Lerna Babikyan

Category: Workshop

  • Multi Layered Movements: Trans-disciplinary Dance Workshop

    Multi Layered Movements: Trans-disciplinary Dance Workshop

    Nothing in the world exists independently of one another, including our bodies and the art of dance! Multi Layered Movements; creative dance workshop series invites you to rediscover this relationality and deepen your creative dance practices.

    Multi-Layered Movements Creative Dance Workshop, which sets out with the intention of revitalizing and strengthening the holistic dance expression that thinks, dreams, feels and dialogues, opens an experimental and non-judgmental space for participants to discover their body awareness and creative potential and turn them into action through dance.

    Outcomes

    • Body awareness
    • Strength, balance and coordination development
    • Enrichment in movement repertory
    • Multi layered and multi directional awareness in action
    • Improvement in imagination and abstract thinking
    • Creativity
    • Cultural Learning
    • Development in body language
    • Gaining easy dance flows and self confidence
    • Gaining ergonomics in movement
  • Pedagogy for Dance Teachers

    Pedagogy for Dance Teachers

    This training is for dance teachers from any style who want to develop themselves pedagogically and for instructors who teach movement-oriented classes!

    Although the basic material of dance education is the body, in principle, its education is not different from the learning processes of any other creative field.

    If you are an instructor in this field, being trained in a master-apprentice relationship with a dance teacher without scientific pedagogical knowledge may not be sufficient for your professional life in the changing conditions of the time.

    Knowing the scientific foundations of the work in terms of educational sciences will increase the quality of your professional practices and make you feel safe, while contributing to the positive change that dance art will create in your students and society.

    Outcomes

    • Learning body-oriented scientific learning theories
    • Introducing new approaches to classroom management
    • Learning how to create a creative, equitable and inclusive classroom environment
    • To review the basic operation plan and evaluation criteria of the dance course
    • To contribute to the establishment of productive and supportive relationships in areas such as classroom communication, parent-school management
  • Ecosophic Moves – Ecology Based Creative Dance Teacher Training

    Ecosophic Moves – Ecology Based Creative Dance Teacher Training

    Ecosomatic Movement and Creative Dance Pedagogy Training

    For educators, artists, facilitators, and professionals in health, social work, consultancy and academia

    This training is designed for professionals from diverse fields—trainers, educators, artists, consultants, health and social workers—who wish to integrate dance and movement as tools for learning, connection, and transformation. It supports participants in cultivating body-based awareness, creative confidence, and ecological sensitivity within their educational and professional practices.

    Originally launched in 2015 as the Creative Dance Trainer Training, the program evolved over the years to respond to contemporary challenges. Since 2023, it has been delivered in a hybrid format that grounds movement learning in ecological thought and ecosomatic practices, aligning body, mind, and environment as co-learners.

    Led by Lerna Babikyan, the program offers a rich blend of creative movement pedagogy, body awareness, and contemporary dance history, explored through both experiential and reflective modes. The exercises are designed to be low-risk yet highly activating—awakening participants’ physical, imaginative, and cognitive capacities. The integration of ecological transitions and sensory metaphors in movement invites a holistic perception of interconnectedness, nurturing a grounded sense of “worldliness” and embodied presence.

    The program also includes seminars by expert guest instructors, covering topics such as:

    • Introduction to Dance Therapy

    • Drama and Dance in Dialogue

    • Intercultural Dance and the Embodied Self

    • Designing Effective Learning Environments with Creative Dance

    • Dance Composition and Choreography

    • Introduction to the Skinner Releasing Technique

    Learning Outcomes

    Participants will:

    • Learn over 140 creative movement exercises across 14 thematic areas, integrating critical pedagogy and ecology-based practices

    • Gain tools to apply experiential, body-based learning in diverse settings that support emotional, social, and cognitive development

    • Learn to design inclusive learning spaces grounded in creative autonomy, ecological attunement, and somatic self-trust

    • Cultivate a joyful, creative, and compassionate relationship with the body—and the more-than-human world

    • Enhance skills in body language, improvisation, public speaking, and performance

    • Develop a sustainable, long-term approach to integrating dance and movement in educational, therapeutic, or social contexts

    • Understand creative dance through lenses of dance history, anthropology, drama, choreography, and embodied education

    • Strengthen ecosomatic awareness and contribute to pedagogies of sustainability and ecological peace

  • Brain-Compatible, Creative Dance-Based Lesson Plans for Preschool Teachers Workshop

    Brain-Compatible, Creative Dance-Based Lesson Plans for Preschool Teachers Workshop

    Brain-Compatible, Creative Dance-Based Lesson Plans for Preschool Teachers Workshop is a program that aims to provide brain-compatible learning experiences using the power of movement and dance in early childhood education. In this workshop, preschool teachers are introduced to creative dance-based lesson plans that support children’s motor skills, social-emotional development and cognitive abilities. Throughout the workshop, participants explore how creative dance and movement combine with brain-compatible learning principles. Each lesson plan is designed entangled way within a story to stimulate children’s natural curiosity and creativity. The lesson plans are shared with the participants along with music suggestions.

