourself; it’ll happen again — and again — and again.

Photo by Gisela Giardino

As teachers of adult students, we have to handle the negatives of our job in very different ways than we would if our students were teens or children.

For the most part, divas don’t last long in my class. If they’re too disruptive, they don’t come back because neither I nor my other students reward their bad behavior.

The baseline for all interactions is respect. Not deference, mind you — we are still the rulers of our tiny fiefdoms, but, let’s be honest, if we don’t treat our students (no matter their age or experience) with respect, we will soon lose our tiny fiefdoms.

Do your very best to make sure everyone has a good time, that they enjoy themselves but also grow as dancers.

My husband is amazed at how much fun I have and how upbeat I am when I teach. I smile and joke and laugh all the time when I’m in class. It’s the most rewarding job I have ever had and I consider myself pretty darn good at it.

Still, there are a few students who ruffle my feathers, either deliberately or merely incidentally. And for the ability to vent about them, I am truly grateful to Nichelle. Thank you for allowing me to get this off my chest.

I may be Anonymous but I’m not Alone.

Is that all of them?

No, no, no way. I’m sure many of you have LOTS more personalities that you deal with or that I have somehow blocked out of my mind.

If so, let’s hear about them in the comments. Your email is not shared when you do so feel free to protect your identity with a pseudonym.

© Guest Contributors for Dance Advantage, 2012. | Permalink | Category: Blog, Featured, Teaching | Who's talking about this article?

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5 Tools That Streamline Your Dance Studio’s Office Management

Suzanne Gerety — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 14:26:12 +0000

There’s no doubt about it – the front office at a dance studio is a busy place.

On any given day the desk is covered with messages, notebooks, attendance sheets, clip boards, and the occasional missing tap shoe. Whether the day-to-day swirl of demands are managed by you alone or by a variety of staff and faculty, there will always be a mish-mash of projects in motion and to-do lists that need action.

Below is a list of tools that make managing the office easier and how we use them to priceless advantage at our studio, where an office staff of five helps us serve hundreds of families and manages the details of over 100 weekly classes, taught by a faculty of 20 teachers.

These are tools that have made it possible to manage our office remotely, when our staff are on the run to events and traveling with smart phones or either PC and Mac laptops, improve intercommunication, process tuition, gather feedback, and market our dance studio.

If you use some of these tools already I hope to give you new ideas on how to extend their usefulness.

1. Gathering Feedback with Surveys

Constructive feedback can be your studio’s greatest access to growth. Yet seeking it out is one of the things we resist the most. Hearing how things could get better or where your programs could be improved can be hard, especially since you put your heart and soul into your studio. You can easily, and for free, collect information from a weblink, in email, a post on Facebook, or an embedded form on your website using Survey Monkey. The free version allows you to create 10 questions per survey and gather 100 responses per survey.

Twice a year – in October and March – we ask our current students to provide feedback on how things are going. When a student drops from our studio, we also send a quick exit survey. Here are just a few questions we ask:(...)

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Tips for Teaching Toddlers Accompanied By Adults: Part 1

Maria Hanley Blakemore — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 14:25:04 +0000

The favorite part of my week is teaching creative movement to my littlest students.

I have taught 1 and 2 year olds for five years and have crafted a class that is progressive, creative, and fun for young dancers accompanied by their adults. I have learned many strategies for my toolbox and thought I would share!

Breaking Down the Ages

18 months – 2 years old
2 years – 3 years

I find these age groups are the most productive to combine as their brains and bodies grow.

Attire

I don’t require tights and leotard or shoes at this age. Actually, it’s best if they come to class in bare feet. In their bare feet they can feel the floor.

It’s important for them to just come to class and for me to give them a healthy, happy experience in their comfortable clothes.

Photo by Eric Peacock

Getting Familiar (every week)

I open my door 5-10 minutes before class every week. It’s important for them to get acquainted with the space and you before class begins.

Ever noticed that when kids join class late they don’t perform as well? I have seen it many times and I believe it’s because they didn’t have a chance be in the space before taking direction.

I know sometimes that five minutes is all you have to get a drink of water and prepare for the next class, but you can still take time with your door open.

Keep ‘em Moving!

