Royal Ballet School Junior Associates Homework

[MissEmily]

Hello,

 

Would any past or present JA parents be able to tell me what their "homework" entails? Does each child have exercises which are specific to them and what they need to strengthen, or is the whole class set the same homework? What are the exercises?

 

Thank you very much in advance!

[BattementBatty]

We started with a list of general exercises that are supposed to be done 4-5 times per week. Then after a physio visit she was given a couple of personal ones to add to the list. My daughter started in year 6. 
 

The are kind of pilates style conditioning exercises and we were shown how to do them in the first lesson to make sure they are doing them right. The girls do them in their Saturday classes too. 

Edited February 21, 2020 by BattementBatty

[SissonneDoublee]

Metatarsal exercises and conditioning, plus regular written assignments at our centre.

[Dancing unicorn]

Ahhh remember the exercises well! Dd did them from yr4-yr6! 6 days with 1 day off a week, also as part of their weekly class! We were given sheets to fill in daily and these were kept in a folder that the children decorated! Theraband and core work which got harder as the children progressed! The teacher knew if the children weren’t doing the exercises 🤪

 

[Pas de Quatre]

Ha ha, yes a teacher knows! DD always practiced ballet exercises assiduously. However her piano practice was not as regular, so I decided to try a little moral blackmail.  She adored her piano teacher, so I told her Mrs. K will be so disappointed you haven't practised enough. DD was astounded when I told her that teachers can tell. It simply hadn't occurred to her.

Edited February 21, 2020 by Pas de Quatre
Grammar

[BattementBatty]

No written work so far this year!

[sunrise81]

We are in our third year......never had any written homework from Leeda JAs!!!!

[SissonneDoublee]

24 minutes ago, sunrise81 said:

We are in our third year......never had any written homework from Leeda JAs!!!!

We had all sorts when DD was a JA. Labelling anatomy diagrams, annotating ballet photos, writing about the emotion in a piece of music... a really wide variety that got her thinking beyond the studio. She loved it! 

[sunrise81]

Nope none of that! Just the exercises!

[Dancing unicorn]

We had to do painted food prints one time! 😳🦶

[MissEmily]

Gosh! A real variety then! Thank you for all the responses. My little pupil didn't get a place at JAs last year, and of course you can never find out why, so I'm doing my best to provide her with the training she would be receiving myself. I've given her a chart to fill in daily, like @Dancing unicorn described and that seems to be giving her the structure and motivation she needs.

[Bluebird22]

You can call RBS as a teacher to ask for feedback on students after audition, they have notes on everyone. 

[PutYourBooteesOn]

Everyone’s exercises are "customised”, so the positioning of the leg in x stretch etc and DD got some exercises from the physio specifically for her. They have about 10 now, after starting with about 4. They insisted on a specific theraband (bought from them in the first lesson). We’ve never had written work but there was an expectation of keeping their lesson diary/notes. However this has never been checked/marked.  

[MissEmily]

21 hours ago, Bluebird22 said:

You can call RBS as a teacher to ask for feedback on students after audition, they have notes on everyone. 

You CAN?!  This has been killing me since June! So is the paragraph about not contacting them for parents only?!

[Ruby Foo]

49 minutes ago, MissEmily said:

You CAN?!  This has been killing me since June! So is the paragraph about not contacting them for parents only?!

I was under the understanding that it was only a final audition ( White Lodge) that a teacher could ask for feedback but I’m maybe wrong! If you contact them, Mr Annear should call you back at some point. It can take a few weeks.

 

[Bluebird22]

I’ve called about 2 JA auditions and 1 white lodge previously. The White Lodge one was less helpful than the JA one, felt that the WL one simply boiled down to when you’ve made it to finals there isn’t a lot of difference between all the candidates it just boils down to magic on the day. 

[Pas de Quatre]

I have contacted RBS for feedback a few times over the years. It has been Sylvia Hubbard who has called back and she is very helpful. Some of the explanations were quite technical and/or anatomical, which is why they will speak to teachers but not parents.

[MissEmily]

I contacted Sylvia Hubbard yesterday and she responded very kindly, but too much time has passed since May so she couldn't give me any feedback. Presumably they've got rid of her notes. I'm SO frustrated. If she gets another no after this year's audition, I'll phone up straight away. It's good to know they WILL give feedback though as the original email made it sound like they wouldn't under any circumstances.