Top 12 Dance Teacher Skills to Put on Your Resume

In the dynamic world of dance education, standing out as a dance teacher requires more than just mastery of choreography. Highlighting a diverse set of skills on your resume can significantly elevate your prospects, showcasing your versatility, pedagogical expertise, and ability to inspire students.

Dance Teacher Skills

1. Choreography
2. Ballet
3. Jazz
4. Hip-Hop
5. Contemporary
6. Tap
7. Salsa
8. Zumba
9. Pilates
10. Yoga
11. Final Cut Pro (for editing dance videos)
12. Zoom (for virtual classes)

1. Choreography

Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements in which motion, form, or both are specified. For a dance teacher, it involves creating and arranging dance patterns and steps for performances, ensuring they align with the music, convey a story or theme, and suit the abilities of the dancers.

Why It's Important

Choreography is essential as it provides structure and creativity to dance, allowing teachers to convey themes, emotions, and stories. It guides dancers in technique, timing, and expression, fostering teamwork and enhancing performance quality.

How to Improve Choreography Skills

Improving choreography involves a blend of creativity, technique, and continuous learning. Here are concise tips for a dance teacher:

1. Seek Inspiration: Explore various dance forms and performances. Websites like Dance Magazine offer insights into current trends and creative ideas.
2. Understand Music: Deeply analyze the music, understanding its rhythm, mood, and structure. Tools like Spotify can help explore diverse musical genres.
3. Focus on Storytelling: Ensure your choreography tells a story or conveys an emotion. Resources like TED Talks on Dance can inspire narrative-driven choreography.
4. Incorporate Dynamics: Play with speed, energy, and levels to add interest. Observing performances on platforms like YouTube can provide examples of dynamic range.
5. Feedback and Revise: Use feedback from dancers and peers to refine your work. Engage in communities like Dance.net for constructive critiques.
6. Continuous Education: Take workshops and classes to refine your skills. Online platforms like Skillshare offer courses on dance and choreography.
7. Practice Creativity: Set aside time to experiment with movements and formations without constraints. This practice can be enhanced by tools like Evernote for jotting down creative ideas.

Improving choreography is an ongoing journey that blends artistry with technique, fueled by continuous learning and experimentation.

How to Display Choreography Skills on Your Resume

2. Ballet

Ballet is a classical dance form characterized by grace, precision, and formalized steps and gestures, set to music. It originated during the Italian Renaissance and further developed in France and Russia. As a dance teacher, it involves training students in technique, posture, flexibility, strength, and expressive performance, following a codified system of movement.

Why It's Important

Ballet is fundamental for dance education as it provides a solid technical foundation, enhances discipline and body awareness, and enriches artistic expression, serving as a cornerstone for many other dance forms.

How to Improve Ballet Skills

Improving ballet technique and performance as a dance teacher involves a combination of enhancing foundational skills, fostering an encouraging environment, and incorporating cross-training. Here's a concise guide:

1. Focus on Fundamentals: Reinforce the basics of ballet, such as posture, alignment, and turnout. Encourage students to master these before advancing to more complex techniques. Royal Academy of Dance provides resources and insights on ballet fundamentals.

2. Personalized Feedback: Offer constructive, personalized feedback to each student. Highlight their strengths and areas for improvement. Pointe Magazine often discusses the importance of feedback in dance education.

3. Incorporate Cross-Training: Encourage students to engage in Pilates, yoga, or strength training to enhance their physical fitness, flexibility, and injury prevention. Dance Magazine offers insights into effective cross-training methods for dancers.

4. Promote Performance Opportunities: Give students the chance to perform in recitals, competitions, or community events. This builds confidence and stage presence. Youth America Grand Prix is a platform for aspiring ballet dancers to perform and compete.

5. Continuing Education: Stay informed about the latest ballet techniques, pedagogy, and trends by attending workshops, conferences, and classes. Dance Educators of America offers opportunities for professional development.

By focusing on these areas, you can help your students improve their ballet technique, performance quality, and overall love for dance.

How to Display Ballet Skills on Your Resume

3. Jazz

Jazz is a vibrant and energetic dance style that originated from African-American communities in the early 20th century, characterized by its expressive movements, improvisation, and syncopated rhythms, often performed to jazz music. It incorporates a variety of movements from other dance styles, showcasing a dynamic blend of technique, fluidity, and style.