Once the 1 and 2 year olds hit the room, offer play time. I put out balls, hoops, and shakers for them to play with before class begins.

These props are great for conversation starters too! “Oliver, roll me that ball!” or ” Vivian, can you find the yellow shakers?” Use this opportunity to interact with each student and their grown-up, they will love you for it.

When it’s time to end class I put all of the bags and buckets(...)

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10 Tips To Make It Your Best Ballet Summer Yet

Guest Contributors — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:41:13 +0000

I consider Juliette Clark a Summer Intensive specialist. She’s been through it and knows her stuff, dispensing article after article on her blog, BalletScoop about the entire process. Though it may be cold and wintery where you are right now, it’s a perfect time to be strategizing for your summer ballet intensives, so enjoy her valuable advice!

Photo by Karli Cadel courtesy Jacob's Pillow Dance

Goodbye Nutcracker… Hello, audition season!

Yes, the season of Sugar Plums and Cavaliers are over, just in time for you to start focusing on the summer intensive audition season.

And there are more programs than ever before to choose from. Whether you’re just getting started in thinking about auditions or have been planning since November, I’ve got tips to help you make this your best audition season yet!

1. It’s all for you.

Say the word “audition”, and most performing artists will instantly feel a little pang of stress. And there is no question that you are going to be evaluated and judged during the audition.

Don’t forget this season that the point of all this auditioning is for you to get acclimated to the audition process and, ultimately, enjoy an excellent training program that will improve you as both a technician and an artist.

Next time you find yourself with a number pinned to your leotard while you attempt to nonchalantly measure up your competition or hide behind a classmate, redirect those stressful, negative thoughts and focus on what you can glean about the program from the experience.(...)

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Some Things Are Just Better Together

Nichelle (admin) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 14:23:09 +0000

Peanut Butter & Jelly…

Sonny & Cher…

Snap, Crackle, & Pop…

Glissade & Assemblé!

Well, some of our articles are better together, too. And we’ve made this list of 13 combinations just for you!

Getting Knee Deep

Knees, Please: Why a Dancer Should Walk Like a Man

In the Moment: 10 Improvisation Tips

Teacher’s Top 3: Improvisation and Composition Studies

Helping Students Make Their Own Dances

10 Ideas For Moving Beyond the Steps

Fund Your Summer Intensive

The Successful SI: Home Away From Home

Class Placement and Coping with Problems

Your Blueprint for Better Balancing

Look Mom, No Hands!

Costume Advice From a Professional Smarty-pants(...)

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Join Us For Circle Time!

Nichelle (admin) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 14:40:36 +0000

Circle time is one of my favorite parts of dance class.

As a teacher, it’s a time to connect with each one of my students, looking into the eyes and smiles of each one.

It’s a great time for sharing and getting to know one another, for learning names, introducing concepts, for dancing and discovering together.

In December as I prepared for the Top Dance Blog contest, I found great new blogs I didn’t even know existed. And while our little competition is a fun way to find them, I realized I wanted more time to connect with each one.

So an idea came to me.

I know, look out.(...)

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Congrats to the Top Dance Blogs of 2011!

Nichelle (admin) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 14:33:29 +0000

Once again, a group of fabulous dance bloggers turned up for our contest.

Once again, readers turned up to vote for their favorites and found new blogs to follow.

Once again, I saw bloggers out supporting each other, illustrating that the dance blogosphere is thriving and teeming with people passionate about dance.

Mission Accomplished!

What a way to start a year. Here are your Top Dance Blogs, everyone:

Top 20

Nearly 3000 votes were counted and our top two blogs walked away with about 26% of the votes… each! Woa!

But one blog pulled ahead by nearly 20 votes:

#1 — Ballet to the People

Enforced Arch

Dance Commentary by Heather Desaulniers

Rogue Ballerina

Tendus Under a Palm Tree

Tutus & Tea

Adult Beginner

My Son Can Dance

Odette’s Ordeal

Ballet Pages

The Body Series

Maria’s Movers

Born Again Dancer

Frame Dance

Ballet Shoes & Bobby Pins (by Sheena Jeffers)

Picture Books & Pirouettes

Dave Tries Ballet

–TIED– Contemporary Dancing (by Melissa)

Noa Blogs Ballet

Leotards and the Buns in Them

Category Winners

Speaking Dance

Ballet To The People by Carla Escoda

62% of votes

Adult Dancer

Adult Beginner

58% of votes

Teen Dancer

Contemporary Dancing by Melissa, Lover of Dance

39% of votes. The three blogs were separated by only 2 votes – a close race!

