A note from Jen, “Head Monkey Wrangler” of Akrosphere Aerial & Circus Arts:
I wanted to share with all students, both new and old, some tips on how to be a good student so they can reap all the benefits of instruction while in circus arts classes! And so, I give you “How to Be a Good Student”:
Come to your circus arts class prepared:
This means wearing the right clothing, both for you and the apparatus with which you’ll be working. No zippers, sequins, buttons, jewelry, or excessively long nails.
This also means having your hair tied away from and out of your face. Hair that can fall into your face becomes a safety hazard when you’re on the apparatus, and we want to keep you safe!
Come to class clean; no one wants to spot a smelly, dirty child. =)
Bring your water bottle. Forgot it? Not a problem – we have a water fountain right in the gym!
Bring your notebook and a pen/pencil. Use these items!!! More to come on that in a little bit…
Know when to have fun but also when to zip it.
I mean Circus Arts should be fun! With that said, we also want them to work hard. If instructors are speaking, students should be listening, both with their eyes and their ears. Also, please be mindful of the fact that there are other classes going on, so overly loud conversations can be really overwhelming when other classes are happening and music is playing.
Don’t be a hog!!! We keep classes small to ensure safety and also to maximize time spent with each student. What this means, though, is that most of our students will have to share the apparatus with a peer or two. Don’t be that student that doesn’t share. Everyone wants a turn, not just you, Sally SelfishPants.
Speaking of sharing the apparatus…what to do when it’s not your turn? Remember those notebooks I mentioned earlier? This is a great time to use them! If you’re not on the apparatus, take a moment or two to jot down notes on the skill you just learned (ahem, including its name) or to make a list of the conditioning exercises that we did in warmups. There is ALWAYS something to take note of in Circus Arts class.
Another idea for down time when it’s not your turn? Condition, condition, condition! Or stretch. There is always something you can be doing even if you’re not on the apparatus. Stretch those shoulders/forearms, work your straddle, practice your circus pushups, hold a hollow body. Do something!
Be respectful.
To your instructor. Your 6th grade friends might think your sass and sarcasm is hilarious, but I don’t. Check your sarcasm at the door and leave it in your cubby with your shoes. Please and thank you! You can leave the fight there, too. What’s the fight, you ask? It’s the hard time your kids give when we ask them to do something they don’t want to do, like climbing on their bad side, let’s say. Instructors love pleasant attitudes and a willingness to listen and learn, just sayin’. =)
To others. We try to foster an encouraging and supportive atmosphere for all of our students. Be nice to each other, please. We all know how difficult Circus Arts can be sometimes, so let’s lift each other up with kind words!
To yourselves. Again, we all know how hard Circus is. Not every class will be splits and smiles. Be gentle with yourselves and be patient with the process. Not every trick happens overnight, but that’s part of the fun! <3
Put in the work, both in class and outside of circus arts class:
When you’re in class, doing a move once doesn’t make you an expert. Please don’t do the move once and then look at your instructor to teach you another trick. It has been estimated that it takes 10,000 hours to master something, so doing it one or two times doesn’t mean anything in the grand scheme of things. Practice it over and over until it becomes seamless, and make sure to train both sides!
We have Open Gyms on Tuesdays from 4-6pm and Saturdays from 1-3pm for all apparatuses. Circus is way easier and strength will come much faster if you’re working on it more than once a week in class, I promise you! Open Gym is included in the cost of all classes except for Akronauts; please take advantage of it!
To sum up, now you know how to be awesome students in your circus arts classes! Obviously, we coaches genuinely love what we do, but we especially love our jobs when we have pleasant students who are well behaved and eager to learn. Positivity goes a long way, y’all.
