Three Tips To Cultivate A Positive Learning Environment.
As instructors, we have a beautiful gift and responsibility to cultivate a positive learning environment that aids in student achievement -- both in and out of the classroom. Here are three tips to integrate into your classroom to better cultivate a positive learning environment for your students! Be the one who makes a difference in your students technique, skills, confidence, compassion for others, and joy and accountability for their successes. Help others see and feel their own unique potential!
1) Journal and set achievable, specific, and measurable goals.
No two students are alike. Therefore, we as teachers must approach our teaching strategy with both an open mind and heart. As instructors, our goal for our students may not be their goal for themselves. By understanding our student's true intentions, we are better able to understand how to approach our lessons with individualized care.
The first question I ask my students on their first day of class is, “Why are you taking this class?”. We spend time writing and reflecting on this question. Although this question may seem simple, our reasons for movement are very complex. Therefore, I have never gotten the same answer twice. Students tend to express their love for dance and movement as “an escape” or “feeling of joy.” However, their individual goals and dreams are true to their personal hearts and minds.
Goal setting with your students will help keep them motivated toward creating new behaviors that will propel them toward the changes they desire to make not only in their craft, but in their everyday life. Although goal setting can seem overwhelming to some students, it is important to ensure that goals are achievable, specific and measurable.
Here are some questions I like my students to answer and reflect on periodically throughout our time working together.
Why are you taking this class?
Why do you enjoy movement?
What are three things you feel you do well in a classroom or performance setting?
What are three things you feel you can improve on in a classroom and performance setting?
What is your short-term dance goal?
What is your long-term dance goal?
How can you apply your dance goal to your personal life to see growth outside of the classroom?
Journaling is an excellent way for students to get in touch with their goals by keeping a written record of plans and progress to which they can refer to along the way. This will promote student accountability toward their achievement and growth. My students are motivated and driven to make their goals and dreams a reality. Journaling and goal setting is a great habit and foundation for the rest of their life — achieving personal growth in all areas of life.
2) Check in with your students before every lesson - both body and soul.
Human connection is the foundation of our own personal well-being. By understanding students' individual needs, we as teachers are better equipped to form lasting, unique connections with each individual student. Because we live in such a fast-paced world, it can be easy to overlook how our body and soul are really responding to our environment. Connecting with our bodies before class promotes body awareness and understanding of our mental health. Additionally, this is a time for me to check in with any aches and pains a student may be experiencing. Therefore, I can better craft my classroom plan to help ease bodily pain, tension, and prevent injury. Taking just a few minutes to assess our souls allows students to let go of any outside stress or tension that may be following them into the classroom.
Personally, I decided that I wanted to begin teaching because I want to leave a lasting, positive impact on the world around me. Showing compassion, kindness, and care for my students are three easy ways to help build those connections with your students. This will cultivate a positive learning environment that fosters student engagement and comradery among peers. When students engage and cheer for one another in the classroom, there is an increase of understanding and excitement for one another's success and accomplishments. We are all on the same team, sharing the same love for movement.
As instructors, we have this amazing gift of sharing our passions and life lessons with those around us. So much of what our students learn is simply by our actions. We must lead by example, showing compassion, kindness, and care toward every student that enters our classroom. It is my hope and desire that my students will take not only the technique and skills that they have learned in class, but also the life skills they have attained along the way into the real world.
3) Celebrate every achievement, big and small.
It can be difficult to see our own successes and achievements. Unfortunately, we can each be our own worst critics. It is our job as instructors to give students corrections and guidance, it is also our job to be their biggest cheerleader. Growth is not linear, there will be bumps along the way. Therefore, it is important that students recognize and understand every small achievement that leads to the big victory. Taking pride in our work has a beautiful ripple effect that positively impacts the classroom dynamic and overall outcome of student success. By recognizing student success, a culture of mutual respect is created. When every individual is valued and recognized for their specific talents and contributions, the classroom will prosper. Additionally, when one feels positive energy from achievements in the classroom, they will carry that positive energy out into the world, positively impacting others.
Although dance and movement arts is a form of artistry and expression, it can also be a place of comparison and competition. It is our job as instructors to cultivate an environment that promotes competition within ourselves, not among other classmates. This will promote a more meaningful journey of self-discovery and expression. I believe that all of my students are working to unlock their own, unique, unreleased potential.
Recognizing and appreciating what may seem like a small victory to some, is crucial to maintaining focus and momentum toward larger, personal goals. When students feel both seen and heard as their own individual human, they are more motivated to take pride in their own personal achievements. Self-motivation leads to increased student success and an overall positive learning environment.
What students are saying about goal setting, individual check ins, and achievement in the classroom….
"How is your body and soul today?" Those are the opening words of every class. This alone makes me feel very loved and cared for. I love how Miss Lilly honestly cares for us, and our safety. She always lets us know that if anything hurts, we can take it easy. The classroom is a lovely and safe environment that Miss Lilly manages so well, even better than some of my teachers from school! I enjoy every class. Lilly compliments on how well we do and how we've grown individually, calling each of us by name. I've never really experienced that in a dance teacher before, but I absolutely love it. It makes me feel cared for and seen. Miss Lilly also does an amazing job at teaching the class. I learn so much during each class! Every time I leave the classroom, I am so much happier than I was when I came in. Even after a really hard day at school, Miss Lilly can make me so happy. For me, this class is more than just a dance class. It's a place of joy and rest.
-Olivia L - Student (Age 13)
Taking dance with Miss Lilly has been such an amazing opportunity for me not only because I have grown and learned so much, but also because I have enjoyed my time and found an outlet to do what I love that makes me excited to come in each week. The first class I walked into with Miss Lilly, she took incredible care to understand each one of us in class - how we felt, who we were, what our goals were, etc. By having us write out a sheet answering questions about what we have and still would like to accomplish in our dance journeys. From that week on, she has started every week asking us how we are physically and spiritually, taking our answers into consideration and taking the time to remember things shared and apply them to her class. She has shown an incredible ability to manage a classroom setting and take charge responsibly, always being prepared and ready to test the limits, and always recognizing and commenting on our personal successes and achievements. She takes the time to teach original thoughtful combos and routines that showcase many different key concepts and elements of dance and can be used in auditions and showcases, and explains the mechanics of technique or movement quality. Overall, my experience in Lilly’s class has been one to remember, and I highly recommend her as a teacher and educator.
-Hayden S. - Student (Age 16)
