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CLASSES
Beginner
Children
Young Beginner 1 x week (30 min.)
One class a week
2 hrs a week (two
classes)
Novice /
Prizewinner
1 hour a week (one class)
2 hr a week (one class)
4 hrs a week (two classes)
Unlimited classes
Champion
Unlimited classes
Beginner Adult
1 hr a week (one
class)
Intermediate /
Advanced Adult
1 hr a week (one
class)
1.5 hr a week (one
class)
Ceili class
(non-competitive)
Ceili class
(competitive)
Private
Classes (1 Hour) with TCRG
1 person
2 people
3
people
4
people
Private Classes (1
hour) with Director
1 person
2 people
3
people
4
people
 Additional
classes:
you may attend additional classes (does not apply to champions) for a drop-in
fee. Advance notice and payment is
required for drop-in classes.
Family Classes:
Any
family that has four or more dancers may choose to have a family class and pay a
monthly family fee. Prices will range depending upon the level of the dancers
and the number of dancers participating. Please contact the studio if you would like to have
family classes
PLEASE NOTE:
Only the first
month of tuition for new members will be pro-rated. All other tuition is billed
on a full month basis. Tuition is due on the 1st of each month. Late
charges will be applied after the 10th of each month. A
non-refundable annual registration fee of $25 is due every August. There will be
a $25 fee for returned checks. If you fail to attend class for an entire
calendar month you will be required to re-register ($25 fee) with the school.
Make-up
Classes:
Please contact instructors if you need to make up a
class. They will advise you of the class that you may attend.
CLASS DESCRIPTIONS - Children
Beginner Classes are for children with
little or no previous experience in Irish Dance. This class will provide the
basic steps for a number of dances (Reel, Slip Jig, Light Jig, Single Jig, Heavy
Jig, Hornpipe and Traditional Set Dances) which ultimately may be danced
competitively as a beginner. Children will develop self-discipline, confidence
and poise while exercising and learning the beautiful art form of Irish dance.
Parents of toddlers are welcome to participate in the class and help facilitate
the learning process. This class will help build a foundation for muscle
development, coordination, rhythm, and basic music and dance skills.
Children any
age from 3 to 18 welcome.
Novice /
Prizewinner classes are
designed for children who have mastered Beginner I skills, and are dancing in
the Beginner II to Novice/Prize Winner level at competitions. At this level,
competition is highly encouraged. This class expands upon the scope of artistic
expression as steps become more complex. Irish dance technique and poise are
stressed. In this class, dancers are required to master more intricate steps,
as well increase the intensity of their workouts.
Preliminary
Championship classes are
for children who have mastered the art form to the level of Prize Winner or
Preliminary Championship at competition. The focus of this class is to provide
the children with the material and ability to attain the next step, i.e. Open
Championship. This will allow them to compete with their peers at a highly
respectable level, both locally and regionally.
Open
Championship classes are
for those children who have placed highly in Preliminary Championship at local
competitions. The aim of this class is to take highly placed competitors and
finesse, expand and fine-tune their performance skills to the level where they
can compete nationally and Internationally.
Beginner
classes are for adults
with little or no previous experience in Irish Dance.
This class will provide
the basic steps for a number of dances (Reel, Slip Jig, Light Jig, Single Jig,
Heavy Jig, Hornpipe and Traditional Set Dances), which ultimately may be danced
in competition as a beginner. Students will develop self-esteem and discipline,
while exercising and learning the beautiful art form of Irish dance.
Intermediate
/ Advanced This class
provides a higher level of material and instruction to enable adults to progress
to the Novice and Prize Winner categories at competition.
Ceili
Classes (team-dancing)
are offered for competitive and non-competitive students and involve students
dancing in groups of 2,3,4,6,8, and 16 dancers.
GENERAL
STRUCTURE OF CLASSES Classes usually
begin with warm-up exercises or drills to hone basic skills. From there, they
will progress to steps catered for and suitable to the level of instruction
being given. Students are highly encouraged to develop a stretching routine and
to stretch continuously throughout class time.