Teacher Talk

Ballet Pages (by Melanie Doskocil)

48% of votes

Dancer Musings

Tendus Under a Palm Tree (by Rebecca King)

68% of votes

Dance Organization/Artist

Frame Dance Blog

40% of votes. Another close race, separated by mere clicks of a button.

Business Blog

Kiner Enterprises Inc. Blog

And, as always, Ashani Mfuko in a class by herself.

I want to say thanks again to ALL who entered regardless of where they are in their blogging ‘career’.

It takes a certain amount of bravery to step up and be counted, so to speak. Please, if you haven’t already, visit the list of 32 blogs who participated (the significance of the number 32 is not lost on the bunheads out there).

Editor’s Choice

This proved very difficult for me because even I discovered new blogs through the contest this year. Plus some blogs are just very new.

In the end, I went with a blog that I feel has consistently shown a clear focus, delivering material that is valuable to its readers in a fun but thoughtful way. I’ve enjoyed watching this blog develop and wish for its longevity.

Though ALL 32 blogs show great promise, I chose…

The Dance Buzz

Congrats to All!

I’ll be contacting winners with badges to put on their sites and with questions for your feature!

Our Top 20 winner, Ballet to the People will be highlighted individually. Meanwhile our category winners and Editor’s choice will be featured together.

We’d love your feedback on the contest in the comments.

I know that with the holidays, the end of the year is a tough time for the contest. I’ve been thinking about moving it up to early December. Knowing that there’s never a perfect time for everyone, feel free to weigh in on this, or other details of the contest.

Have suggestions? Ways to improve? I’ll take ‘em!

Want to congratulate the winners? Compare to last year? Do it!

Thanks so much for helping to make the 2011 Top Dance Blog contest a success!

© Nichelle Strzepek for Dance Advantage, 2012. | Permalink | Category: Beyond the Bubble, Blog, Dance Media, Featured, Fun & Games, News and Events, Online | Who's talking about this article?

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Protecting Your Toesies For Pointe

Lauren Warnecke — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 14:22:17 +0000

I started pointe at age 9 –

(too young by some teachers’ opinions, but that’s another article), and my teacher was thoroughly set on having all of her students wear pointe shoes without padding. Her philosophy was that if shoe fit correctly then there wasn’t any need for padding.

That’s a nice theory but, unless you have a custom-made shoe, it’s unlikely that you’ll find a shoe out there that will mold exactly to your foot. The other problem with this particular teacher’s point of view is that she required all of her students to wear Capezio brand pointe shoes. There’s nothing wrong with Capezio shoes, it’s just that if you’re going to make dancers dance on pointe without padding and request a “perfect fit”, then you had better give her as many options as possible!

Still, I walked out with my shiny new size 3 Capezios and a year later I had ingrown toenails, the beginning of bunions and bunionettes, and nearly constant abrasions and blisters. There just wasn’t a Capezio shoe that fit my foot with enough efficacy to wear it without padding.

I eventually changed studios and, at age 14, I essentially started over. I was asked to go to a professional pointe shoe fitting by a woman named Sylvia.

Sylvia, a purest in her own right, always started with Grishko and very rarely strayed to other brands, only allowing lamb’s wool as padding. This time, however, I got a bit lucky and wound up with the Grishko Elite, which happens to be the best shoe out there for my foot. I haven’t bought another shoe since.

I’ve recently been working on developing an e-course about pointe preparation and came across Nichelle’s great article on pointe readiness during my research. I found all the comments and differing opinions about shoe types, brands, construction, and padding options really interesting.

Even when I found “my perfect shoe”, I still needed padding.

So, the focus of this post is to break down your options and help you get to the bottom of the pointe shoe padding conundrum.

I’ve tried pretty much everything in my shoes, including:(...)

