TwoLeftFeet Posted February 5, 2018 Share Posted February 5, 2018 Hi all - I'm hoping someone can give us some advice please. My dd is doing her first ballet exam ever - Grade 4 - in two weeks time. As this is her first exam she has no idea of what to do when she arrives. Her friend told her that there is a certain way to hold the character skirt, shoes etc. Her ballet teacher hasn't gone over this yet so I'm hoping that someone could let us know what to expect when dd arrives. Does she line up, does she just walk in and put her things down, does the examiner tell her what bit shes doing next or does she just keep playing the music, is there a certain way to hold things and put them down, does she need to say anything? Sorry if these are stupid questions but this is a totally new area for us! Thanks 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colman Posted February 5, 2018 Share Posted February 5, 2018 The teacher really should rehearse that - is she the only one in the class doing it for the first time? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anna C Posted February 5, 2018 Share Posted February 5, 2018 Not a stupid question at all. As Colman says, the teacher should go through this. It's 3 years since dd did Grade 8 but from what I remember, the girls go in holding their character shoes and skirt. The character skirt is folded into a rectangle/square and the shoes placed neatly on top, if that makes sense. That's what happened at dd's dance school but other schools may do this differently (character skirt laid over one arm, for example). The students should really be asked to arrive around an hour before for hair check, warm up, numbers/ribbons to be pinned on, followed by a quick run through of how to go in and where to put their kit. Yes, they line up in number order and enter the room in the same order. Dd's old teacher used to tell the girls the examiner's name and they would respond to the Examiner's "Good morning" with "Good morning, Miss X". Some teachers have unmarked Mock exams or a run-through a week or so before. I would ask the teacher next time you see her. Best of luck to your dd! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dancing unicorn Posted February 5, 2018 Share Posted February 5, 2018 Hiya her teacher should really rehearse this with her but just in case! She’ll have 3 things to carry in, her skirt which is folded and draped over her arm, her character shoes in same hand/arm as skirt and her report slip that the teacher will mark (unless that is already with the examiner!). She walks over to the examiners desk, bows and says either good morning or good afternoon. Waits for the examiner to acknowledge her and then the examiner will ask her to put her skirt and shoes to one side and take her place at the barre. Hope that helps xx Good luck to your dd 🍀 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2dancersmum Posted February 5, 2018 Share Posted February 5, 2018 I'm sure the teacher will go through this with her. As Anna says, you should be arriving well in advance of the exam time. Your DD will be told how to carry in her character skirt and shoes and where to place them in the studio where the exam takes place. Before they exam they all get a number/colour and they line up and enter the room in that order. Dancing unicorn explains what happens well. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glissade Posted February 5, 2018 Share Posted February 5, 2018 For a tongue-in-cheek version of exam etiquette .... https://youtu.be/cQskb7Ug-n4 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwoLeftFeet Posted February 6, 2018 Author Share Posted February 6, 2018 21 hours ago, Colman said: The teacher really should rehearse that - is she the only one in the class doing it for the first time? There are 5 in the class and they are all doing an exam for the first time. Yes, the teacher should rehearse it but hasn't as of yet, so all tips welcome. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dancing unicorn Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 (edited) When is the exam? How old is your dd, could she and the other girls ask the teacher what happens on exam day! I know my girls ask me what happens if they haven’t done one before and we go thru the process. We even get a parent to sit behind the desk to pretend to be the examiner, go outside the door and get in line and do the whole process. This then puts the girls at ease, especially my younger ones. Edited February 6, 2018 by Dancing unicorn 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwoLeftFeet Posted February 6, 2018 Author Share Posted February 6, 2018 20 hours ago, Dancing unicorn said: Hiya her teacher should really rehearse this with her but just in case! She’ll have 3 things to carry in, her skirt which is folded and draped over her arm, her character shoes in same hand/arm as skirt and her report slip that the teacher will mark (unless that is already with the examiner!). She walks over to the examiners desk, bows and says either good morning or good afternoon. Waits for the examiner to acknowledge her and then the examiner will ask her to put her skirt and shoes to one side and take her place at the barre. Hope that helps xx Good luck to your dd 🍀 Thank you very much for your insight - its very helpful 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwoLeftFeet Posted February 6, 2018 Author Share Posted February 6, 2018 2 minutes ago, Dancing unicorn said: When is the exam? Its in two weeks time... getting real now! