WichitAwesome – AiR, Teacher Thoughts

Currently, I’m enjoying my last day in Wichita before I return to Denver. After 4 workshop hours, 1 group class, 1 team training, 10 private lesson hours, 2 dances, and multiple times chasing a 3 year old, I’m nearly finished. This was Wichita’s first Artist in Residence and it was very successful from my perspective. I had great hosts, full classes, many private lesson hours, invested students, a good teaching partner, and I met the Engineer’s Guide to Cats’ guy. A winning week!

This Wichita weekend marked my third straight 2013 weekend with a good teaching partner. It started with Nadja Gross and Elissa Gutterman in Zurich (recap here). Then I taught with Carla Saz in Valencia, Spain (she of the quick translation, student reading ability, and rotation reminders). Finally, here in Wichita, I had Chelsea Rothschild who, along with Evan Borst, brought me out for this AiR.

I often teach by myself or as the principle instructor. This means I often arrive early into a dance scene to prepare classes with the local instructor and/or organizer. Classes and the material will be planned, but prep work must still take place. I want my teaching partner to be confident with the material.

Fortunately, I’ve worked with really engaged teachers recently. They’re invested into making the weekend a success and you can tell. It helps that they are strong and capable without me. It’s like a good social dance. We have our roles and for those 3-4 minutes we choose to coexist. This was most noticeable when I asked Chelsea several times to demonstrate specific bad and good examples. She was able to immediately understand what I was asking and provided the appropriate examples each time. That is a handy skill, the ability to decipher your partner’s verbal request through active listening.

Thanks for the good times, Wichita. Good luck with your next AiR!