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From Ballet to the Barnyard: Picture Books in 2011

Guest Contributors — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 14:26:53 +0000

Editor’s Note: In 2010, I discovered Kerry Aradhya’s blog, Picture Books & Pirouettes. Two subjects I adore: dance and children’s literature. Happily, Kerry agreed to publish a review of the dance picture book trends of 2010. Since then, I’ve watched her blog develop and couldn’t be more tickled to present her summary of 2011!

It never ceases to amaze me how many picture books about dance are floating —or maybe I should say twirling—around out there.

When I started my blog, which focuses in large part on these books, people would often ask me if there were really enough dance books available to keep my blog going. And my answer was always yes. There really are!

I love discovering picture books about dance that were published some 10, 20, and even 30 years ago, but handfuls of books are also being published during each new year. When I look through the list of books that were released in the United States in 2011, three unique categories of books stand out to me. Here’s a little more about them…

Series for Little Ballerinas

Angelina Ballerina may still be the most popular picture book character for many young dancers, but several characters emerged this year and in the recent past who could eventually give Angelina a run for her money.

Ella Bella Ballerina and Swan Lake
Author: James Mayhew
Illustrator: James Mayhew
Publisher: Barron’s Educational Series

First published in England, the charming series of Ella Bella Ballerina books introduces young readers to some of the world’s most famous ballets. In Ella Bella Ballerina and Swan Lake, little Ella Bella is transported into the magical world of Swan Lake, where she interacts with the Swan Princess and helps her reunite with the prince. Ella Bella Ballerina also has her own blog, where you can follow all of her adventures!

Miss Lina’s Ballerinas and the Prince
Author: Grace Maccarone
Illustrator: Christine Davenier
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends

In 2010, the book Miss Lina’s Ballerinas introduced the ballet mistress Miss Lina and the nine young ballerinas under her tutelage. In the sequel, Miss Lina’s Ballerinas and the Prince, a male ballet student joins the mix. Rhyming text and gorgeous French-inspired illustrations make both books ones to treasure.

Tallulah’s Tutu
Author: Marilyn Singer
Illustrator: Alexandra Boiger
Publisher: Clarion Books

The only reason Tallulah started taking ballet class was because she wanted to wear a tutu, but over time she realizes there is a lot more to love about ballet. The publisher of Tallulah’s Tutu has also created this great activity kit to go along with the book. And the book’s sequel, Tallulah’s Solo, is scheduled to hit bookshelves in 2012.

Spanish and Latin American Dance(...)

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Nutrition On The Move: A Nerve Calming Salad

Joanie Johnson — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 17:15:07 +0000

Soothe those pre-performance jitters with this cooling and calming salad. // Photo by Janet Hudson

Its opening night and the butterflies are about to explode out of your stomach!

You know you should eat something but can’t handle anything too heavy. Before you grab a packaged, processed food, remind yourself that your body won’t recognize that as real food and it’s going to consume more energy to break it down and figure out where in the world to store it. This salad is light, fresh and the mint will help settle those pre-show jitters.

Break a leg!(...)

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The Procrastinator’s Dance Gift Guide

Nichelle (admin) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 22:59:28 +0000

By now your stockings have probably been hung by the chimney with care…

But you’ve still got dancers on your gift list! And Amazon is telling you that ~~paying expedited $hipping fee$~~ a dose of Elf Magic is your only Ho Ho Hope for the timely arrival of those gifts.

Never fear, the digital age is here! These gifts are a procrastinator’s dream:

Choreography for Teachers

DancesToGo.com provides à la carte choreography for a variety of dance levels and genres. They’ve got a great group of guest choreographers with years of experience as teachers (and I’m not just saying that ’cause I’m one of them)!

One way to gift it: You may not know which choreography would be most useful for the gift-recipient. Since Dances To Go uses PayPal’s services, you could send money to your dancer friend or family member (they will need a PayPal account) for use at the site. While you’re at it, send them an iTunes gift so they can grab the music, too!

Help for Studio Owners

DanceStudioOwner.com gives studio owners what they need to be successful – e-books and articles, monthly teleseminars, templates, checklists, customizable forms, and plenty of support in an often isolating job. This is one of my favorite resources because they offer so much value at affordable monthly and yearly membership plans. Gift a membership and make your favorite studio owner very happy.

