The Casual Dance Teacher's Podcast

Maia
Welcome to the Casual Dance Teacher's Podcast. I'm your host, Maia. No matter who, what, or when you teach, I'm here to share all my best tips and tools, along with real and practical conversations with fellow dance educators to help you be the very best dance teacher you can be. Let's talk about it.

Hi everyone, welcome back to another episode. I have the lovely Amanda Couturier-Cormier on today to talk to us about mindfulness and meditation practices and how she incorporates those into the dance classroom.

Amanda is a dance educator, choreographer, and competition team coordinator, and she's also the host of the Dance Teacher Pep Talk podcast. And while you can find a lot of great resources through that podcast, today Amanda is on my podcast to talk about her new meditation resource for dance teachers specifically, the Dance Teacher Pep Talk Meditation Collection. Amanda has her Bachelor of Science degree in elementary education, has been teaching dance for 18 years, and is also a certified Pilates instructor.

Her choreography has also received many awards at the regional and national levels, and she finds great joy in choreographing for local modern slash contemporary dance company, Company 39. Without further ado, Amanda, thank you so much for being here on the podcast today. I'm so excited to talk to you.

Amanda
Yeah, thank you for having me. I'm so excited for this.

Maia
Yes, I would love to hear about your background in dance and also specifically how, if at all, how mindfulness and meditation was part of your own practice with dance in the past or kind of how you came to that.

Amanda
Yeah, this is something I love to talk about, so I'm excited to share. So I am currently a dance teacher in the New England area. I have been teaching and choreographing for 18 years.

And starting off with college, I started off going for athletic training and exercise science and dance. I was thinking I was going to go the route of physical therapy specifically for dancers. And like so many, you know, I had had an injury that I really was like, oh, I want to do this.

I want to help dancers recover and get back into the studio. But for me, teaching was such a passion of mine, I knew it was a big role that I wanted and I was afraid that doing physical therapy, would I be able to still teach dance? So I began shifting my focus towards education. So I actually got my degree in elementary education.

But that was kind of this journey of my education. But for meditation and mindfulness, it's so interesting because meditation was actually a huge part of my dance training as a middle school student, high school student. And it's really funny to me because my ballet teacher, Miss Didi, was a very strict and hard teacher, super hard.

But every year for one class, she would give us a meditation class and it was it seemed so off book for her because she was not that teacher. And it was the class I looked forward to the most every year. It gave me a sense of release that I had never felt before, even in a movement class.

And you know, we dance a lot of the time to let go and to release things even like emotionally. And meditation really was that for me. And so that exposure got me really curious about meditation.

And so I just kind of did it, you know, as a personal practice. And into adulthood, I really began sort of exploring the side of meditation along with yoga. And that was just something that I did as a movement practice for myself that felt really good outside of dance.

And the mindfulness component kind of came later. And I think part of that is because I feel like it's more of like a current trending type of word. But it was actually my best friend.

She's an early childhood educator and she's a big advocate for responsive classroom. And a lot of my mindfulness inspiration and work that I did actually came from her and the work that she does with that. So that is my intro for that.

Maia
Oh, that's awesome. I love hearing this is going to sound mean, I think, but like I love hearing about how you've we're going to get into like the resources that you've created in a little bit for those that don't know. But just knowing that you have put this research and this background into it from the point of view of helping children in the classroom specifically, because for me, I'm just going to be honest, I'm not trying to be mean, but sometimes I hear like mindfulness and I think like, woo woo, like, you know, it's not really like evidence based, you know.

Amanda
I know.

Maia
I love hearing that. And I also like this is why I want to have you on because I would never talk about this, but you know what you're talking about. This is why you're the guest today to tell us about what actually happens in the classroom and how it can help.

So the first thing I want to talk about, funny to think about like Miss Didi taking a whole entire class for that, because again, with me not really having a great understanding of like what exactly mindfulness and meditation would look like in the dance classroom. I'm thinking, well, you know, we have so many combinations to do and we got to get through bar and stuff. So how am I going to fit this in? And I know you talked about this a little bit on your own podcast, how you're able to fit in these little pockets that are still really effective and helpful.

