We'll help you find your groove
Links
Questions?
If you have any questions or would like to book a class, you can contact us by e-mail;
or you can call us at;
519.994.4788
Private lessons available by appointment
We are located at:
155 Suffolk Street West
Unit 2A (2nd Floor)
Guelph, Ontario, N1H 5C1
The corner of Suffolk and Yorkshire, one block north of GCVI.
| At Groove Studios we believe that dancing should be fun. Instead of focusing on ‘dance levels’, we structure our classes to increase the natural ability and confidence of each individual. In essence, our goal is to turn people into relaxed, fun, stylish, social dancers, giving them the ability to get up and dance when they feel like dancing. |
SNAP Dance
Teaching Method
(Simple Natural Attention Progression)
What sets Groove Studios apart from all other dance studios is their “SNAP” Dance Teaching Method, a system of teaching designed to change the way the student thinks about dancing. Many studios bombard their students with technical information, which leaves the student feeling that they can't learn or don't have the talent. Most of the “technique” in ballroom dancing is actually quite natural. The problem arises when the student is presented with too much information too soon. This causes the student to repeat and practice steps in an awkward manner due to over-concentration. It is not our physical limitations that stop us from being able to learn how to dance, but it's the way we think that prevents our bodies from moving the way we want them to.
At Groove Studios, we start by introducing a few, easy dance steps and then repeat the same movement to other types of dance music. This helps you feel the music right away, allowing you to focus on getting into the groove, rather than trying to remember patterns. Once you can feel the music consistently, we start differentiating the dance steps that go with the different types of music. If one starts learning too many patterns at the start, they will end up looking and feeling rigid. To look natural with your dancing, you must be able to do it without thinking too much. Just like riding a bike, once you've done it enough, it comes naturally.
In any sport or activity, physical tension and over-tightness of certain muscles prevents good performance. This physical tension is caused mostly by over-thinking & self-analyzing. The “SNAP” dance teaching method works primarily by breaking down mental processes like over-concentration, expectations, self doubt and over-correction that usually create physical tension. This paves a way for the student to learn faster than they thought possible. In this way, the student can learn and confidently perform something like a 3 minute routine in front of 150 people for their wedding in just 5 lessons.
Personal Ability and Rate of Learning
I have danced with many people over the years, some with fantastic ability and some with little ability. The people that I have enjoyed dancing with the most were not always the people that were the, so called, ‘better dancers’. In fact, some of the best dancers were the worst to dance with and vice versa. This is because the people who were trying to attain an end result were never happy because they had not reached it yet. It is like being on an endless road trip with a person who is frantic about getting to their destination yesterday, looking at everyone else traveling down the road, wondering why they are smiling and why my car can't go any faster. That's not fun. They defy the whole purpose of the trip. Dancing is truly about enjoying the journey, not the destination.
One of the most wonderful things about people is that they are all different. They look different, act different, think different, and have acquired so many different skills, skills that no one man or woman can possess. This is why you cannot compare yourself to others. It is a fact that everyone can learn, but everyone has a different motivation behind their desire to learn. If your reason to learn is to achieve the ‘end result’, then you will surely find yourself disappointed. There is no end result because the reason we dance or learn to dance is to enjoy the now. In fact, that is what dancing is all about. Enjoy the process and you will go much further, learn much faster and obtain the true joy & meaning of dancing. Besides, you'll look like a better dancer if you're enjoying it, and that isn't an end result, but a constant effect.