Why It's Important

Jazz is important for a dance teacher because it offers a rich foundation in rhythm, improvisation, and expression, essential for training versatile and dynamic dancers. It encourages creativity, enhances musicality, and provides historical context, enriching the overall dance education.

How to Improve Jazz Skills

Improving jazz dance skills requires a blend of technique, expression, and continuous learning. Here are concise tips for dance teachers:

1. Technique Focus: Emphasize the mastery of basic jazz steps and progress to complex combinations. Incorporate Isolation exercises to improve body control.

2. Musicality and Rhythm: Teach students to interpret and express the music's rhythm and mood. Use exercises from resources like The Dance Training Project for rhythm improvement.

3. Incorporate Improvisation: Encourage improvisation to foster creativity and personal style. Dance Magazine offers insights on the importance of improvisation in dance education.

4. Cross-Training: Enhance flexibility, strength, and endurance through cross-training. Yoga and Pilates are great for flexibility, while cardio can improve endurance. Check out The Balanced Life Pilates for Pilates routines suited for dancers.

5. Continuous Learning: Stay updated with the latest jazz dance trends and techniques. Attend workshops, and consider online resources like CLI Studios for ongoing professional development.

6. Performance Opportunities: Provide ample performance opportunities to build confidence and stage presence. Organizing recitals or joining local competitions can be beneficial.

By focusing on these areas, dance teachers can significantly improve their jazz dance instruction, leading to better-skilled and more expressive dancers.

How to Display Jazz Skills on Your Resume

4. Hip-Hop

Hip-hop is a dynamic and expressive dance style that originated from African American and Latino communities in the 1970s, characterized by its rhythmic body movements, improvisation, and strong connection to hip-hop music and culture.

Why It's Important

Hip-Hop is important because it is a dynamic and expressive form of dance that cultivates creativity, builds physical fitness, and fosters an understanding of rhythm and musicality. It also connects dancers to a rich cultural history, encouraging community and inclusivity.

How to Improve Hip-Hop Skills

Improving hip-hop dance skills requires a blend of practice, inspiration, and technical understanding. Here are concise tips for a dance teacher looking to enhance their hip-hop teaching skills:

1. Master the Basics: Ensure students have a solid foundation in the basic steps and movements of hip-hop. Stepping Stones to Hip-Hop offers insights into foundational moves.

2. Stay Updated: Hip-hop is an evolving genre. Regularly watch trending videos and incorporate new moves and styles into your choreography.

3. Encourage Individuality: Promote creativity and self-expression among students. This guide to fostering creativity in dance can help.

4. Use Diverse Music: Hip-hop music is diverse. Use a wide range of tracks to teach, which can also introduce students to the cultural depth of hip-hop. Websites like Spotify have extensive playlists.

5. Incorporate Freestyle: Freestyling is essential in hip-hop. Encourage students to freestyle to improve their improvisation skills. Freestyle Tips offers strategies to improve.

6. Attend Workshops and Competitions: Participation in external events can provide exposure and inspiration. Websites like Eventbrite list hip-hop dance workshops and competitions.

7. Feedback and Video Analysis: Record practices and performances for review. This can help in identifying areas for improvement. Here’s how video can enhance dance training.

By focusing on these areas, dance teachers can significantly enhance the hip-hop capabilities of their students while also keeping the classes fresh and engaging.

How to Display Hip-Hop Skills on Your Resume

5. Contemporary

Contemporary dance is a fluid dance style that combines elements of classical ballet, modern dance, and jazz, focusing on self-expression, improvisation, and versatility.

Why It's Important

Contemporary dance is important for a dance teacher because it encourages creativity, emotional expression, and physical versatility, integrating diverse techniques and fostering a deep connection between the body and mind. This approach enhances a dancer's adaptability and broadens their artistic and expressive capabilities.

How to Improve Contemporary Skills

Improving as a contemporary dance teacher involves a blend of enhancing your own skills and effectively transmitting knowledge to your students. Here are concise strategies:

1. Continuous Learning: Keep updating your dance knowledge and teaching methods by taking advanced courses and workshops.
2. Feedback Mechanism: Regularly seek and incorporate feedback from students to tailor your teaching approach.
3. Incorporate Technology: Utilize online resources and applications to make learning more interactive and accessible.
4. Diverse Repertoire: Constantly expand your repertoire to include a variety of contemporary styles and techniques.
5. Health and Safety: Emphasize the importance of injury prevention and promote healthy practices among students.
6. Performance Opportunities: Provide students with opportunities to perform, which can enhance their confidence and stage presence.

