This week for “Meet a Teacher,” we’re featuring Katrina Hellbusch, a belly dance instructor who knows all of the right moves. Katrina is the Artistic Director at Seattle’s Skin Deep Belly Dance Studio, and has been teaching American Tribal Style for quite a while now.

What’s American Tribal Style, you say? Well, check out this great conversation from our Teachstreet world headquarters.

If you’re interested in taking a class with Katrina, you can check out her dancing profile on TeachStreet or sign up for the newly-listed Bollywood class coming to Seattle! Sway your hips on over to check out these great teachers and classes on Teachstreet.

Ahoy hoy, teachers!

Kat here, giving you another opportunity to enter in to our Summer of Learning contest.

We’re looking for teachers in the following subjects to visit our offices for a short interview about the subject that ignites you in the classroom.

Piano
Cooking
Dance
Pilates
Dog Training
Belly Dancing
Meditation
Martial Arts

And hey, if your subject isn’t on this list, fret not! We can accommodate other types of demonstrations as well.

Ping me at kat@teachstreet.com if you’re interested. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

We wanted to take a few minutes to welcome some of the wonderful new teachers to TeachStreet.  Last week, we announced our addition of thousands of Philadelphia teachers, schools and classes, as well as thousands more across the entire state of Pennsylvania. This was extra special for me, as I grew up in a small town called Leesport, PA (near Reading, PA from Monopoly’s Reading Railroad fame), went to school at Penn State and later at the University of Pennsylvania, and lived for many years in and around Philadelphia (and, of course, have friends from all over the state, given my 4 crazy years in State College!).

It’s been a blast seeing teachers claim their profiles, and also just discover TeachStreet, and set up their classes — some of my favorites:

Sara’s awesome — she’s an avid lover of All Things Handmade!  Here she teaches a basic screenprinting class — and, you can also check her out on her craft blog.

The above is an incredibly fun-looking belly dancing instructor called ‘A Touch of Class‘, based in Reading, PA teaching a class in Mohnton, PA (very near to Reading).

I love the above Piano class, because it gives a great example of a class managed by a school (Art Piano, in this case) and taught by an incredibly friendly-looking teacher (Laura Childress) — both are registered TeachStreet members, and both look ready to grow their businesses, if I do say so myself!

Is the summer weather finding you looking at your camera and finally readying you to take a photography class?  This Philadelphia Arts school (Portside Arts Center) has just what you’re looking for with this ‘Introduction to Photography’ session.  Get out there, and get shooting!

A trip to Pennsylvania wouldn’t be complete without some banjo lessons, would it?  I was ready to dance a jig (yes, I know… I doubt that the jig goes with the Banjo!) when I saw this listing — the instructor, Joan Dickerson, is an incredibly accomplished banjo-ist — thrilled to see her as part of TeachStreet already

Finally, check out the Painting Lesson and Drawing Classes from this teacher, Veronica, in State College, PA — a native of Russia, she completed her Master’s of Fine Arts at Penn State, and she now teaches one-on-one Art Lessons — what a rich diversity of instructors already!

We look forward to seeing what surprises us on TeachStreet this week!

If you’re not the cooking type, and don’t want to impress your special someone with a tasty meal, impress them on the dance floor! And if you want to take it to the next level, join the belly dancing community growing on TeachStreet. The Top 10 Dancing Teachers in Seattle consist of six belly dancing teachers, so if you’re looking to belly dance your way into your partner’s heart, you won’t have any problem finding someone to teach you.

#1 Dance Teacher in Seattle: Amy Horn

Aside from belly dancing, there are so many classes you can choose from on TeachStreet for an enjoyable night of dancing. From salsa dancing at the Century Ballroom to swing dancing at the Seattle Swing Hepcat, you have a variety of styles out there. This month, get your dancing shoes on and boogie on down to a dancing class near you. Definitely keep us posted on how it went.

Top 10 Dancing Teachers in Seattle:

1. Amy Horn –  Introduction to Belly Dancing
2. Visionary Dance Productions –  Belly Dance Party
3. Sharon Moore –  Tribal Belly Dance
4. Charly McCreary –  Beginning Aerial Dance on Trapeze
5. Dance Eclectic –  Dance Partnering for Men and Women
6. Salsa Con Todo –  Weekly Beginner Salsa Classes
7. Wassa Dance –  Move in the Heart of Rhythm
8. Dahlia Moon –  Egyptian Style Belly Dancing
9. Zulaika –  Belly Dance (Beginners)
10. Breakdancing Ninja –  Private Breakdancing Instruction

This is an official call out to all types of dance teachers out there in Seattle. We have an amazing belly dance community on TeachStreet, and would love to get some more diversity in the community. If you have any friends teaching ballroom dancing, salsa dancing or hip-hop dancing, refer them to TeachStreet. We’d appreciate the support.

