5 Tips to Energize Your Teen Tap Classes

Published on February 11th 2021 by Hillary-Marie

I received a question from an iTapOnline™ Member not too long ago. She lives in Florida, owns a dance studio and is the main teacher of their tap program.

Here’s what she sent me…

Do you have any recommendations for getting teen classes more energized in class? Tonight was good, but it comes and goes.

Teenagers can be tricky.

They’re going through so much!

School. Homework. Friends. Dating. Drama. College apps. SATs. Driving.

Being a teenager is such a roller coaster of emotion.

And sometimes that roller coaster can affect the vibe of your tap class.

But worry not!

If you’re feeling like your class is just stuck and needs some new life and energy, here are 5 quick ways that you can jump-start your classes.

Change up your music. Click here for my Tap Teacher Spotify Playlists.

Give someone the opportunity to lead warm-up.

Give someone an opportunity to choose which steps to take across the floor.

Let them do a “Choreo Challenge”.

Let someone choreograph the next step in the dance.

Opportunities like these give your students the chance to say “yes”and contribute. It’s a chance to pull them in closer, and get them invested in their dance education in a new way.

Those are the quick fixes.

But if you want to take it one level deeper, I recommend figuring out WHY they’re not energized.

If you can figure out why, then you can negate it.

This is where you go from teacher to mentor.

Sometimes teens have tough days. They can be entirely mad at the world and have super low energy. Sometimes they need to feel their feelings. Other times they need to escape from their feelings. Sometimes they need tough love.

That’s the role that we play as dance teachers.

We are the adult in their life that teaches them how to navigate their day to day emotions.

Got a quick tip you want to share with other passionate tap teachers? Post in the iTapOnline™ Community Facebook Group.

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