By focusing on these areas, you can significantly improve your effectiveness as a contemporary dance teacher.

How to Display Contemporary Skills on Your Resume

6. Tap

Tap is a dance form characterized by using the sounds of tap shoes striking the floor as a form of percussion.

Why It's Important

Tap dance is important for a dance teacher because it teaches rhythm, coordination, and musicality, essential skills for all forms of dance. It also enriches the dance curriculum by offering a unique style that combines movement with percussive sound, fostering creativity and expression among students.

How to Improve Tap Skills

Improving tap dance skills involves a blend of technique refinement, rhythm training, and creative exploration. Here’s a very short and concise guide tailored for dance teachers:

1. Master the Basics: Ensure students have a solid foundation in basic tap steps. Use resources like Dance Teacher Web for step-by-step guides.

2. Rhythm and Musicality: Emphasize the importance of musicality. Incorporate exercises from Tap Dance UK for rhythm improvement.

3. Practice Slowly: Encourage practicing steps slowly before speeding up. Slow practice builds muscle memory and precision.

4. Use Visual Aids: Utilize online videos for visual learning. Channels like Operation Tap offer technique and combination tutorials.

5. Feedback and Correction: Provide immediate and constructive feedback. Record students’ performances for review and self-assessment.

6. Incorporate Improvisation: Foster creativity through improvisation exercises. This encourages musicality and a personal style.

7. Attend Workshops: Encourage participation in workshops and master classes for diverse exposure. Websites like Steps on Broadway list advanced classes and workshops.

8. Cross-Training: Promote cross-training in ballet or jazz to improve overall dance technique and strength. This enhances tap performance.

9. Stay Inspired: Keep classes engaging by introducing historical tap figures and performances. Resources like The Tap Dance Blog provide inspiration and history lessons.

10. Consistent Practice: Stress the importance of regular practice. Create a practice schedule and set goals for both class and individual progress.

By focusing on these areas, dance teachers can significantly improve their students’ tap dancing skills, ensuring a well-rounded and enjoyable learning experience.

How to Display Tap Skills on Your Resume

7. Salsa

Salsa is a popular Latin dance characterized by vibrant, energetic movements, primarily based on Cuban Son rhythms, incorporating elements of mambo, cha-cha, and other Latin dance styles. It is danced in pairs, often featuring intricate footwork and synchronized turns.

Why It's Important

Salsa is important for a dance teacher because it enhances their repertoire, allowing them to teach a popular, energetic, and culturally rich dance form that improves students' rhythm, coordination, and social interaction skills.

How to Improve Salsa Skills

Improving salsa dancing skills requires a combination of practice, feedback, and learning from various sources. Here are concise tips aimed at a dance teacher looking to enhance their salsa teaching and dancing abilities:

1. Focus on Fundamentals: Ensure your students master the basic steps, timing, and rhythm of salsa. Emphasize the importance of the core movements before moving on to more complex patterns.

2. Incorporate Music Understanding: Teach how to listen and interpret salsa music, encouraging students to dance with the music, not just to it. Understanding musicality is key to improving salsa dancing.

3. Use Video Resources: Encourage students to watch and analyze videos of professional salsa dancers. This can provide visual examples and inspiration. Websites like YouTube are great for finding performance and instructional videos.

4. Attend Workshops and Socials: Recommend attending workshops and social dance events to gain exposure to different styles and techniques. Practicing with a variety of partners improves adaptability and skill.

5. Personal Practice Routine: Develop a personal practice routine focusing on technique, styling, and footwork. Regular practice is essential for improvement.

6. Feedback and Reflection: Provide constructive feedback to your students regularly. Encourage them to self-reflect on their dancing, identifying areas for improvement.

7. Cross-Training: Encourage taking classes in other dance forms to improve body movement and versatility. Ballet or contemporary dance classes can enhance body lines and posture, for example.

8. Networking with Other Teachers: Engage with the broader dance community online through forums or social media groups, such as Reddit’s Salsa community or specific Facebook groups, to exchange teaching strategies and insights.

By focusing on these areas, you can significantly improve your salsa teaching and help your students become better dancers.

How to Display Salsa Skills on Your Resume

8. Zumba

Zumba is a fitness program that combines Latin and international music with dance moves, incorporating interval and resistance training to improve cardiovascular health, muscle tone, and coordination.