So can you talk a little bit about how you carve out time with everything else that we still have to do as dance teachers to give the students a little bit of that mindfulness practice?

Amanda
Absolutely. So for me, the two really blended for me to begin, because when I started dance teaching, I was primarily teaching contemporary. Then I went into ballet and jazz as well, adding those into my schedule.

But contemporary was definitely the place that I started my teaching. And when we think about the definition of contemporary, the definition is of the current time. And when you think of mindfulness, mindfulness is the awareness of the current moment.

So for me, the two really connected so deeply because we're working on this movement of the current time. Let's focus in the current moment. And for me, you know, as the years went on in dance, what I noticed the most in my thank you cards at the end of the year or in the parent emails or in the dancers coming up to me at the end of the year, they weren't saying, you know, at graduation, Miss Amanda, thank you so much for teaching me a double pirouette.

I that was the highlight of my life, you know, whatever it is. It was about building their character. It was about how to take tools into their life with them.

And in my classroom setting, if I look at it as a whole, there's probably an incredibly small percentage of dancers who are going to go on to dance professionally or in the career dance. A lot of them are there dancing because they love it in this moment of their life and they're going to take what they learn from it into life, but they might not continue dancing. I really noticed the shift, honestly, sort of early on with my teenagers in teaching of the outside pressures and stresses that the dancers are facing.

A lot of it could be like social media driven. There's so many apps out there nowadays that it's just like sucking their time into basically. And it was just like, wow, there needs to be something like I can't how can I get my dancers to focus in class on working on these elements, these combinations, these skills when their mind is not even there? So it's like we have all this work, all this work that we're doing to with our bodies and dance.

And there is that mind body connection. And yet I know you said it can be a little woo woo and stuff, which I agree it can be in the best way. But like this whole concept of like if I'm trying to get the body to work better and the mind is not with it, how how is that going to progress forward? For me, it didn't become a how can I integrate meditation or mindfulness into my class? It was the number one priority and that everything else needed to fit around that.

And what I found is that by including these pockets of time and by doing these different exercises, I was actually getting better results in what my students were able to do because they were fully present, they were focused and they were actually more relaxed in their bodies. And, you know, something that I talk about, too, in terms of meditation is a huge benefit of it is releasing the stressors that we're feeling in our bodies. And so if you can imagine, like if you were to tighten your body and like tense it up a ton and then say, OK, let's move, let's do tendus right now, you're going from this place of tense and stress.

And then if we were to relax that and to set ourselves up to then go and do the tendus, relax, say after meditation, the result is completely different. We are able to tap in more, I feel like, into the depth of the muscles that need to work, the movement that where are our limbs going? Because we have this very deep mind body connection now. So for me, the benefits just completely outweighed any time that I might be losing in working on skills.

So in an hour long class setting to take five minutes out of my time, you know, to do meditation, that was truly the biggest benefit that I see for my students.

Maia
Oh, that's beautiful. Yeah.

As a modern teacher, I typically will do like a release technique unit. So now I feel like I'm the silly one because I'm like, well, how many times have I screamed at them to release? And I'm I'm screaming at them like, what the heck? So I love that. Do you have any specific examples of changes you've seen or ways that a specific student or class as a whole has improved or benefited from this?

Amanda
Yeah. So I use meditation at different times in the class, you know, depending on what the needs are, depending on like how the students are coming in. Because sometimes it's right away. So like, for example, if the students are coming in and it's right after their school day and they're tired or completely unfocused or the energy is off.

So it's like, hey, everyone, how are you doing? And if I notice just like a very low energy for me, I know it's important to shift that right away. So I have everybody come in and whether it's seated, standing, laying down, you know, whichever I decide in that moment. And I go through a really brief like three to five minutes of breathing, centering and clarity about how we're going to move today.

