Targeting Technique: The Series Introduction

Technique – a way of carrying out a particular task, especially the execution or performance of an artistic work or a scientific procedure.

Yes. I just opened with the most cliche way to introduce something. It is important. I promise. 

We are continuously finding creative ways to execute skills. This has been evolving at a RAPID speed. Technique blocks do not look the same as they did 20 years ago, and that is a GREAT thing! Winter Guard International was founded in 1977. My mom is older than that (barely…but still) This is only the beginning of our art form and it shows through the evolution the sport has experienced in just in this decade! So many skills and tricks that are posted on social media and something that is sometimes missing is the how! HOW did you get to where you could do a double turn around? Why can you do that many fishtails? HOW did you do that fast, intricate movement? 

Let’s break down this definition:

A way: not THE way, but one of many.

of carrying out a particular skill: there are too many skills to count in our activity 

especially the execution of performance of: solid technique can make execution stronger, less of an understanding lowers the execution 

an artistic work or a scientific procedure: we are a mix of both things.

The members of this community who are paving the way for all of us have a history of HARD work that we don’t see. We didn’t see all the hard work it took to get to where they are. It is imperative to stress to all of our young students that the hard work and technical abilities are what lead them to the crazy tricks. 

Please note: It is important to remember that the people pushing the envelope in the activity are people who don’t have ONE specific way to teach. They take little bits of information they have gathered from their teachers and make it THEIR OWN. Stealing is the biggest form of flattery in the arts. 

There is not one right way to train a group. Everyone has their styles – it is imperative to keep that!!! There ARE more informative and educational ways that can reach as many students as possible. And that is what we want to explore – different ways to explore technique. 

My Background

My relationship with the importance of technique has evolved over the past decade. I never did drum corps or marched world class finalist winter guards, but I could spin. I learned when I was 4 years old when my parents put me as the cute little prop that ran around the floor for a cute distraction in a 1998 performance of “Sludge” – yes, that is true. In the years to come, everything just happened so naturally for me. I was throwing consistent quads by 6th grade, spinning Byron Valentine sabre work in 8th grade, and I didn’t have to put much effort into doing those things- I just did them.

I sat through technique blocks thinking about food and trashy TV shows, and was young and didn’t care about this incredible information that was being talked at me. That habit continued as I got older because it was easy to go through our spin medley. I could do it in my sleep. Not ONE time until I was 19 did I actually think about WHY we had technique or the HOW of doing all the cool tricks I was asked to perform. I was lucky. I didn’t need to think about it…..or so I thought. 

I started teaching summer clinics with Fred J. Miller when I was 18. I went to a camp when I was in middle school, had a good time, and had friends who taught there and had cool stories – I thought it would be a fun way to make money, travel, and spin. What I didn’t know as a naïve 18 year old was that I was NOT as good as I thought. Shocking, I know. I tried to get through world class rifle work we were teaching that summer and continued to fall short in perfecting it.

I could do everything that was asked of me but man, it did not look good. I had to teach technique to hopeful students all summer. We taught a routine that had drop spins, thumb flips, cones, and pull hits – the basics that most guards practice across the country. I could do all of the things but understanding the intricacies and teaching those to students of all types of abilities: I was NOT ready for this. 

How could I have gone this long with not having a strong understanding of these things I did every single day?! This was my a-ha moment, my turning point when it came to education. Now, there will be plenty of time to discuss my journey throughout this series. It is time to dive into how YOU can start to transform your teaching. 

My theory: When an activity comes easily to someone, like math or cooking, it is harder to teach to others because you never had to LEARN. You just knew. 

Notice I didn’t say impossible, just harder. This journey was HARD to trek through. There was a lot of doubt, there was a lot of deep thinking, and there was failing. I needed a way to link my education background and my guard background. This past summer, after so many trials, collaboration, and lots of late nights, I discovered a deeper way to think about technique and get our students to do the same! 

This winter season, I taught a Regional A winter guard made of 17 middle schoolers and 5 high schoolers. Over a third of these students started color guard in November. We needed to approach technique in a different way if we wanted these young girls to execute and compete with older and more experienced groups. We used the broad approach and the results were significant. Through this technique series, we will explore how to create this system for your groups and how to more powerfully use technique in everything you do. 

Actionable Steps to Transform Your Teaching

As an educator, you are taught that the highest form of understanding is evaluation. Can your students evaluate their work and show what broad skills they applied?

Before we dig deep into our technique series, here is step one: Think of adjectives that you use to describe the movements you need within different techniques. You should not just say, “do a tendu to learn how to point”. There is a broader reason for this skill; to lengthen, to stretch – all things students can relate to other dance skills. When thinking about teaching technique, taking this approach has proven to be more educational  in the long run when added with effective questioning and other teaching staples. 

Here is an exercise to help train your brain to this new way of thinking: take a common technique you use in your groups (drop spin, tendu, a dip) and think of the broader skills that your students are gaining by practicing these skills. Make a list and brainstorm a HOW and a WHY for each ‘broad’ skill. 

Example: 

Feel free to come up with your own actionable words and share them with us! We want to see what you create. We will dive into more actionable words for equipment technique and how to develop this curriculum with your growing programs throughout the summer – here’s to the first step in your journey!