Why It's Important

Zumba is important as it combines fitness and dance, offering a fun, engaging way to improve cardiovascular health, flexibility, and coordination, while also boosting mood and social interaction. For a dance teacher, it diversifies teaching repertoire and attracts a wide audience interested in dance-based workouts.

How to Improve Zumba Skills

Improving your Zumba classes as a dance teacher involves several strategies aimed at enhancing both your teaching skills and the overall experience for your participants. Here are concise recommendations:

1. Update Your Music Playlist: Regularly refresh your playlist with the latest Zumba hits or timeless classics that energize your class. Websites like Zumba offer music inspiration.

2. Incorporate Varied Dance Styles: Mix different dance styles into your routines to keep things interesting and cater to diverse preferences. Learn more through ZIN™ (Zumba Instructor Network).

3. Attend Workshops and Training: Continuous learning through Zumba training workshops helps improve your skills and keep up with the latest trends.

4. Engage With Your Class: Building a rapport and creating a supportive community enhances the experience. Simple techniques can be found on Mindbody.

5. Use Technology: Leverage social media for marketing, feedback, and community building. Platforms like Instagram and Facebook are great for this.

6. Personalize Your Approach: Tailor your routines to the fitness levels and preferences of your class. This personal touch can make a significant difference.

7. Focus on Technique and Form: Ensure your students are performing movements correctly to avoid injury and maximize the workout's effectiveness.

By implementing these strategies, you can enhance your Zumba classes, making them more enjoyable, effective, and rewarding for your students.

How to Display Zumba Skills on Your Resume

9. Pilates

Pilates is a low-impact exercise system that focuses on strengthening muscles, enhancing flexibility, and improving overall body alignment, with particular emphasis on core strength. It can significantly benefit dancers by enhancing their posture, balance, and movement efficiency.

Why It's Important

Pilates is crucial for dance teachers as it enhances core strength, flexibility, and body awareness, ensuring precise and fluid movements while reducing the risk of injury.

How to Improve Pilates Skills

Improving Pilates, especially for a dance teacher, focuses on enhancing core strength, flexibility, balance, and mindful movement integration. Here's a concise guide:

1. Core Strengthening: Incorporate exercises targeting the deep abdominal muscles, improving stability and posture. Pilates Foundation.

2. Flexibility: Integrate stretches that focus on the hamstrings, hip flexors, and spine to enhance flexibility, crucial for dancers. Stretching Techniques.

3. Balance Training: Utilize balance-focused Pilates exercises to improve coordination and control, essential for dance. Balance Exercises.

4. Mindful Movement: Emphasize the importance of breath control and precision in movements, fostering a deeper body-mind connection. Mindful Pilates.

5. Regular Practice & Variation: Consistent practice with a variety of exercises ensures continuous improvement and prevents plateauing. Pilates Routines.

Each link provides additional detailed tips and exercises that can be integrated into a dance teacher's Pilates routine to maximize benefits for themselves and their students.

How to Display Pilates Skills on Your Resume

10. Yoga

Yoga is a holistic discipline originating from ancient India, involving physical postures (asanas), breath control (pranayama), and meditation techniques to enhance physical flexibility, mental clarity, and emotional balance, beneficial for dancers in improving performance, endurance, and injury prevention.

Why It's Important

Yoga enhances flexibility, strength, balance, and mental focus, crucial elements for dancers to improve technique, prevent injuries, and maintain overall well-being.

How to Improve Yoga Skills

To improve your Yoga practice as a Dance Teacher, consider integrating these focused strategies:

1. Deepen Anatomical Knowledge: Enhance your understanding of body mechanics and alignment. Yoga Anatomy offers insightful resources.

2. Incorporate Mindfulness: Strengthen the mind-body connection. Explore techniques at Mindful.

3. Expand Your Yoga Styles: Experiment with different Yoga styles to bring variety and challenge. Yoga Journal is a great place to start.

4. Attend Workshops: Regularly attend workshops for continuous learning. Platforms like Eventbrite list Yoga and dance-related events.

5. Practice Regularly: Consistency is key. Create a balanced schedule that complements your dance routines.

6. Use Props and Modifications: Enhance poses and address limitations. Gaiam offers a variety of yoga props.

7. Feedback and Reflection: Actively seek feedback and reflect on your practice. Peer discussions and journals can be insightful.

8. Cross-Training: Incorporate Pilates or martial arts to improve strength and flexibility. This diversification can provide fresh insights into your Yoga practice.