And from that place, we work into the warm up. So like it might even like pull us into just walking around the room. And what I've noticed is that it gets them in the zone of ready to work, because the other part of mindfulness that I always drive home to is that because it's the current moment, it means that what is going to happen and what has happened has no importance to the life that you're living right now.

So it helps them to put aside that big project they have to do when they get home at night because they're worried about it or that public speaking project that they have at school the next day that they're nervous about or, you know, so-and-so's friendship is they're fighting or whatnot. Before this, we were just texting each other and we and it wasn't good. It helps them to show that like that is not the current moment.

The current moment is here in your dance class. So when they're able to focus and really pull that attention into the space, I notice such a shift because they're fully there, you know, they're fully invested. And sometimes I'll use meditation like if they seem good, OK, we'll use it at the end.

And that's just kind of like to let go, to thank our bodies for what they were able to do today. Some meditations that I do would be like a quick two minute thing. And that's it.

Sometimes it's an active one, too. Like I can kind of get into that as well for like younger students who might not have that like they might not want to sit and do that. They just want to go, you know, younger students.

But even to like across genres, like some people will say, well, I can see how this would work in modern and contemporary. But how would this work in ballet? How would this work in jazz? And, you know, for me, it's like in ballet facing the bar, like zone out. And I do this sometimes like I'm also a Pilates instructor.

So if I'm ever doing like a wall set up, I want you to like look at the wall in front of you like a blank slate. And we do like a visualization, get our bodies and even just like an alignment check like that can be meditative. And it's something that we do anyways, like preparing our bodies, preparing our posture for the class ahead.

And that is enough to like, OK, we're here now. This is class. This is where we're going to move from.

Those would be some examples there in a high energy class, like say like jazz or hip hop or something like that. It could be just as simple as like taking a few deep breaths before you initiate the warm up. Maybe also to like meditation can be as simple as talking about what the focus of the day is.

Like, you know, if we're going to be talking about like, say we're doing turns or that's the skill that we're specifically going to be working on, just like preparing, preparing the mind for what's to come, I think can be a meditation in and of itself, too.

Maia
Yeah, I'm glad that you brought that up because I was going to ask about different genres and different ages. So I know you mentioned with the younger kids, they might not want to stand or lie down still on the floor. But but you do have applications of this for all ages?

Amanda
Yes. So in my program that I'm putting together, I'm actually going to now start including every month a young children's focus one.

But like I don't want to necessarily put the like I don't want to put the label on it because just because it's for young children wouldn't mean that you wouldn't get a benefit from it as being a teenager. But the way that you know, when I when I'm teaching younger students that I may bring meditation into the space is as a visualization exercise or like a story, like a guided improv. Some of you do this already in your creative movement classes and don't even realize that it's meditative.

So I usually make up the story on the spot, but it's like you're sending them on a journey and you're putting in action words. And now we're going to skip to the edge of the river and we're going to stretch over and splash the water in our face. So it's taking them to a world outside of the space that you're in, but it's active.

And that is a beautiful way, I think, to incorporate it with with young children. Yeah, that's a resource that I'm going to be working towards because definitely I feel like more of the sit down types of meditations are geared more towards the teen, you know, teen population. But I also feel like those are some of the dancers that have the most stress and the most pressure.

And, you know, they're just there's so much going on outside of dance. And if dance is their escape, I want to provide tools for them that they can escape even further into it.

Maia
Yeah, I once again making myself look dumb for saying that mindfulness was woo woo at the beginning of this, because I'm now remembering how many times backstage at recital, those preteen and teen dancers who are in numerous pieces and they're rushing around with costume changes and stuff.

And I'm like, guys, the last few weeks of classes already before recital and then at recital, I'm like, guys, you have to have like something that you do backstage to get yourself centered. You have to picture yourself doing the piece. You have to take deep breaths.

You have to be silent. Don't be backstage in the wings, still trying to chat with your friend, that type of thing. So this whole time I've been trying to do this and saying like, oh, mindfulness.

And that's what I've been preaching without realizing it. So, yeah, that's wonderful.