A Weekly Action Plan for Success

A new year. A new commitment to going the extra mile in your dance classes. We at Dance Advantage deliver the keys to make this year outstanding with an e-mail course that provides terminology, an inspirational quote, something to Dancescribe in a dance journal, and something to do EVERY WEEK in a 40-Week E-course.

Let us sustain and motivate your favorite dancer the whole year through. Yes, you can “gift” this e-course. It’s called 4 for 40 and you can find it right here.

Digital Reading

Whether your gift-recipient is Team Nook or Team Kindle, you can give specific digital publications as gifts at the Nook Store or Kindle Store (just look for the Buy/Give as a Gift links on the book’s purchase page).

Here are some of my favorites and books I’ve read this year:(...)

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What To Do When It’s Clear A Career Isn’t In Your Future

Guest Contributors — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 14:42:39 +0000

A performance career is not for everyone, no matter how long you’ve planned for it.

But after you’ve come to this conclusion, what happens next? Jessica Shoop Williams has been there… and back again and, in today’s guest post, shares her advice with you.

Most great journeys begin with a goal in mind. For many young dancers that goal is the same, simply “I want to be a ballerina.”

photo by bibols19

As they age and dance, exploring the art form, this dream becomes clearer and more specialized, and goals are created to help them attain this vision. Whether it is “I want to be on Broadway”, “I want to dance in music videos”, or “I want to be part of a ballet company”, as they continue their dance training many dancers decide that a dance career is ahead of them.

In preparation for that dance career there are an unlimited number of paths you can take, but almost all of them involve intensive training and great commitments of time, energy, and emotion. As the training stage comes closer to a “real dance career”, the vision of what it actually takes to make it in the dance world becomes clearer.

For many dancers this makes their career choice that much more real and exciting, but for others the clarity can be jarring.

Along with the amazing and personally fulfilling qualities a dance career may offer, there are certain negatives, too. Even if you grew up loving dance and fantasizing about the idea of a career in the field, things can change when you really start to process what this career would mean to you.

Such was my clarity of vision.

Like many serious dancers, by the time I was 11 years old I was dancing 5 nights a week and dutifully attending hours of rehearsals on the weekends. My dance friends and I all had the same goal and that’s why we trained the way we did at the best studio in our area.

I became an accomplished young dancer, scoring well in competition, surviving mock auditions just fine, and (...)

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GIVEAWAY: Holiday Cards for Dancers

Nichelle (admin) — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 18:10:11 +0000

Commercial greeting cards have been sent during the holidays since the mid-19th century.

In 1843, John Calcott Horsley was commissioned by Sir Henry Cole to illustrate the first Christmas card. English Parliament had passed the Postage Act in 1840, making it possible to send letters for a penny throughout the UK. In a clever business move, Cole printed two batches of the greeting, selling a total of 2,050 cards that year for a shilling each. The card read “A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You” and displayed a happy family enjoying Christmas festivities. Unfortunately critics believed the card, which showed a child enjoying a sip of wine, was “fostering the moral corruption of children.” Nevertheless, the custom of sending cards at the holidays became popular and within 10 years Christmas cards were the rage of England. Of the original Christmas cards printed, only 12 are known to still exist, two of which are in the Hallmark Historical Collection. [source: Emotions Greeting Card's Greeting Card Museum, Wikipedia]

You may already be posting your holiday greetings (or perhaps you’re going paperless).

But, if you’d like to have some super-cute, dance-themed cards to hand out to your teachers or students, or save for next year, we’ve got a great giveaway for you today!

At the request of their members, our friends at DanceStudioOwner.com have created these really sweet holiday cards, inspired by dance during the festive holiday season. Illustrated by Lisa Graves, this one-of-a-kind card collection features three bright, colorful, and sweet designs finished with holiday greetings. The interior is blank with plenty of room to write a personalized note.

Inside each boxed set are 12 notes (4 of each design), plus 12 smooth white envelopes.

Learn more on the Holiday Collection product page at DanceStudioOwner.com.

DanceStudioOwner.com would like to give away one boxed set of the Holiday Collection Note Cards (which retail at $12 each) to FIVE Dance Advantage readers.

How to Enter:

Leave a comment on this post and share your favorite Holiday tradition (dance-related or not).

This giveaway is open to U.S. residents and will close at MIDNIGHT (Eastern) on Saturday, December 10, 2011.

