Teacher’s Corner: Cueing for Accuracy and Inspiration
Cueing is a Yoga Instructor’s primary tool for communicating movement to a class. We cue visually through demonstration, physically with hands-on assists (with consent), and verbally, by identifying specific body parts or evoking sensations through creative language.
I grew up in a dance studio and my dance teacher’s language was absolute magic for inspiring quality of movement. He asked us to “paint the walls with our feet”, or more terrifyingly, “Imagine your vertebrae are dry biscuits. Land softly when you jump so they don’t crumble”. These cues translated into tangible changes in my movement. I more strongly anchored my pelvis so I could reach further in grand rond de jambe, taking up space both physically and energetically. I kept my core strong and stable in order to move quickly and fully articulate my feet for petite allegro.
And yet, nothing in these cues says anything about what specifically to do with specific body parts. Of course I did not get all of that as a brand new dancer. At this point Bruce was giving direction to his advanced classes. After many years under his guidance, we had the scaffolding from which we could expand and create.
In Yoga classes I was hearing cues like “ground through your feet”, “lead with your heart”, “swan dive”. Beautiful, inspirational…and not super specific. As an experienced mover, these cues didn’t fluster me. However, as I started observing classes for teacher training, I noticed how absolutely confusing they were for brand new students.
My teacher training did emphasize specificity and accuracy, but translating that to a class that you have to keep moving and engaged is another story. This was a discussion topic between my cohorts. Some were strictly in favor of anatomical accuracy. Others had a looser approach.
“Communication only works if the person receiving it understands what you’re saying”
When I started teaching, I leaned towards anatomical accuracy and giving precise cues about what to do with what body parts: “Step your right foot forward and place it to the outside of your right hand. Externally rotate your femur 45 degrees”. Precise and accurate, but only if you know what external rotation is and how the heck to do that to your femur. Communication only works if the person receiving it understands what you’re saying.
I was noticing just as much confusion on the faces of students as I did when I used cues like “root through your hands”. So I thought about what exactly I’m looking for when I take a yoga class. Education and accuracy is nice, but I really want guidance through fulfilling movement. Whatever that means to me that day. I want someone else to make decisions for me for one hour. I’m not looking for an anatomy workshop at my weekly yoga class.
Now that I’ve got several years of experience under my belt, I’ve loosened up a lot in how I cue. When I’m working with regular students I like to encourage quite a bit of freedom when we are moving for exploration, and precision for working towards a specific goal. Feet are a “comfortable distance apart” when relaxing in forward fold, but “hips-width” when working on stability in chair pose or lunge.
If I’m working with new movers, my cues become more specific in order to build their vocabulary and build confidence. We break things down even further. Instead of “step your right foot through to transition to Warrior II”, we will, “Step your right foot between your hands. Spin your left heel down so your left foot is flat on the floor. Walk your hands up your thigh so you are upright.” etc.
This is a difficult balance and one that continues to evolve as my teaching and education grow. As yoga teachers, how do you approach communication with your students? What do you like to hear when you are taking a class?