PRIVATE LESSONS What happens?

When you book a private lesson, it is advisable to ensure that you inform your teacher about the style of dance you wish to learn (eg Ballroom/Latin/Disco/Rock’nRoll) and your aims for having the lesson(s).  For example do you want to learn the Waltz in order to get round the floor at a Wedding or do you wish to specialise in Ballroom/Latin for a forthcoming exam or competition.

It is also advisable for adults to inform their teacher whether they intend to dance purely for social purposes (without paying too much attention to fine detail such as correct footwork, alignment, amount of turn etc) or do you wish to dance more competently (correcting faults relating to footwork etc).

For children it is important to realise that your teacher will not be praising you all the time, they are there to try and get the best out of you and to help you improve.  That will also mean practising steps on your own (and not just dancing with your teacher all the time, in fact some weeks you probably won’t even dance with your teacher until they are confident you know the steps).  It also means that you must be prepared to make mistakes and to listen to what your teacher explains and advises, to both answer and ask questions  - if you don’t understand then ask - nobody will laugh at you (in fact it could mean that you know the answer to a question asked in class when nobody else does).

You will also gain more from practising at home in preparation for the next lesson, to try and help you remember important points rather than just waiting until your next lesson.

For children private lessons are not intended to replace a class they are an extension to a class.  Usually you learn the basic steps in a class and ‘fine tune’ or ‘learn them off by heart’ in a private lesson.

Remember that a private lesson is one to one tuition with a teacher, therefore several private lessons could occur simultaneously.

When is the right time to have a private lesson?

There is no right or wrong time to have a private lesson, a lot will depend on how seriously you wish to take your dancing.  As a general rule for examination pupils, once you are approaching your Bronze medal the marking system is much stricter (and therefore the chances of you failing are much higher) and a regular private lesson in addition to your weekly class can make the difference between passing and failing.

If you wish to compete in the Area Medallist Competitions then it is necessary for pupils of whatever age and grade to have a series of private lessons prior to the competition in order to ensure they know the appropriate dances for each specific competition.  In the case of Disco/Rock’n’Roll competitions, this will provide you with the opportunity to have your own solo, pairs and Rock’n’Roll routines.

Alternatively if you are struggling with a particular dance or have missed a few lessons then a couple of private lessons can really restore your confidence.

However if you are prepared to learn, then a private lesson can usually benefit most people in some way.

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