General Guidelines For Succinct Cueing
Cindy Kluchar, M.S.
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The better you cue your program, the more effective your program will be.  If your cueing is poor, students will tell you they could not follow what you were doing.  Students will become frustrated and may not return to your class again.  You could also jeopardize yor students' safety with poor cueing.

Use the guidelines below to help you become proficient with your cueing:

1. Do not cue too late.  Late cueing is the Number One fault of novice instructors.  If you cue too late, your movements will be completed before you give the instruction to perform the movement.  During the last two to four beats before your upcomingchange (I call this the "cue window"), issue your cue.  Complete your cue just before you begin the actual physical movement or change.

Example:

You are marching in place and want to issue the command to add a grapevine to the right.  During the last four beats of your march, count down the beats as follows: "...Let's do 4 more, 3, 2, now grapevine to your right..."

2. Do not cue too early.  If you cue too early and your movementor transtion doesn't take place immediately following the cue, your students will be confused and will possibly trip up.  Keep your cues within the cue window, i.e., the last two to four beats prior to the transition.

3. Never count down to one (1).  If you count down to one, then you have no time remaining in your cue window to successfully perform your next movement.  Cue before you reach one.

4. Avoid long, drawn-out verbal instructions.  For example,  "Okay, now we're going to walk up four counts then grapevine to the right and left, then add two step touches."  Students rarely pay attention to these instructions and, in fact, don't want to decipher anything verbally complicated.  Instead, break up your instructions in to sections or blocks.  Cue each block separately.  Then add the blocks together and issuye one cue for the combined segment after the students have learned the individual blocks.

Example:

"Grapevine to your right.  Walk forward 4.  Grapevine to your left.  Walk backward 4." (Repeated)

"Now, Grapevine left and Walk forward 4.  Grapevine right and Walk backward 4." (Repeated)

"Let's call this a grapevine box"  "Try it again..."

"Grapevine box right........now Grapevine box left"

5. Cue according to your students' abilities.  For example, if you teach a beginners' step class, you must cue what foot will be on the step platform (e.g., "right Basic  ").  Beginners also like to hear the countdown of beats before transitions and especially when doing repetitive movements.  If you teach an advanced class, you can usually omit counting the beats and omit instructing which foot is leading.

6.  Add motivational cues where appropriate.  Students always work a little harder when they feel they are being challenged and motivated by the instructor.

Example:

"Everyone is doing a super job!  I think you can do 4 more lunges...Go! 4..3..2....."

7. Don't panic when it doesn't work as planned!  If your class seems to be all out of step and your cueing isn't helping, remain calm.  At the next new 32-count phrase, cue th eclass back to something basic and neutral.  I call it "neutral" because directional changes are easy to make from this position or step, e.g., heel lifts.  Then cue which foot everyone should re-start with.

Example:

"...let's take this back to march in place on 4...3...2...March Right Left"  Reiterate the lead foot that students should be on.) "Right...left"

8. Break up difficult choreography into smaller segments.  This will keep your cueing less complicated and less difficult to verbalize.  Cue your class into a holding pattern (e.g., step touches)  when previewing or presenting new or complex footwork.

9. Smile when you miscue!  You will miscue movements; you may even speak gibberish.  Sometimes, no cues come out at all! It's all a part of teaching.  All instructors experience this!  Don't dwell on your mistakes.  Smile, apologize to the class, but keep the class moving!

10. Use big visual or animated cues with your body.  Use your arms, hands, or entire body to indicate a new pattern or movement is coming.

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