Dance Teachers Guide to Zoom
Help! I’m a dance teacher, not a tech expert!
During COVID-19, dance teachers are having to quickly adapt to continuing their instruction online.
For many dance teachers, this means experimenting with tools they have little experience with.
The Streamlined Studio team uses Zoom nearly every day to communicate with each other and our clients so it’s safe to say that this isn’t new technology to us. We love Zoom because it makes us feel like we’re in the same room together without leaving the comfort of our own home!
We know that you may feel like you are stepping into uncharted territory and you may have already started feeling overwhelmed.
Rather than spend hours figuring this out with trial and error or worse scrolling through Dance Teacher Network on Facebook, we’ve created “Dance Teachers Guide to Zoom” to ease your mind with the technology part and get back to doing what you do best – teaching dance!
In this guide we are going to answer the most common questions about Zoom that we see in dance teacher forums:
- Do I need a paid or free plan with zoom?
- Why can’t my students hear my voice when I’m playing music?
- How can I protect my students and classes from Zoom bombers?
- How can I record my classes and share them after to anyone who misses?
- How do I run 2 classes at the same time?
- How can I go LIVE in Zoom and Facebook at the same time? And why would I want to?
Before we dive into the how-to’s of the meetings, let’s make sure that you are signed up for the right plan.
To pay or not to pay?
How To Choose The Right Plan
You can choose to utilize the free Zoom services or upgrade to a paid account- but which choice is right for your studio?
How do you decide which Zoom plan is right for your online classes?
Watch this video to learn more about the biggest differences between a free and paid account.
But what about safety and security?
If you are feeling weary about using Zoom because you are scared of ‘Zoom Bombers’, you’re not alone.
Many dance teachers that we’ve talked to have this fear, but rest assured there are settings that you can use to protect your dancers and yourself while hosting online dance classes
…which leads us to our next video…
Settings You Must Check Before Starting Your Class
Watch the video below to learn which settings you need to configure in Zoom to protect your dancers.Â
So now that we have your plan in place and settings for security in check, you may be asking “How can I host 2 classes at the same time?”
This is a common question as many dance studio owners have multiple classes running at the same time in their physical studio.
Stop freaking out friend, the answer is in our next video.
How to Run 2 Classes At Once
If you’re playing music and talking at the same time, your students may have a hard time hearing what you’re saying.
You see, Zoom wasn’t built to have multiple sounds fighting for attention and during the first week of classes many dance teachers experienced glitches in their sound.
Thankfully, Olivia Mode-Cater and the Dance ED Tips figured out the best settings for sound and shared them with us!
Best Settings For Sound and Recording
Video Created by Olivia Mode-Cater (Founder & CEO of Dance ED Tips)
Follow these instructions to make the most of your settings and offer your students crystal clear music!
Now that you have your settings in place, let’s talk about how to schedule your online classes.
Whether you’re going to follow your normal class schedule or modify it for online classes, your dancers will need to know how to access your Zoom room.
Rather than posting your Zoom link all over social media, I recommend using Google Calendar and sharing via email.
…which leads us to our next video…
How to Schedule Your Online Class with Zoom
What if not everyone can watch your class live?
With Zoom, you can record your class and share the recording several different ways.
Watch this next video to learn how you can record your class and access the videos easily.
How to Record Your Class & Access Videos
If you are offering a bonus class to your studio, you can double it as AMAZING marketing content by sharing the LIVE stream to your Facebook page without compromising the safety of your students.
When you share your Livestream to your Facebook page, your viewers on Facebook have limited capabilities. They can not share themselves on video or enter the chat in your Zoom room.
However, they can view your screen and your camera feed which is the most valuable part of the class to an outsider!
In this final video, we are going to show you how to:
How to Share Your Live Stream on Facebook
If you have questions that we did not answer here, please add them to the comments below and we would be happy to help you find the best possible solution.
I know that was a lot of information so here is a little “checklist” to get you started!
- Get a zoom account. >> www.zoom.com
- Plan your classes.
- Go LIVE!
- Have fun and be safe 🙂
Dance teachers, you’ve got this!
We hope these tips will help you feel confident moving forward with your live Zoom classes. We’ve taken care of the technical details so you can focus on putting together the best possible class for your students. If you have any questions, put them in the comments below and we promise to help you find the best solution.
