I've been dancing forever, but it wasn't until I entered the Brookline Academy of Dance that I understood how much of an impact dancing has on my life. Certainly, by taking numerous classes and performing with several companies, I became a better dancer, but I experienced a much more important change when I became a teaching assistant. As a student in school, many things are shaped around me. But as a teacher, I had to adjust myself to the needs of others. At first this was a challenge because I was starting class with a mindset to merely finish all the stretches and exercises. But since each day the class was in a different and unique mood, it didn't work to teach in the same way. I learned to adjust what I teach according to the current situation by paying close attention to the students' actions and needs. For example, if students found a particular exercise difficult or if they were especially interested in working on a specific move, I spent more time on it. I figured out that it isn't all about checking off boxes, but that it's about making sure the kids enjoy the class and learn from it. I found that this new mindset helped me at school as well. As a junior mentor I ran activities in a freshman homeroom, which rarely go as expected because many freshmen are frequently reluctant to participate. Throughout the year, I got to know my class and shaped the activities to make them interesting for my particular group of kids.
Even though I was teaching others to dance, I ended up learning just as much myself, especially about choreography. The first dance I choreographed was experimental: I began by putting different exercises together in a sequence, then arranging the sequences in new ways, and finally developing my own movements altogether. Making up the dance was difficult, but teaching it was a whole new challenge. I had to find words to express my thoughts and ideas. The problem was that each student had their own way of thinking, so I had to explain the choreography in different ways. For example, I had to noodle around with my wording: either I'd explain in counts of eight or according to the song, either I'd explain in dance vocabulary or everyday words, either I'd refer to steps individually or together as a whole, and so on. Thinking outside of the regular, in return, helped me come up with new moves - thinking differently resulted in different, and new, moves. It is good to receive the deserved awards and honors, but I am most proud of the developments I see in myself. Because of dancing, I feel more confident, independent, and open-minded, but most importantly, I am able to lead, deal with challenges, and learn from them.
