What is the purpose of this series?

The purpose of this workshop series is to teach the dance pedagogy of Lindy, Lindy Hop, Swing Era jazz steps, partnered jazz and movements assimilated into Lindy during the extended Swing Era from the Jazz Age through the 1960s while standardizing the vocabulary used for instruction.

This Workshop Series made up of a minimum of 6 workshops offered in increments spread out over the course of a year. The plan includes a minimum total of 60 hours in which participants would learn how to teach steps, patterns and amalgamations that grew out of the greater Swing Era (1920s-1960s) along with new and vintage routines as part of its syllabus, all centered on learning and teaching dance techniques within the Lindy Hop vocabulary. Many of these steps have become standard movements in today’s Hip Hop.

The Series teaches dance pedagogy. Dance pedagogy mainly prepares students to become dance teachers. In these classes, you won’t just improve your dancing, but you will also learn how to teach dance to others and help students improve.

The Series emphasizes strong technical development along with a standardized vocabulary of dance steps including an introduction to various Lindy styles, musicality, and the concepts of teamwork, frame and connection, and dynamics along with detailed artistic mentoring and professional focused advising while educating the learner through the media of dancing, dance making and dance appreciation.

Participants are part of in-person sessions and provided with a step list but also gain hands-on experience as a lead and a follower. In-person sessions will be augmented with intermittent teaching seminars, dance training intensives and included in an online community for attendees.

Those who complete the Series will receive a Certificate of Completion in the style by Savoy Dance Bums in collaboration with the American Lindy Hop Championships as administered by Artspectrum, a nonprofit, federally tax exempt entity by completion a teaching practicum and designing a Lindy program as a final project with skill assessments along the way.

Learning Objectives

1. Develop and increase your understanding
of the genre through taking class as both a leader and a follower.

2. Demonstrate the ability to think creatively

3. Standardize Lindy vocabulary

4. Demonstrate basic movements within the genre

5. Demonstrate the ability to effectively communicate/teach vocabulary learned in the workshop series to others

Learning Outcomes

1. Improve following, leading, and partnering skills and Increase your technical dancing skills.
2. Broaden your ability to hear the rhythm of the music, and understand phrasing and musicality in general.
3. Demonstrate an understanding of Lindy terminology, technique and history
4. Observe and write about your own progress and challenges in the course
5. Learn and build upon historical dance figures and events
6. Create a lesson plan and/or develop a Lindy instruction program to implement

What is Dance Pedagogy?

Content knowledge in dance provides background, scientific evidence, educational foundations, psychological support for the artistic and holistic development of students, and teaching methods. Dance pedagogy is the art and science of teaching dance to students from early childhood through adulthood.

The Series uses a teacher-centered approach to learning using discussion and direct instruction to teach the attendees.