The modeling event at baton competitions can seem confusing to the "outsider" and the modeling event itself has been debated in the baton twirling world. While modeling does not necessarily demonstrate the athleticism of the sport, modeling does add value to the development of our students. Here are several reasons why we love the modeling event.
Modeling is an event that has the competitor follow a "T" formation. The judge is evaluating the appearance, confidence in walking, turns and pivots and quality of the interview portion. Once the twirler learns the technique of the modeling routine, there are many long-term benefits to this event.
First, twirlers learn how to walk confidently. Key areas that we teach are walking with shoulders back, eyes up and smoothly walking in the required pattern. Being able to walk confidently is important to students when they grow up and have to enter a room for a job interview, college interview or a meeting where first impressions make a difference.
Second, we teach twirlers how to be confident in an interview situation. The modeling event has an interview component where the judge asks the twirler age appropriate questions and the twirler answers. We teach our students to walk to the judge confidently, sit down in a chair with grace and answer questions with complete sentences and carry on a conversation about a wide range of topics. This skill is invaluable as twirlers begin to interview for their first jobs and even their professional jobs.
Third, we teach our students to take pride in their appearance and pay attention to details. Details matter in first impression situations and feeling confident about your appearance and style leads to even greater success. We work with our twirlers to ensure that their costumes and outfits are flattering to their skin color, hair color and personal attributes.
Interested in learning more about this event and competitions? Send us a message at info@dance-twirlmn.com!