Being a coach for any team can be incredibly overwhelming, and this is especially true if you are also a young teacher. Finding a balance between your day job and your coaching gig is like walking a tightrope, and if you are not careful, you may topple over. If you are a new dance team coach, then you may quickly learn that coaching a dance team involves more work than you initially realized.
Our keys to a successful dance team and season are as follows;
- Fostering a Family-Like Environment
- Building Leadership
- Rules and Expectations
- Keeping a Schedule
- Fundraising, Major Purchases, and More!
From the first day you accepted the position as coach of the school’s dance team, you were most likely bombarded with questions about costumes, dance camp and choreographers. Oh and the “dance moms” asking the questions, they typically don’t want to wait for you to find out those answers.
The good news is that getting control of your team and learning to balance work life with dance team life is absolutely do-able though.
Our list for a successful dance season is not exhaustive; it is actually very basic. If you are going to run a successful dance team you will learn that there is so much more that goes on behind the scenes, but this list is a great place to get started. Keep reading to learn more about the basics of running a successful dance team.
How Do I Create a Family Environment?
Creating a family environment takes time. Teamwork building is crucial in the early days of dance team practice.
Typically, dance team tryouts occur at the end of a school year and practice begins in April and May for the next school year.
Of course, your dance team will more than likely attend a dance camp over the summer, so using those early days as team-building efforts can greatly boost the environment of your dance team.
Be aware that some dance moms are no friend to the careful loving, supportive team environment that you create. In fact, there could be some dance moms who are far more successful at tearing down positivity than embracing it.
Getting the dance moms on your side early is an important step in building this family environment.
Related post: Why Coaches Should Encourage Parents to Attend Sports Practice
Our favorite tactic for getting dance moms on board is to let them feel like they are a part of the decision-making process (though this doesn’t mean you need to action everything they suggest).
Finally, having your dance team feel like a family is important for their success. Dance teams need to move together as if each individual child was one person melded together.
You are never going to achieve that kind of cohesiveness if you do not put in the effort to build a positive environment for your team.
Read: What Does A Team Parent Do? 17 Ways To Stop A Coaches Headache
Dance Team Leadership
Having the right girls in leadership positions on your team will make all of the difference.
Typically, dance captains are chosen through a combination of seniority and try-out scores.
We will make the point, though, that as the coach you will have the opportunity to write your own rules regarding how leadership positions are chosen (more on that later.)
We strongly urge you to consider allowing the girls to ‘apply’ for leadership positions within your team. Having the right child in a leadership position can really take the pressure off of you as a coach.
By moving beyond the simple seniority and technique model, you will be able to truly see the potential in your girls. The more experienced girls are not always the most motivated leaders and that can make a huge difference.
Interested in learning about choosing captains? Check out this post.
Setting Up Rules and Expectations
Setting up a handbook for your dance team can be an extraordinarily daunting task. After all, whatever it is that you put in this handbook will be the guiding force for your team for an entire school year.
This dance team handbook has been refined over several years of learning experiences, and we can share the tips and tricks with you. However, keep in mind that you should make your handbook your own.
Here is a brief description of each of the sections in our dance team handbook:
The Overview: This is where you describe yourself as a coach. Detail goals for the dance team in this section. The idea is to give the girls a fair idea of what to expect during their time on the dance team.
Eligibility Requirements: This is very important. What are the requirements for your team to remain eligible to dance? Do they need a certain GPA? How many excused/unexcused practices are they allowed? Also, review school policies regarding physicals, drug tests, insurance liability, etc.
Dancer Responsibilities: Young dancers need a very clear layout of the expectations placed on them. We believe you should give the dancers a very specific outline of what is expected from them at each of the following events:
- Practices
- Choreography/Dance Camp
- 3) Game Day/Performances, 4) Fundraisers.
Lay out your expectations for behavior, conduct, attire, and routines for each of these events.
Merits and Demerits: You will quickly learn that you may sometimes get a phone call from one of your athletes’ teachers regarding both positive and negative behavior in the classroom.
Why don’t you implement the classic system of merits and demerits?
Include this section in the handbook so that dancers are aware from the very beginning what the rewards and punishments are for merits and demerits.
Keeping a Schedule
Scheduling dance practice can be a bit of a headache – but trust us on this one!
Especially if you have dancers who simultaneously dance for a competitive dance studio, you may find that scheduling conflicts happen more often than not.
Scheduling weekly, recurring practices is absolutely the best formula when working with dance team scheduling.
An even better practice is to announce those weekly practices before tryouts. Dancers who dance for a competitive studio will be able to work for their studio classes around your weekly practices.
Fundraising, Major Purchases, and More!
Being a member of middle or high school dance team can quickly become expensive.
Parents will immediately look to you for advice about how much fundraising will be done by the team and how much they will realistically expect to spend on the dance team.
Fundraising
Learning how to effectively fundraise truly is an art. Parents expect to fundraise, but they do not want to have to pedal candles door to door in their neighborhood. Therefore, fundraising becomes a creative endeavor. You will have to find what works for you, but we are going to list a few of the great successes below.
Host a School Formal
Hosting a middle school winter formal can be a large money maker for you.
Middle school students typically do not get a prom and they crave the same fun experiences their older siblings get to enjoy.
Hosting a semi-formal for middle school students requires renting a building and gathering some decorations, but for the most part your dancers are able to get most of the leg work done.
This is a good opportunity for the team to practice some dance moves too!
Sell Candy-Cane Grams
This is a quick and easy fundraiser than can be done with virtually any holiday.
Simply sell the grams for $1, have the students fill out a form, attach a message to a piece of candy and deliver!
What Do We Need to Purchase?
Each girl needs a dance team uniform. Most dance teams have two uniforms: one for basketball season and one for football season. The team will also need jazz shoes and hip hop shoes for wear on the football field. Additionally, the team needs pom poms that coordinate with their uniforms for pom routines.
Further, most schools purchase two or three matching outfits to wear to dance camp. These same outfits can be worn in parades or casual performances at later dates if desired.
Your dance team will also want to attend a dance camp, these are hosted in each state and usually occur on a college campus. This can get expensive, so you want to start crunching numbers as soon as you can.
Do I Need to Hire Help?
We met a teacher who had hired a local dance teacher to ‘clean’ dances for her. Depending on your expertise, that could be an expense that you decide to cut.
If you have never had any experience in the world of competitive dance, then you may want to consider reaching out to local dance studios or college dance programs for part-time help.
Summary: Beginner Dance Team Coaching Tips for School Coaches
Coaching a dance team is tiring and at times it can be quite stressful, but there are a lot of things a coach can do to proactively eliminate stress.
Following this guide will help create a solid foundation for a successful dance team and an extremely enjoyable dance season.
Cheers,
Emma
