If you've been teaching ballet for any length of time, you know how much work goes into planning a good class.
You're choosing exercises, creating combinations, finding music, thinking about your students' progress, and trying to keep things interesting week after week. And if you're anything like me, you want every class to have a purpose while still giving your students something to enjoy and look forward to.
But here's something I've learned after decades of teaching ballet: you don't always need an entirely new lesson plan to create a fresh, engaging class. Sometimes, one new combination is enough.
Start With What You're Already Teaching
A well-planned ballet lesson gives your class structure and direction. It helps you build skills, reinforce technique, and move your students toward their goals.
But that doesn't mean every combination needs to be brand-new.
Sometimes, the smartest approach is to keep the structure of your lesson and change one or two elements.
Here are a few ways to do that:
1. Introduce a new combination.
Choose a movement your students already understand and give them a fresh combination to explore. This gives them an opportunity to apply familiar skills in a new way without having to learn an entirely new class.
2. Change the musical experience.
Music can completely change the feeling of a combination. A different tempo, phrasing, or musical character can encourage students to listen more carefully and explore the movement differently.
3. Revisit a familiar movement with a new focus.
Instead of introducing something completely new, ask students to focus on a particular aspect of a movement. Perhaps you're emphasizing coordination, musicality, control, or the quality of the movement. The exercise may be familiar, but the learning experience can still feel fresh.
4. Add variety without losing your lesson's purpose.
A new combination should have a reason for being there. Think about what your students are working on and choose something that supports those goals. Fresh doesn't have to mean complicated!
The Music Matters, Too
One of the most time-consuming parts of preparing combinations can be finding music that works.
You might find a beautiful piece of music but struggle to create a combination that fits it. Or you might have a combination in mind and spend ages searching for the right accompaniment.
That's one reason I believe music deserves thoughtful attention when planning ballet class.
The right music supports the movement, helps students hear phrasing, and contributes to the overall experience of dancing. It's not just background sound.
When you're choosing a new combination, consider the musical character, tempo, and phrasing alongside the movement itself. And when you find a pairing that works, keep a record of it so you can use it again.
Your future self will thank you!
A New Way to Add Variety to Your Ballet Classes
This is one of the ideas behind the new Collections from BalletLessonPlans.com.
After asking ballet teachers for feedback about the resources they'd find helpful,
I began developing movement-specific collections that teachers can use
alongside their existing lesson plans.
Rather than replacing an entire lesson, a collection gives you additional combinations to choose from when you want to introduce variety, revisit a movement, or add something fresh to a class you're already planning.
The first collection is here!
Introducing: Level 1 Rond de Jambe Collection
The Level 1 Rond de Jambe Collection includes 10 ready-to-teach combinations paired with carefully selected music. The music references are organized to help teachers locate their selections, and two combinations feature Christmas music for a little seasonal fun.
You can use the combinations as part of your existing lesson planning, choosing what works for your students and your class.
And this is just the beginning. I'm working on additional collections for different levels and movements, including Level 2 Petit Allegro.
My goal is to give ballet teachers more options without adding more work to their already busy schedules.
One Final Thought
After decades in the studio, I've learned that the best classes aren't necessarily the ones where everything is new. They're the ones where the movements, music, and teaching choices work together with purpose.
Sometimes, a fresh combination is exactly what your students need.
And sometimes, giving yourself one less thing to create from scratch is a pretty wonderful thing, too!
Happy teaching!
