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Old 07-04-2000, 04:18 AM   #6
liam
Dojo: Uni of Western Australia
Location: Western Australia
Join Date: Jun 2000
Posts: 15
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Such a big question and also such cool answers...

Our dojo has a yondan who can only teach one class a week, and six other nidans/shodans teaching the other nights.

These other yudansha take turns - each has a different approach yet I feel it's through the contrasts in teaching styles that a technique's finer points can be taught. One teacher will use some great mental images to communicate footwork, while another teaches footwork by being everyone's uke - he introduces the technique quickly and travels around the class.

I think that the best lessons are the ones you enjoy teaching. When you're stimulated you begin to think of some great ways of teaching the technique.

My best classes are the ones where I get a chance to think about them for a week in advance. I glean ideas from my colleagues, aikido books, driving my car, reading aiki-stuff on the web, watching out my bedroom window etc. Finally I decide on what I'd like to teach the day beforehand, as well as ways to structure the class so that I can communicate those ideas best.

Of course if I'm given 10 minutes notice then it's a different story! Our dojo's Standard Formula, the class structure typically used, makes putting a class together potentially brainless and then the success of the class depends a lot more on how I'm feeling on the day. This is something I'm trying to work on. It's difficult to think of new and interesting ways to teach a familiar technique under pressure and if I don't feel motivated then I get teach the same old approach and get bored - even if the same old approach works!

So to summarise "How do I teach?" I'd say my best classes are ones that I've had time to get excited thinking about, if there's enthusiasm within there'll be enthusiasm without.

Hey Jun, I'd be interested in knowing - How do you teach?

Regards from

Liam - Uni of Western Australia Aikido
http://www.butokukai.org
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