Amanda
Yeah. And no, don't worry about like how maybe you like perceived it in the beginning or whatnot. Like I do feel that for many, like if you don't know, like how this is going to benefit your dancers, you would probably think it's a waste of time. Truly.

How can you take this time out when they should be doing this? Or, oh, no, we should be working on balance right now before we head onto the stage. And it's so, I think, important because I also think about my time as a dancer. And, you know, we talk and even to like you were just mentioning about being backstage and the way that felt.

And I don't like other than breathing. What did I have that brought me to center? You know, you could tell me to hold a plank. You could tell me to do some releves on the side.

But like at the same time, like I was I was only working one part of it. And especially for those that are competition students, it's just like this additional pressure that is going on backstage before they go out for their performances. And I even noticed it, too.

Like sometimes I had this big shift in the past, like five years of my teaching where I was constantly telling my dancers, you need to be more grounded. You need to get that, like use your plie. You need to like feel the connections of your feet on the floor.

And like, yeah, these are all things that we talk about in dance. But they're like by me saying that I was not like showing them really how to how to feel grounded, because you can bend your knees all you want. You can put your feet in the floor all you want.

But if you are not calm within your center of the body or able to find your breath, there's no way you're going to feel truly grounded. So I did notice big shifts in my dancers and how they found grounding once I implemented like more specific meditations with that. So it may sound woo woo, but I I'm glad that like you're in it now.

Maia
I'm fully invested drinking the Kool-Aid, I guess. No, I love it. And you mentioned your program and that you are still working on adding more resources to that. But I want you to tell us more about that. What is it? What's available? Where do we find it? All that fun stuff.

Amanda
OK, great. I'm so excited about it. It's it's so funny because, you know, I've been teaching, like I said, for for 18 years and my dancers every year, like Miss Amanda, you need to record your meditations like I want to go to school and go to college and I want to be able to like pop in and Miss Amanda meditation before I go to sleep. And I was like, oh, that's so sweet.

But I was like never considering. And like finally, it got to be so many times that I was like, you know, I should do something with this and maybe it will help others as well. So what I ended up doing is I created a Patreon page for dance teacher pep talk.

That is the podcast that I run. And so with the Patreon page, what it is, is it's monthly meditation collection and it could be for the dancer. It could be for the dance teacher.

My goal and dream would be that dance teachers would be able to use this resource in their classrooms or to extend it to their dancers and whatever way they were able. And each month with it. So there's a free membership or there is a paid membership.

And the free membership is just one meditation a month that kind of comes out for whatever theme is relevant, I feel, for dance in that month. And then the paid is five additional meditations that, again, follow the calendar year, whether it's holidays, dance holidays, things that we're doing in that time of year. So like in February, I added a little bit more about like the competition scene because I know that a lot of dancers are heading out to competition.

So in February, my freebie was a pre-performance practice that helps you get out of your mind and into your body. And then one like in the paid section, there was a meditation about how can you work through not getting the award you wanted or like when things don't go your way. So there's a lot of different things there.

And in March, definitely like some spring themes. I also tried to follow, like I said, some holidays and calendar stuff. So, you know, there might be like a luck and confidence meditation in there.

There's ways, you know, we talk about nourishing our minds and our souls as dancers. And where are you ready to bloom in terms of dance? You know, spring, like I'm trying to connect all these things so that they're relevant. But the thing, too, with the membership, the paid membership is once you are in it, you still have access to all the months.

So like January collection is up. February collection is up. You will get access to all of those.

And there's just so many different things to pick from. There's meditations to begin your class, meditations to begin your day. There's meditations to end your class, end your day.

I try to bring, you know, what I see is working and helping for my students with the meditations that I'm giving them and bringing them into the space of Dance Teacher Pep Talk Patreon. So, yeah.

Maia
That is really cool. I love it. And not to, again I'm not trying to attack anyone with this or sound mean, but like not too overwhelming. Sometimes these Patreon things are like, I don't even know what to do with this.

