It's not just about dance.

Some dancers seem born to teach. Others transition to the role after a career on the stage. Many begin by teaching alongside their own favorite teachers. In an art form that is handed down from teacher to student, one generation to the next, it is natural and necessary for dancers to pass on what they've mastered in their own bodies. But most will agree that being a gifted performer doesn't mean a dancer can teach.

"Teaching dance is not just about dance," says Elsa Posey, founder of the National Registry of Dance Educators. We asked Posey and nine other educators what a teacher needs besides a solid understanding of dance technique, and we got 10 (at least) thoughtful answers: empathy; humor; compassion; communication skills; the ability to inspire trust; the ability to break down movement; and knowledge of early childhood development, higher learning techniques, classroom management, and historical and cultural contexts.

Even the most experienced educators feel they have more to learn. "I don't know a dance teacher who isn't a lifetime learner," says Posey, who opened the Posey School in 1953. But exactly what there is to learn varies. "First it depends on what you're teaching," says Posey. "It has to be appropriate to the student. The adult approaches dance very differently than the child."

Your work setting may determine whether you opt for a BA in dance with an emphasis in pedagogy, a workshop in creative dance, or coaching from a trusted mentor. To get faculty tenure at a university, you need a master's degree; however, credentials to teach dance in the public schools (K-12) vary from state to state. Though it's not required, private studio teachers can attain certification from organizations like Dance Masters of America, Dance Educators of America, and the National Registry of Dance Educators.

In the next pages, you'll meet passionate and committed educators who teach in a variety of venues. You'll also learn about a unique student teaching project with David Dorfman at Arizona State University. And if you're looking for a rewarding way to spend your summer break, check out our Summer Sampler of teacher-training workshops, page 20.

TEACHER: Jeffrey Dobbs

SCHOOL: The Queens Valley School for the Visual, Literary and Performing Arts

CITY: New York, New York

TEACHES: Elementary school dance

I take my work seriously, my craft. But I don't take myself seriously. I maintain a line between teacher and student, but not with condescension. There is a respect and a discipline for the craft, and for yourself. I try to introduce humor even at the ballet barre as we're pulled up and doing plies. I try to make it fun.

Teaching dance in public schools is different than teaching in a studio. Sometimes you have students in your classroom through no design of your own. Maybe they couldn't get bowling and wound up in dance class. I try to find their interests. If it's sports, I'll choreograph a number with basketball or football. I connect with them through their music. If the words are inappropriate, I'll get the instrumental version. I give them something they can latch onto.

TEACHER: Elsa Posey Founder, National Registry of Dance Educators

SCHOOL: Posey School

CITY: Northport, New York 

TEACHES: Ages 3-adult

I received a scholarship from the School of American Ballet and commuted from my home. Friends of my mother wanted me to teach their children. I realized I couldn't teach them the classical ballet that I was being taught because they were young children. I started teaching them running, skipping, and hopping, playing with scarves. I was very fortunate because the 92nd Street Y had a conference that summer, and I learned that what I was doing was called "creative dance."

The majority of people we (the National Registry of Dance Educators) evaluate are extremely well trained in dance, but they don't have business skills. I recommend they go to a community college or continuing education course to learn how to run a business. They also need an awareness of how to teach young children, which is the most difficult thing. Many can teach intermediate level of ballet, jazz, or modern. But working with beginners of any age requires more than simply breaking things down. You have to get to the root in a different way. The best way is to work with an experienced teacher--a mentor. It's one thing to learn the philosophy from books and another to see it being done with bodies and personalities.

TEACHER: Catherine Yoshimura

SCHOOL: BalletMet Dance Academy

CITY: Columbus, Ohio

TEACHES: Ballet, Yoko Ichino method

When you're dealing with a young child, think about the development of the body as well as the wonderful desire to dance. They go hand in hand. Are we teaching arabesque too soon? There's so much more that you have to develop in a dancer before you put them in these positions.

I continued to dance while I was teaching even though the schedule was rigorous. I was able to still understand what the dancer's mind was. We lose that as we teach. When you're dancing your mind is going 300 miles an hour: Am I on the music? Am I aligned? Am I going the right direction? Dancers are multitasking--not just doing steps, but expressing a character, showing a choreographic pattern to make the ensemble work clear.

TEACHER: Tori Rogoski, RDE 

SCHOOL: Dance Education Center

CITY: Stevens Point, Wisconsin 

TEACHES: Ages 3--adult

My teacher, Heidi Oliveras, was scientific in her approach to technique. She had also been a biology major, and she could explain things anatomically. I carry that forward with my students. The bones and muscles charts are up on the walls. We use the correct terms. Even with the 3-year-olds, we use the correct names for body parts: cranium, rib cage. When I decided to concentrate on teaching, I transferred to the University of Wisconsin-Madison for the degree in dance education. I also got a BFA in dance because I thought it was so important for me to be a proficient technician.