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colman Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 We do a walk through and a mock even for our adult class. Though we might be more nervous than the kids! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dancing unicorn Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 Haha the older they get the worse they get!!! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Picturesinthefirelight Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 And worst of all is the parents! Its horrible sitting in an exam/audition waiting room with no influence whatsoever over the outcome. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pointetoes Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 1 hour ago, Picturesinthefirelight said: And worst of all is the parents! Its horrible sitting in an exam/audition waiting room with no influence whatsoever over the outcome. And it doesn’t get any easier the older the get and the more exam experience they have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fiz Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 I used to go to a bookshop and browse. Sitting in the dressing room was nerve shredding as were LAMDA exams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drdance Posted February 8, 2018 Share Posted February 8, 2018 Just a note - No report slip will be taken in for RAD exams. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Viv Posted February 10, 2018 Share Posted February 10, 2018 If the teacher hasn't spontaneously volunteered to run through these things yet, I think you would be completely appropriate to ask her to go through it. Perhaps she doesn't even realise that the students are nervous about this. I know before my first exam, when we hadn't gone through all of this, I was incredibly paranoid about all the etiquette requirements. When you're nervous about the exam, you don't need the added stress of 'where do I put my shoes and am I allowed a water bottle'. I think it would be best to clarify with the teacher because every school does this slightly differently. At my school, we line up outside the room in exam order, with our character skirt draped over our left arm (ribbon side facing out) and our character shoes held by the elastics in our left hand. This leaves our right arm free to do a proper curtsy. For grade 4 they will not be allowed water. We then stand in the middle of the room, the examiner says 'good morning' and we say 'good morning Miss/Mr X' with a curtsy to the right, and then 'good morning pianist (Miss/Mr Y)' with a curtsy to the left. The examiner asks each person their name, starting with Number 1. She then asks us to put our things down, which we do in the prearranged boxes on the side of the room. We then wait at the side in the order we've practiced, in first or fourth position with hands clasped loosely in front. When the examiner is ready she asks us to run over to the barre. We practice all of this for the whole term leading up to the exam, we do everything in our exam groups so we get used to the back of the head we'll be looking at in the exam and the precise order of the exercises. At the end of the exam is normally a short reverence, and then the examiner says thank you and you may go. The examiner sometimes talks to you during exams, asks if you have to go back to school after you've finished, that sort of thing, so encourage the girls to be polite and answer her questions with a smile. She's just trying to put you at ease. It's really not the big scary thing we build up in our heads, but it's nice to be prepared 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
balletbean Posted February 11, 2018 Share Posted February 11, 2018 On 05/02/2018 at 14:48, TwoLeftFeet said: Hi all - I'm hoping someone can give us some advice please. My dd is doing her first ballet exam ever - Grade 4 - in two weeks time. As this is her first exam she has no idea of what to do when she arrives. Her friend told her that there is a certain way to hold the character skirt, shoes etc. Her ballet teacher hasn't gone over this yet so I'm hoping that someone could let us know what to expect when dd arrives. Does she line up, does she just walk in and put her things down, does the examiner tell her what bit shes doing next or does she just keep playing the music, is there a certain way to hold things and put them down, does she need to say anything? Sorry if these are stupid questions but this is a totally new area for us! Thanks At many schools the children have a Dress Rehearsal for their exam. We've always had them the last timetabled lesson before their exam. Which can be the week before or just the day before!! This is when parents are invited to stay and observe the class. At the end the teachers take the time to confirm arrival time, uniform requirements, how long the exam should last (times vary depend on the grade and amount of pupils taking the exam at the same time) and examiners name etc. Parents are normally welcome to wait whilst the DC is in the exam. Bring something to read. Depending on the location of dressing/waiting room and its proximity to the studio talking is prohibited because noise travels. It will all be over in a flash. Results can take up to 6 weeks to arrive. Certficates sometimes take a littel bit longer. Good Luck 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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