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To start the year off, we kicked it off and had Teacher Meetups in 3 different locations during the past weekend. Over 45 teachers in the Seattle metro area spanning subjects from dog training to ballroom dancing. It’s always a pleasure for us to meet our teachers in the community, and hopefully we were able to help more and more teachers with their experiences on TeachStreet.com.

Again, the whole goal for TeachStreet is to help local experts connect with eager learners within the community and the more and more we can help folks position themselves as experts, the easier we can help them connect. Currently, there are several easy tips you can follow to help better position yourself as an expert. Here are the three easy tips of how teachers can easily boost their profiles.

1. Add photos to your profile / classes to get on the TeachStreet homepage (Click here)
2. Request Reviews from your past students to rank higher (Click here)
3. Utilize the Craigslist Tool to promote your classes to a wider community (Click here)

For everyone who was able to make it out for coffee, thanks a lot for taking the time to meet with us. If you have any colleagues who would benefit from our service, please help us and suggest a teacher. Here is a visual recap of what happened:

Seattle Teacher Meetup Attendees – January ‘09

Life, Home & Hobby

• Carol Dearth – Sizzleworks
  
• Kathi Ogawa – Dog Training Classes
• Kim Estes – PEACE of Mind
  
• Kimberly McDonald – Parent Map
  
• Patricia Eslave Vessey – Integrity Coaching and Training Systems
• Pritamo Kertala – FunQuest Dog Agility Training
  

Music

• Donn Bennett – Drum classes
• Doug Zangar – Guitar lessons
• Glenn Ledbetter – Trumpet and cornet lessons
  
• Heidi Sewall – The Singing Lady – Singing Lessons
• Janet Rayor – Voice lessons
  
• Jill Jacques – French horn lessons
  
• Lisa Kay Deeter – Private guitar lessons
  
• Marc Smason – Trombone lessons
• Marjorie Parkington – Cello instruction
  
• Neil Hubbard – Bagpipe lessons
• Olga Dolgaya – Cello classes
  
• Vic Peters – Private piano lessons
• Warren Murray – Blues Harmonica Workshop
  

Sports, Health & Recreation

• Amy Bouska – Girls soccer personal training
• Brandee Laird – Beginner Parkour classes
  
• Jennifer Mesler – Federal Way Masters
  
• Julie Colassmoyer – Synergy Wellness Center
  
• Pam Cooper – Aikido of West Seattle
  
• Sara Storm – Qigong private classes
• Shane Belan – Pilates lessons
• Susan Snyder – Qigong private lessons
  
• Wendy Neely – Tri Time Swimming Lessons

Creative & Performing Arts

• Amy Horn – Beginning Belly Dance
  
• Deborah Speulveda – Frye Art Museum
  
• Janet Lia – AWE Studio
  
• Linda Townsend – Ballroom Dance Lessons
• Nancy Mattheiss – Core Matter Pilates Classes
• Robert Wade – Photography with Photoshop and Lightroom
  

Language

• Arturo Arabitg – Living Spanish
  
• Nell Gross – Washington Academy of Languages
  

Computers / Internet / Technology

• Leslie Stewart – Adobe Certified Instructor
  

Academics

• Tamara Sellman – Writers Rainbow
  

Business / Professional

• Elys Brewda – Roadmap to my future
  
• Jess Salazar – Business and personal development
• Steven Matsumoto – Business development
  

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If you were unable to make it to one of the Meetups this time around to get tips, join us for a TeachStreet Webinar covering topics of how to build your business online. The information is below, please RSVP since space is limited.

TeachStreet Webinar
January 30, 2009 – 12:00

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Recess4GrownUps

Let your brain out to play.

Hips Don’t Lie

Why We Love Slinky Dance Moves

Whether it’s a shimmy, a swivel, a sway or a sashay, movement from the hips gets attention. Bilingual dancing beauty Shakira really said it all; hips don’t lie. Everybody knows there’s something sensual about a swiveling pelvis – just ask all the Elvis fans! – but recent science has emerged that explains the why of it.