RECOMMENDED
FREQUENCY OF CLASSES It is
recommended that a beginner take between one and two hours a week and as they
progress from soft shoe into hard shoe. Once they start competing, it is
recommended that they increase the frequency either to a two hour class once a
week or to 2 X two hour classes. As a Novice/Prizewinner, students should taken
at least one two hour class if not two. Only taking one class will limit the
amount of instruction that can be given and will have an effect on the students
ability to perform to a high standard at competition. Championship students have
the opportunity to attend 5 two-hour classes per week, the minimum being two X 2
hour classes.
WHEN TO MOVE
TO A DIFFERENT CLASS Generally, the
instructors or Director will tell you when it is time for you to move to another
class. Once a beginner has mastered the four soft shoe dances and has begun to
learn the hard shoe dances – it is probably time for them to move to the next
level by either taking an additional beginner class a week or moving to the
novice / prizewinner class. Novice / Prizewinner dancers who are flourishing
will be invited by the Director to attend either a championship class or a
championship prep class. This should be considered a great honor as championship
classes represent the pinnacle of learning in this school.
 DRESS CODE
It is important
that your knees are visible for class. Students must dress in shorts, T-Shirt,
socks and dance shoes (once they have been purchased) – you may dance in bare
feet until you obtain a pair of shoes. In colder weather, shorts can be worn
underneath sweats and removed once the dancer is warmed up. Hair should be
pulled back out of the face.
CLASS CONDUCT
Let your
teacher do the teaching – this means avoid finding fault with each other, which
can be distracting. It’s not how many steps you know – it’s how you execute
them. Learning too many steps too soon results in bad habits and frustration at
not executing them properly – be patient. Please have respect for the other
dancers in the group. Remember – we can learn just as much by seeing as by
doing. Chewing gum is not permitted in class at any time. Please do not touch
the mirrors.
An important
part of learning is being able to teach what you know. From time to time, the
instructors may ask the student to teach something to other students. This is an
important aspect of a students dance education and should be viewed accordingly.
Questions:
In order to respect valuable class time it is asked that you do not interrupt
class with questions about your student. Please contact Martin Percival TCRG,
Director via e-mail at the following address –
martinpercival@msn.com
GETTING THE MOST OUT OF CLASSES
Dance students
naturally want to get the most they can from their lessons, but often lack a
clear understanding of how to do so. In fact, any student’s progress depends
mostly upon how they approach their lessons. Fast, complete and efficient
progress will result only from a logical and structured approach to learning.
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Correct
Frame of Mind – The
student-teacher relationship is one of both physical and mental
participation. Knowledge can only be gained through focused attention and a
willingness to learn. Students should take care to apply themselves to the
task at hand, and to do their best to perform the new elements according to
their instructor’s direction.
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Concentration and Focus
– Sometimes students, in a
desire to “do everything right”, will focus on one facet of dancing while
their instructor is attempting to work on another. The experienced
instructor will not expect their students to correctly perform all of their
old skills while learning something new. The student should direct their
attention only to the topic chosen by the instructor, and the instructor
will later amalgamate the new knowledge with the old.
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Allow
the Instructor to Teach
– The student is wasting their Instructor’s skills if they do not allow the
instructor to exercise their own judgment and abilities. Many students and
parents, who would not dream of telling their Doctor what medicine to
prescribe or their mechanic how to repair their car, will not hesitate to
tell the instructor which part of child’s dancing needs the most attention,
and how they should be taught. Instead, the instructor should be given reign
to teach as they see fit, so long as they are working to the best of their
abilities to meet the student’s goals.
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Practice – Practice
is probably the most under-rated aspect of a student’s learning. Those
students who apply themselves to their practice invariably show more
consistent progress than those who do not. The human mind can consciously
demand only so much of the body at one time. The body must be able to
function independently of concentration – in other words, good dancing
skills must be habitual. Habits can only be formed through repetition.
Correct performance needs to be practiced AT LEAST 50% of the time, since
the body will “remember” those actions, which it has performed most often.
5. Regularity
– Regularity also has a bearing on progress, since too much time between
lessons breaks the continuity of the learning progress and allows the student to
forget too much of any lessons instruction. This forces the instructor to
unnecessarily repeat topics and slow the rest of the class down.
6. Variety – Instructors
– Just as a single sculpture may be described in different ways by observers
with different points of view, so may dancing. Elements of dancing may be
approached in many different ways, and this can develop a more complete and
thorough understanding. However, one instructor should be chosen to be the a
main guide to a student’s progress, serving as a “manager” for that student’s
overall learning.
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