By embracing these strategies, you'll enrich your Yoga practice, benefiting both your personal journey and your effectiveness as a Dance Teacher.

How to Display Yoga Skills on Your Resume

11. Final Cut Pro (for editing dance videos)

Final Cut Pro is a professional video editing software developed by Apple Inc., designed for creating and editing complex video projects, including dance videos. It offers advanced tools and features like multi-cam editing, motion graphics, color grading, and audio editing, enabling dance teachers to produce high-quality, engaging content for teaching, showcasing, and promoting dance routines and performances.

Why It's Important

Final Cut Pro is crucial for a dance teacher as it offers advanced editing tools and effects to create high-quality, engaging dance videos, enhancing instruction and showcasing student performances effectively.

How to Improve Final Cut Pro (for editing dance videos) Skills

Improving your dance video edits in Final Cut Pro involves leveraging both the software's robust editing capabilities and external resources that enhance your workflow and final product. Here's a concise guide for dance teachers:

1. Use Pre-set Custom Templates: Start by creating or downloading custom templates specific to dance videos. This speeds up your editing process while maintaining consistency across your content.

2. Incorporate Plugins: Explore plugins like mFilmLook for cinematic effects, or mTransition for dynamic transitions specifically tailored to enhance the visual appeal of dance movements.

3. Leverage Color Correction: Enhance your footage by mastering color correction tools in Final Cut Pro. Utilize the color board and scopes to adjust exposure, saturation, and color balance, ensuring your dancers pop against the background.

4. Optimize Audio: Since dance videos heavily rely on music, ensure you’re using the audio editing tools within Final Cut Pro to adjust levels, balance, and enhance sound quality. Consider external resources like Epidemic Sound for high-quality, royalty-free tracks.

5. Speed Ramping: Use the speed ramping feature to create dramatic effects, especially in dance videos. Slowing down or speeding up your footage at the right moments can highlight key dance moves. Final Cut Pro offers precise control over speed adjustments.

6. Effectively Use Multicam Editing: If you’re filming with multiple cameras, take advantage of the Multicam Editing feature to effortlessly switch between angles, ensuring a dynamic and engaging viewing experience.

7. Educational Resources: Continuously improve your editing skills by accessing tutorials and courses. Platforms like Udemy and LinkedIn Learning offer specific Final Cut Pro classes that can enhance your editing techniques, catering to dance video production.

By focusing on these areas, you can significantly improve the quality and impact of your dance videos in Final Cut Pro, making your content more engaging and professional.

How to Display Final Cut Pro (for editing dance videos) Skills on Your Resume

12. Zoom (for virtual classes)

Zoom is a video conferencing platform that allows dance teachers to conduct virtual classes live, enabling interaction and instruction with students remotely in real-time.

Why It's Important

Zoom allows a dance teacher to conduct live, interactive classes remotely, enabling continuous learning and practice for students regardless of location or circumstances that prevent in-person sessions.

How to Improve Zoom (for virtual classes) Skills

To improve your Zoom setup for virtual dance classes, follow these concise steps:

1. Enhance Lighting: Ensure your space is well-lit, preferably with soft, natural light facing you. If natural light is insufficient, consider a ring light for even, flattering illumination.

2. Upgrade Audio: Invest in an external microphone for clear instruction delivery. Clip-on lapel mics are great for movement.

3. Optimize Camera Placement: Position your camera at a distance where your entire body is visible, ensuring students can see full movements and footwork. A tripod can help achieve the ideal angle.

4. Use a Secondary Device: Consider a secondary device like a tablet or smartphone with the Zoom app for monitoring the class feed, ensuring you can see students clearly without disrupting the main feed.

5. Leverage Zoom Settings: Familiarize yourself with Zoom’s audio and video settings for optimal output. Enable Original Sound and adjust video quality settings as needed.

6. Engage Students: Utilize Zoom’s breakout rooms for small group practice or feedback sessions, making the class more interactive.

7. Share Music Effectively: When sharing music, use the Share Screen feature and select “Share computer sound” to ensure high-quality audio is transmitted directly from your computer.

8. Prepare for Class: Pre-load any videos or music playlists you plan to use, and have a clear, structured class plan visible to keep the session flowing smoothly.

By implementing these strategies, you can significantly enhance the virtual dance class experience for both you and your students.

How to Display Zoom (for virtual classes) Skills on Your Resume