So just what is it that makes swaying hips so sexy? Well, a research team at the University of West Scotland did some homework, and what they discovered is perhaps more intimate than most of us would have predicted. In women, at least, the results of the study suggested that a lot about a woman’s sexuality (specifically, how easy it is for her to reach climax) can be determined just by observing the way she walks. The more swivel a subject had in her hips when walking, the more likely she was to…well, you know.

Greater stride length and vertebral rotation (fancy ways of saying, the more visible motion in the pelvis – motions that are generally considered “sexy”) were observed in women who reported the greatest physical pleasure from intimate activities, according to the researchers. Observers in the study were 80% accurate (based on the women’s self-reported sexual histories and preferences) at gauging what a woman liked in the bedroom just from watching how she walked. Granted, the observers were trained sexologists, but the results are surprising nonetheless. Like I said, everyone knows there’s something sexual about pelvic motion, whether the swivel is on Elvis, Shakira or in a cheerleading routine. But apparently there’s more to the motion than just eye candy – really, the motions of belly dancing classes, tango lessons or samba dancing classes say a lot about the muscle tone and flexibility in your core abdomen and pelvis!

Researchers also suggested that increased stride length and vertebral rotation were correlated with overall core strength, balance and confidence. So activities that increase strength and flexibility in the core not only contribute to better posture, firmer abs and general sex appeal…but they might have other benefits, too, if you know what I mean.

If you liked this blog post, please recommend it to a colleague and/or click here to get updates via email or RSS.

Stumped in Stumptown? TeachStreet Moves Into Portland with
More than 25,000 Local Classes and Learning Experiences

Connecting Teachers, Instructors, and Local Experts with Learners of All Ages, TeachStreet
Brings a Wealth Of Discovery Opportunities to the Fingertips of Portland Residents

SEATTLE, WA – August 4, 2008 – TeachStreet, the first free website dedicated to helping teachers and students connect with one another at the neighborhood level, today announced that it has opened its virtual doors to the residents of Portland, Oregon. Just as Powell’s is renowned for its extensive collection of books, residents in and around the Rose City will now be one click away from discovering more than 25,000 classes, instructors, and schools currently available on TeachStreet. Whether one wants to learn how to salsa in Sellwood, take belly-dancing lessons on Burnside, or pluck the violin in Vancouver, Washington, TeachStreet offers detailed information on Portland, Oregon classes and instructors across more than 500 subject areas.

“Everyone is an expert at something and TeachStreet was designed to bridge the gap between those who have something to teach and those with a desire to learn,” said Dave Schappell, founder and CEO of TeachStreet. “Just because we stop going to school, doesn’t mean we don’t want to continue to improve ourselves and learn new things. TeachStreet is about the act of discovery and helping both teachers and students make real-world connections at the local level.”

From the common to the eclectic, there is truly a class for every Portland-area resident:

•    Need to find your Zen? There are 699 Portland Oregon yoga classes, 255 meditation, and 113 tai-chi classes.
•    Is the great outdoors is calling your name? There are 149 Portland, OR fishing classes, 169 climbing, and 86 kayaking classes.
•    Feeling crafty? Try one of 355 Portland, OR knitting classes, 200 sewing, and 52 scrapbooking classes

Students can search for classes across hundreds of categories and filter the results according to map-based location, ratings from other students, teacher availability, promotional pricing, and more. For teachers, instructors, or even those who might not call themselves a “teacher” but have a special skill or area of expertise to share, TeachStreet provides a simple yet powerful way to promote and manage their teaching business. In addition, students can submit reviews of teachers, and teachers are invited to enhance their profiles with lesson plans, class photos, and more.

“I am a choreographer, not a marketer,” says Subashini Ganesan, founder of Natya Leela Academy. “My passion is teaching Bharathanatyam dance classes in Portland, Oregon — an ancient form of classical South Indian dance — not finding ways to get more students. So I love that TeachStreet helps me fill my class schedule and allows me to spend more time doing what I want to be doing: teaching.”

About TeachStreet

Founded in June 2007, TeachStreet is dedicated to helping students find great local teachers, and empowering teachers with robust online tools to manage their teaching business.  Featuring more than 55,000 classes and instructors in the Seattle and Portland metro areas, the free site provides the information that students need to make an informed decision about their learning experiences, including student reviews and teacher recommendations, pricing information, location, teacher background and training, and more. TeachStreet is headquartered in Seattle, WA and backed by Madrona Venture Group. For more information, visit www.TeachStreet.com.