The Practicum
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The practicum was designed to be flexible just for you!
Each certificate in Aerial Fabric, Trapeze, Hoop, Rope and Sling involves 30 hours of live training and 20 hours of practicum completed on your own/online. For Aerial Yoga and Pilates for Aerialists, the live training is 60 hours and the practicum is 40 hours. Once you've submitted your practicum plan, begin logging your hours on the Application for Certificate document. Need to download these documents? Click here. |
Logging Hours
I'm loving the scope that my practicum plan offers. It would be very easy for me to just continue teaching and have 20 hours done in 4-5 weeks. Having this plan enables me to sit down and reflect on what I'm doing, gain insight from others, self-examine and most importantly, try something a different way. I'm really enjoying your methodology!!! |
Observation Hours: During a class observation, sit on the sidelines with your notebook so you can see all the students and take notes. Taking the class for yourself does not count! Sitting out and observing helps you focus on the teacher's point of view.
The classes you observe must be in the field of study that match the type of certificate for which you are applying. For example, if you are working on a Level 1 Fabric Certificate, you should observe a beginning fabric class. There are a wide range of things to write about in a class. Consider how the teacher organizes the class, how they cue through the skills, how they make their presence felt around the room, etc. See the Aerial Teacher's Handbook for an observation template. The possibilities are endless! Make notes on the observation sheet regarding the things that particularly stood out to you. Don't forget to bring your observation sheet so that you can get the signature of the teacher that you observed. We recommend doing at least 3 hours of observation; however, this is not required since some of our trainees do not have other classes in their area to observe. If there are other teachers in the area that you can observe, we recommend you take advantage of the opportunity. "Being a Student" Hours: Sometimes it's good to be a student again. Especially if you haven't been on in a while because you've been teaching. As you take class note the things that you enjoy and the things that perhaps aren't so enjoyable. Reflect on how you can take the positive elements into your own classes. When you take a class, it needs to be in the specialty area in which you are looking to get certified. Since the focus of this certification program is to transition you from student to teacher, we limit this category to 3 hours maximum.
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Mentorship Hours: Mentorships are an optional add-on for the practicum. Choose your mentor, and choose the topic! You might discuss your curriculum, class structure, or troubleshoot student issues like physical plateaus or emotional resistance. Purchase hours through our store, and your mentor will contact you about setting up an online conversation.
Self-Practice Hours: Perhaps you realized after taking the teacher training how much you need to work on cueing. Spending time simply going through moves while cueing yourself is beneficial for your journey. If you need time to process the training, this might be where you spend some of your hours. We don't want you spending all your time here, so you can only devote up to 3 hours in this category. (These hours are recommended, but not required.)
Assistant Teaching Hours: Assisting another teacher (primarily spotting) is HIGHLY recommended if you have not yet done any solo or lead teaching. Just as we emphasize the value of progression for our students, it is just as important for teachers in training. Working under another instructor is a great way to ease your way into teaching. If you do not have teaching experience, start with some hours here, then progress to teaching private lessons, then semi-privates, then groups.
Teaching Hours: If you are less experienced in teaching, we recommend teaching private lessons at first. You can progress to lead teaching classes with an experienced instructor supervising or assisting you. If you already run your own program, by all means, continue on and teach those groups. Or, mix it up and do some private lessons and some group lessons. Apply the knowledge that you learned in the teacher training and reflect on how its making a difference in your teaching. What are you now noticing that might not have been apparent before? What moments stand out in your teaching? Please share these moments with us on your documentation forms. A minimum of 5 teaching hours are required for each 20 hour practicum. Your 2 RTAP hours are separate from this requirement.
Self-Practice Hours: Perhaps you realized after taking the teacher training how much you need to work on cueing. Spending time simply going through moves while cueing yourself is beneficial for your journey. If you need time to process the training, this might be where you spend some of your hours. We don't want you spending all your time here, so you can only devote up to 3 hours in this category. (These hours are recommended, but not required.)
Assistant Teaching Hours: Assisting another teacher (primarily spotting) is HIGHLY recommended if you have not yet done any solo or lead teaching. Just as we emphasize the value of progression for our students, it is just as important for teachers in training. Working under another instructor is a great way to ease your way into teaching. If you do not have teaching experience, start with some hours here, then progress to teaching private lessons, then semi-privates, then groups.
Teaching Hours: If you are less experienced in teaching, we recommend teaching private lessons at first. You can progress to lead teaching classes with an experienced instructor supervising or assisting you. If you already run your own program, by all means, continue on and teach those groups. Or, mix it up and do some private lessons and some group lessons. Apply the knowledge that you learned in the teacher training and reflect on how its making a difference in your teaching. What are you now noticing that might not have been apparent before? What moments stand out in your teaching? Please share these moments with us on your documentation forms. A minimum of 5 teaching hours are required for each 20 hour practicum. Your 2 RTAP hours are separate from this requirement.
Documents
1. Submit practicum plan:
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Aerial Fabric, Trapeze, Hoop, Rope, Sling
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Aerial Yoga, Pilates for Aerialists, Aerial Barre
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2. Log practicum hours:
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3. Are your hours complete?
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Film yourself teaching and submit for feedback.
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