TEACHING PHILOSOPHY

I teach creative process through dance, visual art and writing workshops.

My teaching practice is focused on using community building tools in order to create spaces where imagination thrives. I collaborate with youth artists to make projects that tell stories. Often these stories are told using no words. All of the classes I design keep the mind body connection as a central investigation. How can we feel and show music through our entire body? How can one person connect to sensation in order to communicate a feeling across a whole room? From my time teaching literacy, I bring tools for shaping a narrative and developing a theme. I am fluent in Spanish and frequently teach bilingual workshops for both writing and performance. I also teach drawing, painting, sculpture and textile crafts. Pictured here is a costume for a river themed parade, one example of my multimedia productions. With this work my goal is to create movement experiences that require no prior dance training and emphasize discussion, movement potential, self acceptance and creativity. I encourage the use of dance as a creative medium of expression versus a technical skill. With each group I offer a routine based, democratic classroom environment where transformative collective creation becomes possible. The point is collaboration; the point is exploration and openness. 

Over time, self confidence, empathy, creative self expression and communication skills blossom as a result of this safe, caring, respectful, predictable and well structured learning space.