I think about what kind of imagery I can use to help an 8- or 9-year-old learn a tendu. When we do changements, I bring a ball in to demonstrate a bounce. It doesn't sit into the floor, it bounces back up.

TEACHER: Sandra Minton, Ph.D.

SCHOOL: University of Northern Colorado (retired)

CITY: Denver, Colorado

TEACHES: Creative movement and choreography

It takes a different kind of personality to teach versus perform. The teacher wants to contribute. You have to want to promote the development of other people. You want to see them progress.

I strongly believe in creative work, but you have to have the trust of a student. In my workshops with adults who aren't necessarily comfortable with movement, I try to compliment them a lot, make the atmosphere more relaxed, give individual help, structure the work from simple to more complex. Don't do anything at the beginning where they have to express their feelings. I learned that from Alma Hawkins in college.

TEACHER: Traci Hinton Peterson

SCHOOL: Albert Shanker School for the Visual and Performing Arts

CITY: Long Island City, NY

TEACHES: Middle school dance students

I became a better dancer when I learned how to teach. Learning pedagogy gave me insight to break down and analyze movement.

The Syracuse studio where I studied as a child hired me to teach right out of school [New York University, Tisch School of the Arts]. My first class was horrendous--my studio teacher was flabbergasted. It was the difference between the training of a dancer and the education of a dancer. I hadn't studied teaching. Then I went to the teacher-training at Canada's National Ballet School. Between that and the practical experience when my studio teacher sat there with me, my second year was fabulous.

TEACHER: Frank Vega

SCHOOL: Episcopal High School 

CITY: Houston, Texas

TEACHES: Jazz dance

I started dancing late in life. I was in college and was told, "You are too old to dance," and "You have no turnout; you don't have any stretch." But I worked hard and was able to overcome the challenges. Adults love what I can do with them because I understand. I tell them, "Don't ever let anyone tell you that you can't do something." That's my modus operandi. I know what it's like--I've been there.

I had to learn to be patient teaching people. I get people who in three months want to learn splits, axels, fouettes. Kids want instant gratification. The MTV generation does not understand that it takes a lot of work.

TEACHER: Marilyn Berrett Director, Kinnect, an outreach performance group of student teachers

SCHOOL: Brigham Young University 

CITY: Provo, Utah

TEACHES: Dance majors, teachers, and children

Teachers need to understand how to establish a safe environment quickly. You need to have rules for how you behave with each other that allow for everyone to be safe emotionally and physically. "Management" sounds oppressive, but in reality it's nurturing. Management is helping children rise to a high level of behavior together so they can learn.

I don't just want to teach a series of steps; I want the students to create their own movement. Then they're really going. When everyone is spinning and turning and zooming around changing directions, that requires a whole different kind of management.

TEACHER: Tom Ralabate DMA National Education Chairperson

SCHOOL: University at Buffalo

CITY: Buffalo, New York

TEACHES: Jazz dance

It's not about just doing the step, it's knowing the history. How was the original Lindy done in the '20s and '30s? How did this wonderful movement come out? The partners broke away and started doing improvisations. That makes an education impact--not just doing the steps that came from the Lindy.

This generation of dancers coming into DMA is college educated and can have trouble in the studio setting. They have to understand the studio mentality, which is more focused on product. It's about getting the routine done at the end of the year. In some studio settings the student just wants to do the double pirouette--they don't care about the theory. If they don't get what they want, they'll go elsewhere. Good college programs combine theory and practice. Good studios do too. You just have to know when to edit. Studio teachers have to get students to fall in love with the process. You have to find the balance between practice and theory. That's the beauty of the art form.

TEACHER: Patricia Reedy Founder

SCHOOL: Luna Kids Dance

CITY: Berkeley, California

TEACHES: Teachers

I've always thought about how the field of dance can grow. I was a social activist, a feminist, and I was seeing that year after year the field of dance seemed to stay the same. While in high school, I was learning about Yvonne Rainer and Trisha Brown. As I got older, I was reading about the same people. The leadership of women as choreographers seemed to diminish--the new choreographers represented in the media were men. I said, "What happened? Oh, I see, my gift is not to teach kids how to dance, but to teach kids how to choreograph." From that came my program, Luna Kids Dance.

While most dance teachers teach kids to express themselves, they don't always teach them how to create, to make something of their own, to take power. As dancers, we develop unique abilities. We see from various perspectives--in motion. As a result, we know how to maneuver in an uncertain world. We need to focus teaching on strengthening this skill and empowering dancers to take the lead.