We are here to support you!Â
Your Biggest fan,
Micaela Royer
CEO, The Streamlined Studio
Thank you for this very helpful information!!! I have been so frustrated with trying to listen to a million people on facebook.
I do have a couple of questions.
Is the recording exactly what I am seeing on my screen? I am trying to keep from having my students being recorded as much as possible.
Does it help me or my students hear better if we wear headphones?
Or do some people use a bluetooth speaker to hear me better?
I just want to help my students who have had these questions.
Thanks
Hi Molly! I am so glad that you found this helpful!
Is the recording exactly what I am seeing on my screen? I am trying to keep from having my students being recorded as much as possible. >> Yes, it will record what you see on your screen. To record just yourself, you will need to ‘pin’ your video and then just your camera and a few others will be recorded rather than the entire class. If you click to see all of the screens during the class, that will be part of the recording.
If you are going to wear headphones, this may help your audio for voice but it may be difficult for your headphones to pick up what is playing out of your speaker. I wouldn’t recommend it.
We are publishing a Zoom guide for dancers tomorrow so be sure to share that with them! 🙂
Such great information! I have been trying to find answers to questions and you pretty much covered them all. However, 1. the FB live option… I’m struggling. I found the account setting and made sure to check the FB box, even logged out & back in again to make sure it was still there. I have started a meeting to test it & the option is not to start FB Live is no where to be found!? There is not a “more” option to the bottom right. Any words of wisdom? 2. The music, also found the setting to allow me to “turn off original sound” but when I start a meeting that does not show up on the top right of the screen! All the other sound settings worked & I look forward to testing that tomorrow with a tap teacher! Thank you for such great content!
Hi Kelly! I would be happy to help with these questions.
1) FB LIVE – you may need to uninstall and re-install your Zoom app (or even update it). OR You may need to stretch your Zoom window. Sometimes when it’s too small, you can’t see all of the options.
2) Turn on original sound – I actually see this option on the top left-hand corner of my screen when I’m in a Zoom meeting. To get this feature, open a zoom meeting, click on your microphone icon, select ‘audio settings’ > ‘advanced’ > make sure the box at the top is checked that says ‘Show in-meeting option to ‘enable original sound’
Does this help answer your questions?
Thank you for supporting The Streamlined Studio!
– Micaela
Hello
The music I am playing via itunes with zoom sounds great to me. However my students are hearing it with a 3 second delay.
If I want to dance with them, do I use the timings of my music, or the timings of the music they hear?
Thanks
Hi Rebeccca –
This may be a connection issue. I would suggest directly connecting to your internet by using a phone line cable rather than using wifi.
Personally I would keep dancing with the timing of your music (as long as the delay still matches your video). That way it’s all together. If your video is not delayed and its just the music, then I would suggest moving with the timing that your students hear.
Unfortunately, this may be something that is unavoidable with various wifi speeds between you and your students.
Micaela! Thank you! 1. I am still struggling with the FB live. Last night before I commented I had already updated my Zoom app. I just tried uninstalling & reinstalling it. My screen is full screen and still do not have the more option for FB live. I did verify that my settings are still showing to allow streaming. I don’t know if you have anymore words of wisdom or not… but I have also sent a request to Zoom help, I’m just not too hopeful that it will be answered very quickly.
2. I missed checking that one box! So with your help I fixed that & can now see it.
Thank you again for your great info!
Hmm… when you say you ‘checked’ the facebook box, are you referring to the settings > In meetings (advanced) > and checking those options? After you check those, you must click ‘save’. There is also an option to do this same thing in ‘admin’ settings.
Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge. I’m a zumba instructor trying to use two devices: one for video alone and one for sound and voice so that I can interact with my students as I dance…to no avail. I can’t figure out the settings. I have a USB microphone and considering where I live, that’s all I have access to. Could you help me figure out what I need to do? Thanks
Hi Nana – I’m not quite sure that I understand what you’re asking. You will need to make sure that your music is being picked up by the microphone in order for the students to hear it. If you have a microphone on your computer (most do now days) you shouldn’t need an external one. I would suggest using your computer (or mobile device) for both video and mic.
This has been very helpful. Are you by chance using wireless Bluetooth microphone. Do you think a wireless microphone is even needed.
