O.k. I have learned in order to paint a picture in the child head of how to do first postion is to tell them to make their heals kiss. What Other things do you say that fall along the same line? I need some ideas, please! Thank you! Kim L.

To help with posture, I've heard a teacher say to pretend your head is a balloon and your body is floating down like the string. For posture during plies, I pretend we're a piece of toast in a toaster- if we stick our bellies or bottoms out, then OUCH! it's too hot!

For points/tendus to the side, I say the body is a train station and the foot is a train. (Works best if you're on a wood floor with lines between the slats, or if you can put a line of tape down) Stand with toes on the line ("train track"), and slide the "train" out along the traintrack to pick up the people and bring them into the station. If their bodies wiggle, I ask them astonishedly if buildings move- they giggle no, and I remind them to keep their station bodies strong and sturdy as a building.

Depending on the age of the children you are teaching there are a couple things you can tell them. For preschool or kindergarten aged children bring a picture of a penguin. You can have them stand like one(they love acting out what animals do). Have them try walking around with their heels touching, etc. You can also have them stand in parallel with their feet touching side by side. Have them open their toes out, keeping their heels touching creating a piece of pie or pizza. You can then go around to each student and have them tell the class what flavor of pie or what do they have on their pizza. Most students like to have a big piece so if you see them closing their first position tell them that their slice is getting smaller. They will usually fix it right away.

Oh, I love when I get creative images for little ones, thanks. Here are a few I use:
when teaching passe I tell my young dancers that they are making a little bed for their baby (the bed is the arch of their foot) and if they "press" their arch onto their leg, they will wake up the baby.
point : goodbye toes!
flex : hello toes!
I found a book a few years ago that I love - Magic Kingdom of Dance. I came across it on the internet and ordered it before I realized it was my mother's first dance teacher, Mary Alpha Johnson! It is just full of wonderful images for little dancers.
kinni

When I am teaching first position I like to tell them to pretend that their feet are the pages of a book and they 'open the book' to 1st position. For arms I tell them to pretend they are holding a big ball and they put the ball down when they do plies....hope that helps!

For first possition - I've used, "open the book" "heels kissing" and my photographer last year asked my dancers to make "pizza feet" - go figure!

For eleve - talk about an "elevator" eleve-elevator - I can sometimes see the light bulbs going off over their heads on that one!

For walks across that floor - two things, one that they are walking on a tight rope (circus tight rope walkers) and for quality of movement for walks I suggest that they are walking on the tops of the clouds and I don't want them to fall through.

How are are the students you are looking for images for?