The February/March time of year can frequently become a struggle – finding motivation, building new class content, and taking time for self care. Today we hear from three teaching artists about the topic.

Brooklyn based artist Rebecca Lazier shares:

I find the best remedy for teacher burnout is to take someone else’s class. Any class. A history class, a music rehearsal, even someone lecturing on physics! Being in the presence of other people teaching is deeply inspiring. It can be a fantastic class or a terrible class; it doesn’t matter. Observing and receiving helps me recalibrate and generate new ideas to try with my students.

Berkeley, California based artist Jill Randall adds on:

This time of year is always a harder phase – finding motivation and energy, and staying healthy. Some ideas include:

• Our days get so full, so quickly. Pause for a moment and remember the things that personally feed you. This could be going to a show, workshop, or committing to improvising for 5 minutes a day before you begin teaching. Or scheduling a massage or chiropractic appointment once a month. See what you can enjoy this week. 
• As for teaching material, what material can you revisit or repeat? Pull out your old notebooks from earlier in the year or from last year…..
• One of the best forms of professional development – which is free – is simply going and watching a colleague. Time after time, I learn so much and quickly get re-inspired once I step out of my bubble and out of my routine.
• Work towards one non-dance day a week. This can be hard to do when juggling teaching, rehearsing, and prep time, but having one day when you are not thinking about dance is really important. Especially with prep time for teaching, the work easily can become a 7-day-a-week thing….
• Look at your calendar now for the rest of 2016. Can you carve out time off now before the weeks slip by? 

Oakland, California based artist Dana Lawton responded to the following questions:

What do you do when you are feeling burned out, lacking ideas, and physically strained from your teaching load?

I take class, especially from someone whose style is very different from mine. This sparks a new idea, a new way of thinking about movement and also puts me in the place of the student, which can be very informative. It helps me reflect on my own teaching and offers a different perspective.

How do you balance the hustle – working at multiple sites?

I don't really work at multiple sites, but I teach both movement and lecture classes. It's hard to switch (especially clothing!) with little time in between. The best way I balance this is to be VERY prepared for both. They each use different parts of my brain, therefore, winging a lecture and a movement class can be bad for all involved. I plan my lectures and my technique classes, write them down and practice the day before.

How do you manage teaching multiple lessons/classes each week (different age groups, settings, levels)?

This is a fun problem for me. I like to use different music; this seems easier for me than trying to track different exercises to the same piece of music. Most of the rooms I use are the same size, but creating a sequence that might always face the mirror for a beginning group, I can change facings with more advanced dancers.

What keeps you going, year after year?

Watching students grow, laugh, learn. It never gets old, NEVER!

What keeps you inspired and motivated?

My students. If they show up, then I better show up. It makes me a better person.

How do you “mix things up” and keep things fresh for yourself and your students? 

I am known for my very eclectic music. I just shuffle through my iPod (over 7,000 songs) and just pick at random. This way I am challenged to use music that is in mixed meter, might be slower or faster than I would normally choreograph to. I might use music from Albania, country western, techno and classical all in one class. Good for the brain and the soul.

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Related posts:

Artist Profile #58: Rebecca Lazier (Brooklyn, NY)

Artist Profile #7: Jill Randall (Berkeley, CA)

Artist Profile #40: Dana Lawton (Oakland, CA)

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