What's the difference between what you're describing and a private lesson?
Can you post the email (redacted if you think it necessary)?
Has anyone tried this?
We have had workshops around for years, you know the usual format 11 people 3 women over and I kind of mix match approach, with the pace set by the slowest learner
One to one surely has to be better, it’s started at weekenders but this is the first time I've seen advertised workshops for it (via e-mail) ?
With video analysis etc seems like a good idea?
Anyone done it ?
What's the difference between what you're describing and a private lesson?
Can you post the email (redacted if you think it necessary)?
Yeah - I think I got the same email this morning - and I have thought about going to that couple already.
Anyway, my first experience was this:
Ceroc Mad Jive Lad: Search results for video
(which quotes David F incidentally) - and it took me while to get over it....
It was a e-mail from Howard and Nicola
The ‘flier’ is headed one to one tuition and goes from there
If you look hard at their web site you can see the 1-1 stuff under ‘dance doctors’ but hardly eye catching
I haven’t seen anything like this before (of course that’s not to say it hasn’t been going on for years) ie direct advertising for 1-1 . In the pass 1-1 seem to be a dirty word and recent threads suggest its hard 'to find'
Well aware you can get private tution if you hunt and ask but I’ve never seen anyone advertised directly like this.
I've seen several teachers offer one-to-one under their 'what else can we do'. To be honest, if you arn't looking for private lessons, I don't expect you're prepared to pay for them - hence there's not much point advertising them too much.
OK, I have it.
As it happens, I'm on Howard's newsletter because Ceroc Ealing is my local venue. And he's had a "For private lessons, contact me" line on that newsletter for at least a year now. I grant you the new email is a little more overt, however.I haven’t seen anything like this before (of course that’s not to say it hasn’t been going on for years) ie direct advertising for 1-1 . In the pass 1-1 seem to be a dirty word and recent threads suggest its hard 'to find'
As far as private lessons go, I'd say 95% of the experiences I hear about are positive. Obviously it makes sense to pick a teacher who specialises in whatever you want to learn.
The slightly odd thing is that no-one ever really wants to say what they cost, which perpetuates the feeling that "Private lessons are something you don't talk about".
Just have some sympathy for the ballroom dancers, I see many of them having 2-3 privates a week! Now that's some serious $$$.
My view on private lessons is that I'd prefer not to give them. However, I regularly get asked and I don't like to turn down the work or the opportunity to help one of our regulars to improve.
My gut-feel about private lessons is that they make people really listen. No only are you one-to-one, they've also paid a lot of money and that seems to help them to pay attention. I think that the problem with learning to dance properly in the usual class situation is that the social interaction gets in the way of people hearing what the teacher says. Just about everything I say in private lessons I have already said, and everyting I show them has already been shown in weekly lessons, often many times, to those people who ask for private lessons. Somehow they have not heard what I've said - but they do hear and pay attention in the private lessons.
It's only the odd thing that needs correcting to fix most dancing. However, correcting that bad habit is not the work of one private lesson. If they'd paid attention in the lesson they would not have a bad habit at all. Remember, it's 10 times as easy to develop a good habit as it is to correct a bad one. If they'd paid attention in the group lesson they wouldn't have the habit in the first place.
It is a little harsh to make attention levels the cause for bad habits. Teaching a class is generalisation as you should be aware before and after what the level of ability is of those that you are teaching. Individual corrections can be quickly spotted. Sure MJ comes without the disciplines of some other dances, for which I do not want to put down. Private tuition with an instructor with a good knowledge base can improve an individuals' dance ability in ways that group classes could never address.
Everything has its' place for what we want to learn whether it be a weekly class a workshop or private tuition. What is taught in either one of those should be different. Again that is the skill of the instructor. If the instructor isn't giving that then you may have hired the wrong instructor...
But 'correcting bad habits' isn't the only reason people book private lessons.
Some people want to learn something that wouldn't be appropriate to learn in a group lesson... something that might be above the level of the average class
Some people, might want to work on things that 'may or may not' be covered in group lessons but they don't want to take pot luck, hoping that one day that subject will be covered
Personally, I learn best from simply dancing with more experienced people, leads who will push me and open my eyes to all the possibilities. I've found the best way of getting this, is to pay for an hours one to one, with a top dancer.. (you definitely can't get this in a class situation)
... When its your lesson and your paying for it, you can dictate what you want from it.
I think its a good idea to have a clear idea of what you specifically want to work on before you go. Otherwise you can end up concentrating on something the teacher wants to work on and not what YOU want!
And to answer David Franklins question, private lessons are usually anywhere between £40 and £80 an hour, plus sometimes you have to add the cost of the hire of the hall too!
MODERATOR AT YOUR SERVICE
"If you're going to do something tonight, that you know you'll be sorry for in the morning, plan a lie in." Lorraine
Very true, I have done one private lesson "to work on my spinning" and asked my life partner at the time to come along and "help".
After 10 mins, I asked the teacher to have a look at our freestyle and see if there is anything that could be better...
Well, she picked up the "too much tension and too much step back" in my partner straight away...
Mission accomplised - no loss of face, and a gentler partner from that day on
Sneaky - maybe, but got a result.
Seeing as my life partner thought she was the bee's knees of dancing - I was not going to burst that bubble, just pass it on for someone else to comment, who she would listen to!
On a very basic level, perhaps. For people who are keen to really get the most out of their dancing, in just about any area (be it style, performance, lead&follow...) it's a never-ending journey.
Strongly disagree. In most lessons, no matter how basic, there's an enormous amount of information to take in, on the visual, auditory, and 'feeling' levels, and everyone processes it differently. Some people find it hard to link vocal instruction into their own movements, and work better by imitation. Many people don't have enough physical self-awareness to know how well they're applying instructions (I remember one bal lesson where I was convinced I was taking tiny steps as instructed... only to see myself later on video and realise I was taking huge steps throughout... ) Even paying attention is not a guarantee of getting it 'right'. Not even close.
True... but it's rare someone gets everything right first try. Or even second or third...
There are so many 'bad habits' people can develop in dance that trying to address them all in a group lesson is a bit like playing whack-a-mole. You tackle one, and a dozen more pop up - a teacher could go insane that way.
Really great advice about going prepared with your requests. I have found that some tutors will fall back to what they want to teach you. Sometimes it is a question of proving yourself first before they will allow you to progress to any higher level concepts. After a year or so taking tuition with one particular tutor he now openly gives me information beyond my understanding and stretches my brain.
As a small addition to your price range there are just a few great teachers out there that you can hire for a little less than 40 pounds. Both here and abroad.
£75? Bargain! Does that include "the suit"?
What do you consider would be taught that gives value for £75/80.
I am glad you already know that your student is happy with what has passed. It is interesting to see what other dance disciplines charge for their time. Some dances may be easier or more difficult than others but what is generally charged in that community maybe lower than a dance that is deemed easier. Has anyone ever had an experience where they did not have a good experience in a 121 but paid anyway because they felt uncomfortable speaking out...
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