Winners will be drawn randomly from the comments.

Once contacted via the email used to comment, winners have only 48 hours to respond and claim their prize. PLEASE READ our giveaway policy before entering.

© Nichelle Strzepek for Dance Advantage, 2011. | Permalink | Category: Blog, Dancethropology, Featured, Giveaways, Product/Website Reviews | Who's talking about this article?

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Dance Advantage » Featured

Less Email, More Dancing: 4 Ways to Tame Your Inbox

Email. Love it or dread it… it gives you the ability to instantly communicate with your students, parents, and potential customers.

#1. Guard your time: What’s urgent for one parent or student may not necessarily be urgent on your end.

#2. Don’t reinvent the wheel: Use frequently asked questions and similar info web pages to reduce your email time.

#3. Make it easy for people: Write subject lines and messages that are specific.

#4. Take time before you hit send. Never respond to an email when you’re angry or frustrated.

Email can be one of your best tools in running and growing your studio. But just like you schedule your classes, meetings, and daily appointments, it helps to take back control over your inbox.

What have you found to be most effective when it comes to managing your email?

Is The Snap, Crackle, or Pop of Your Hips Cause For Alarm?

While it can be annoying and a little disconcerting to hear that popping sound, there is not necessarily any cause for alarm.

Confessions of an Anonymous Dance Teacher: Adult Ballet’s Dark Side

Dealing with Adult Personalities in Ballet Class

1. “Me, me, me. I have a question.”

2. “Don’t look at me.”

3. “Don’t criticize me in front of Juliet.”

4. “Why didn’t someone call me?”

5. “I want to buy your technique.”

6. “I should be much better than this/her/you.”

7. “I can’t do that.”

7A. “But this class fits my schedule.”

8. “That’s my space. And so is that. And that.”

9. “That’s not how I learned it.”

9A. “I challenge you, sir, to a duel.”

10. “I had a really bad day and I want all of you to know it.”

11. “I loved it! I’m coming to all of your classes!”

I may be Anonymous but I’m not Alone.

Is that all of them?

5 Tools That Streamline Your Dance Studio’s Office Management

There’s no doubt about it – the front office at a dance studio is a busy place.

1. Gathering Feedback with Surveys

Tips for Teaching Toddlers Accompanied By Adults: Part 1

The favorite part of my week is teaching creative movement to my littlest students.

Breaking Down the Ages

Attire

Getting Familiar (every week)

Keep ‘em Moving!

10 Tips To Make It Your Best Ballet Summer Yet

Goodbye Nutcracker… Hello, audition season!

1. It’s all for you.

Some Things Are Just Better Together

Well, some of our articles are better together, too. And we’ve made this list of 13 combinations just for you!

Join Us For Circle Time!

Circle time is one of my favorite parts of dance class.

Congrats to the Top Dance Blogs of 2011!

Mission Accomplished!

Top 20

#1 — Ballet to the People

Category Winners

Speaking Dance

Adult Dancer

Teen Dancer

Teacher Talk

Dancer Musings

Dance Organization/Artist

Business Blog

Editor’s Choice

Congrats to All!

We’d love your feedback on the contest in the comments.

Thanks so much for helping to make the 2011 Top Dance Blog contest a success!

Protecting Your Toesies For Pointe

I started pointe at age 9 –

Even when I found “my perfect shoe”, I still needed padding.

From Ballet to the Barnyard: Picture Books in 2011

It never ceases to amaze me how many picture books about dance are floating —or maybe I should say twirling—around out there.

Series for Little Ballerinas

Nutrition On The Move: A Nerve Calming Salad

Its opening night and the butterflies are about to explode out of your stomach!

The Procrastinator’s Dance Gift Guide

By now your stockings have probably been hung by the chimney with care…

Choreography for Teachers

Help for Studio Owners

A Weekly Action Plan for Success

Digital Reading

What To Do When It’s Clear A Career Isn’t In Your Future

A performance career is not for everyone, no matter how long you’ve planned for it.

Such was my clarity of vision.

GIVEAWAY: Holiday Cards for Dancers

Commercial greeting cards have been sent during the holidays since the mid-19th century.

You may already be posting your holiday greetings (or perhaps you’re going paperless).