PSYCHOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT AND DANCE IN CHILDHOOD AND ADOLESCENCE – COMPLETE MODULE

Aimed at teachers of dance, covers psychological development in depth, including theoretical and practical aspects. Ideal for initial teacher training as a complete module. Best combined with module on physical growth and development. Includes lecture-based teaching, discussion and interactive tasks.

Covers the developmental tasks of childhood and adolescence, how to facilitate healthy development and promote mental health and well-being in children and young people in the dance studio. Goes into greater depth than introductory sessions, including  attachment theory and adolescent mental health. Explores the ways in which the social, emotional and cognitive growth of young people can be fostered as part of their dance education and offers the teacher a theoretical basis and practical strategies for attending to these issues.

6 X 2 hour sessions

Includes lecture-based delivery, discussion/sharing of practice, reading and interactive tasks

• Session 1 – The context of childhood and adolescence: Tasks of development & Benefits and challenges for healthy development
• Session 2 & 3 – Psychosocial and cognitive development in childhood includes attachment theory
• Session 4 – Implications of puberty for psychosocial development
• Session 5 – Psychosocial and cognitive development in adolescence
• Session 6 – Social, emotional and cognitive development in the dance studio: Practical approaches tailored to your teaching context

PHYSICAL GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT AND DANCE IN CHILDHOOD AND ADOLESCENCE

Aimed at teachers of dance, covers physical development in depth, including theoretical and practical aspects. Ideal for initial teacher training as a complete module. Best combined with module on psychological development.

Covers physical growth and development through childhood and adolescence, what changes are happening physically and how to support healthy development in the dance studio. Includes consideration of what children and young people can do at each developmental stage and offers the teacher a theoretical basis and practical strategies for supporting students through these stages.

6 X 2 hour sessions

Includes lecture-based delivery, discussion/sharing of practice, reading and interactive tasks

• Session 1 – Introduction to physiological development
• Session 2 – Physiological development in childhood – fundamental movement skills, motor skill development
• Session 3 – Physiological development in adolescence – puberty and the growth spurt, peak height velocity, peak weight velocity, implications for motor skills, balance and coordination
• Session 4 – Focus on puberty, timing, tempo and implications for teaching practice
• Session 5 – The growing body and injury
• Session 6 – Physical growth and development in the dance studio: Practical approaches tailored to your teaching context

ADVOCATE TRAINING: PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHYSICAL MATURATION IN DANCE

Specially designed set of sessions to prepare dance teachers to share learning with colleagues at their dance school. Pre-requisite – teachers must have completed an initial training course on the topic of growth and/or development. The course provides up to date knowledge on core areas in psychological and physical growth and development. The focus is on practical application and strategies and teachers are provided with resources to take away and share with their school.

Half-day course (4hrs), via zoom or in person

Mix of lecture, discussion and interactive tasks

Advocate training happens once a year through the adolescent dancer consultancy

MATURITY TIMING: IMPLICATIONS FOR HEALTH AND PERFORMANCE

Introduction to maturity timing aimed at those who already know the basics of growth and maturation and the implications for dance and want to advance their knowledge. The workshop will cover how to measure maturity and how timing is defined; the physical and psychological implications of differing maturation timing; health and performance implications related to maturity timing in dance. This workshop will also provide an opportunity for teachers to share experiences specific to their own teaching context and thoughts on best practice.

4 x 2 hour sessions

• Refresher session on physical and psychological development in the adolescent dancer
• Maturity timing – what is it and what are the implications more broadly
• Implications of maturity timing in dance – physical and psychological
• Best practice for negotiating differences in maturity timing in dance training

MANAGING AND MONITORING GROWTH AND MATURATION

Aimed at those who already understand the basics and have a good understanding of the implications of maturity timing. This workshop gives an overview of different methods for assessing growth and maturation with consideration of suitability for their use in a dance context; provides an applied approach to monitoring growth and maturation with opportunity to gain practical experience in measurement and monitoring of height. This workshop will also provide an opportunity for teachers to share experiences of managing and monitoring growth and maturation specific to their own teaching context, thoughts on best practice and to what extent consideration/monitoring of growth and maturation is suitable within different teaching contexts.

3 x 2 hour sessions

• Introductory session on physical development in the adolescent dance
• Overview of maturity timing and its implications and methods for assessing growth and maturation
• Workshop session looking at implementing practices in your dance context