Hi Monica! Great question! I have no been using a Bluetooth Microphone. I don’t know that it will make a huge difference. If you do use one, test it out and make sure that the sound from your music is being transmitted through your microphone. (I recommend using a speaker other than your computer for music.) Sometimes the mics are really good at blocking out the second source of sound which makes me hesitant to use one.
I hope this helps!
I’m wondering if it is possible to see all of my dance students but the dance kids to not see each other??? It’s opening up a lot of screen shots and posting things that teenagers can do! In not such a nice way!
Hi Tracy, Unfortunately with Zoom, there is not a way to ‘block’ participants from seeing one another’s video. A blurb about screenshots may need to be added to your studio policy. I’m sorry to hear that you’re having this issue!
I take flamenco classes on Zoom. The footwork, in shoes with metal taps, cuts out. Does anyone know why this is happening?
I am trying to teach a few friends some short dances via zoom. How Do I make it so my moves are directionally the same on my and their screens? Right arm up shows everyone right arm, etc.
Hi Gregory! Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to figure this one out yet. We have tried all of the ‘mirrored’ settings on the video and nothing has worked. So far, we have just been mirroring our students (going left as they go right) just like we do when we face them in person.
Hi-thanks for all the information regarding audio settings – I’m excited to try them out today. Have a question concerning video orientation. Essentially, do I mirror or not mirror the video? Up until now I have been the using the standard setting on this, and when I teach I reverse things right away on my left. I’ve noticed some of kids are starting to get confused about which way to go….so now I’m confused! Thanks!
Hi Erica – Unfortunately the mirrored view setting only changes the way that you see you screen. It has no impact on how your students see you. I have just been reversing choreography to teach them the correct way to do things but it does get confusing.
Thank you so much for all this helpful advice. I am sharing my music (I-tunes) through sharing my computer sound. For me speaking I am just using the microphone built-in to my laptop. However, when I move away from my laptop to go over the dance steps before I put the music on, the others are having difficulty hearing me, we are just a very small social class and normally don’t need to use a microphone, but would a wireless microphone work do you think? I don’t want to go and buy one if it makes no difference. Many thanks again.
Hi Vonnie – Thanks for checking out our Zoom Guide for Dance Teachers. I am so glad that you found it helpful! I do think a mic would help. It sounds like you might just be too far away from your computer. I would also double check your sound settings to make sure that it’s coming in at the highest level possible. Best of luck with your class! 🙂
Hi guys, sorry if this is a silly question but how to i Create the classes but have other teachers host them? Do they need to log into my zoom account? Will that mean the name showing on their screen will be mine?
Hi Lydia!
You can launch the classes, then have your teachers join, and assign them as co-hosts to take over from there. They may need to use your account depending on the class and their Zoom account type (to assure they don’t get kicked off after 40 minutes). You can always change your user name in Zoom, even during a meeting.
Hope this helps!
HI,
I was wondering if you have any advice for legal protection from the possibility of being sued when teaching an online dance class. I can’t find much information that is specific to online dance classes in my searches for liability waivers or advice. Any recommendations for good legal advice to protect ourselves online?
Thanks!
Crystal
Hi Crystal, I am not a lawyer and can not suggest any legal advice. I spoke with my local insurance agent about this and he recommends that dance teachers discuss this with their local agent to determine coverage and waivers. I hope this helps!
Thanks for your response Micaela. In doing more searching it seems that many online dance and yoga classes have a waiver that people have to agree to when they join the class. I’m going to check with a local attorney for the best wording and then do that.
Hello – Thank you for all the information. We have dancers record themselves and then review the dances during class. Our videos are glitching and not playing correctly. Is there a setting that I should be changing?
Thanks!
Hello – Thank you for all the information. We have dancers record themselves and then review the dances during class
Hi great videos a great help , when I go to advance to disable I can only see
Signal processing by windows audio device driver auto , on (windows default) off ( windows Raw )
Echo cancellation , auto , or aggressive
I don’t see the three options you have can you help , thanks
Hi Lynn!
Zoom has updated since this blog post but we can try to help you out! Also, know that the settings available to adjust differ between devices. Laptops have the most advance options; some tablets and mobile devices have very limited options.
Here are some possibilities:
When you open the settings and click the Audio tab, do you have a ‘Suppress background noise” with a dropdown about half way on the window? You can select low.
Do you have the option to check ‘Show in-meeting optoin to “Enable Original Sound” from microphone? If you do, check it and select disable echo cancellation.
Hope this helps!