But the way you have it laid out, like it's coming out monthly and you can utilize it immediately without having to overthink or be overcomplicated. So I definitely appreciate that. Now, is that Patreon page the best way for people to connect with you in general if they want to listen to the podcast or connect with you in any other way? Or do you have any other resources that you want to share?

Amanda
Yeah, of course.

My Instagram is at Dance Teacher Pep Talk and the link for the Patreon page is there, too. And I'll send you over the link for the Patreon. But the cool thing about Patreon is that all of my podcasts are automatically uploaded there.

But you can also find my podcast on Spotify and Apple and Amazon. It's all over the place there. But it's really cool that the Patreon does that.

And I agree. Patreon can be like out of control sometimes. And it's like, I don't, you know, I'm still working through it because there are ways to that I can start to like connect it to the podcast.

But I didn't want to like cloud up or like, you know, put so much stuff into the podcast that wasn't necessarily the Dance Teacher Pep Talk stuff. So there are ways that I can, you know, check to look at that. But with the Patreon, it's really simple.

It's just the collections of meditations monthly. And then you'll see every podcast episode gets synced to it, too. So it's all there.

And then like from time to time, I might like throw up some newsletters there, too, or some, you know, different content. But Instagram, for sure, is the best place to find me. And then my Patreon page.

Maia
Yay. Now, this went by so fast. So before we officially close, I just want to ask a very open ended question.

Is there anything that we missed that you really want to talk about or feel strongly about on this topic that we didn't get to?

Amanda
I mean, I think, you know, as educators, you know, and dance teachers, I think it's so important to and I always talk about this, too, over on my podcast. But when we are we're so busy with thinking about the skills all the time and the lesson plans and getting out this combination and making sure that our students in level three are achieving this before moving on to level four. But those things are all so important, for sure.

And I mean, that's the dance training. That's why people come to you. They are your customers to learn how to dance.

And that's what they're paying for. But in the scheme of things, what do you want your students to walk away with? What do you want them to remember you by or to leave your classroom feeling and thinking? And that is something that has reframed my teaching and my mission many times in my life because what I thought was really important wasn't the case. And so it was really a beautiful shift for myself.

So I encourage all educators to really think about that. Like, what is it that you're hoping will be the lasting impact that you have for your students?

Maia
Yeah. And that's really what the Casual Dance Teacher's Podcast is all about.

Yes, we want to give them the best skills, but we're teaching primarily casual students. There's a lot more that goes into it besides just are they going to be able to nail an audition, that type of thing. So I really appreciate that.

Now, along those lines, do you have a favorite quote related to dance or in this case, I say also related to mindfulness or meditation that you would like to share with us?

Amanda
Of course, I actually have two. And one, I don't remember who said it, but when you asked this, I was like, oh, I was trying to think like about dance. So for mindfulness, two of my favorite quotes are "Be where your feet are planted."

And the other quote that I love is by Jon Kabat-Zinn. "And it is when it comes right down to it, wherever you go, there you are." And they might be simple.

But the thing is that when you're in the dance classroom, it's being where your feet are planted or as you're traveling across the floor, wherever you go, that's where you are like and be there and really enjoy it. Because I know we as educators also say to our dancers, the years are going to go by so fast and like in a blink of an eye, you're going to be graduating. And so I really just try to encourage that joy in the present moment.

And those are two quotes that I feel like really help to do that.

Maia
Well, friends, this is Maia hopping back on, obviously, with my tail between my legs a little bit for making fun of mindfulness and meditation at the beginning of the episode. I really enjoyed this one.

I hope you guys did, too. Thank you again to Amanda for joining us and sharing that and winning me over. And hopefully you will join us in the Casual Dance Teachers Network Facebook group so we can chat a little bit more about any of these practices that you either have been utilizing already or might want to put into practice in your own classrooms.

You can also follow us at the Casual Dance Teachers podcast on Instagram and be sure to subscribe to the podcast on whatever platform you are listening. Big thanks to GB Mystical for the theme music that you hear at the beginning of the show. And thanks to all of you one more time. I will see you on the next episode.