    Outcomes

    • Learning 25 different creative dance activities in practice
    • Ø Implementing the learning experience in the classroom with dance and movement in harmony with the learning principles of the brain
    • Ø Enriching teaching tools for children with different intelligence groups through dance and movement
    • Ø To be able to present positive, egalitarian and inclusive experiences of body image through dance in the classroom
    • Ø Learning how to use creative dance in an interdisciplinary approach in education
    • Support teachers’ dance and movement skills with creative approach
    • Integrate fun, creativity, process-oriented dance based learning acitivities to daily lesson plans in preschool in a non-judgmental atmosphere
  • Braindance and Body Awareness Workshop for Educators and Parents

    Braindance and Body Awareness Workshop for Educators and Parents

    Braindance and Body Awareness Workshop for Educators and Parents is a program developed to support the physical, mental and emotional development of children. In this workshop, participants learn the basics of the Braindance method and discover how to apply it in connection with body awareness. Braindance is a movement-based approach that supports neurological development and helps to improve children’s motor skills, balance, coordination and cognitive abilities.

    Throughout the workshop, participants will experience how Braindance movements are applied to different age groups and learn how these techniques can be beneficial for both themselves and children. In addition, with the improvisational dance and body awareness exercises that take place in each meeting in the light of the exercises learned, they both establish a closer connection with their own bodies and develop their creativity and inner dancer. Braindance and Body Awareness Workshop for Trainers and Parents is a program suitable for anyone who wants to play an active role in the development of children, no prior dance experience is required.

    Outcomes

    • Ø Learning Braindance apps for 3-6 years
    • Ø Learning Braindance apps for ages 7 and up
    • Ø Learning Braindance apps for 55 years and older
    • Ø Increasing body awareness
    • Ø Participans gains physical coordination, strength and flexibility
    • Ø Their bodily creative expression increases
    • Development of dancing skills through body awareness, moving meditation and improvisation
    • The workshop equips both educators and parents with the knowledge and skills to help children maximize their potential.
  • · Kinestetic Learning and Embodiment in Education

    · Kinestetic Learning and Embodiment in Education

    Kinesthetic learning focuses on an innovative approach that allows students to experience the learning process through physical movement. In this workshop, participants enhance their body awareness and explore knowledge and concepts through their bodies. Kinesthetic learning aims to embody learning by using movement and embodiment techniques, enabling individuals to have a deeper learning experience both mentally and physically.

    Outcomes

    • Ø Participants learn how to internalize information kinesthetically and discover how to integrate these learning methods into their own educational environments.
    • Workshop process makes learning more interactive, meaningful, and lasting for both students and educators.
    • The Kinesthetic Learning and Embodiment Workshop teaches participants how to support learning in a more holistic and inclusive way by harnessing the power of movement.
  • Ecosomatic Moves

    Ecosomatic Moves

    Ecosomatic movement workshops offer a holistic movement experience that enables adults to establish a deep connection between their bodies and nature. In these workshops, participants realize the body of the earth while doing body awareness-based work. In the workshop process where the individual and nature are integrated, the rhythm of nature, the elements and cycles of nature with bodily movements fed from sensory, improvisational, intuitive sources turn into a unique and unrepeatable dance.

    Outcomes

    • Ecosomatic movement aims to enhance awareness of how the body interacts with nature, strengthen this connection, and develop bodily awareness inspired by the natural world.
    • The activities in the workshops help participants physically and mentally reintegrate with nature.
    • This process reduces stress, deepens the mind-body connection, and allows participants to rediscover their relationship with the environment.
    • Ecosomatic movement workshops enable individuals to experience their bodies and surroundings more consciously, activating the healing power of nature.
  • Dancing Within Poetries

    Dancing Within Poetries

    Dancing Within Poetries workshop provides a creative space for adults to express their feelings and thoughts with both words and their bodies. In this workshop, participants will explore the depth of poetic expressions and bring the spirit and rhythm of these poems to life through dance. In each session participants explores a new poet and his/her poem, exploring the emotional layers of the text through improvised bodily movements and expressing them through their authentic dance.

    Outcomes

    • The combination of poetry and dance offers participants a multidimensional form of expression, enhancing both their mental and physical awareness.
    • The workshop nurtures artistic creativity and allows individuals to express themselves in a deeper and more meaningful way.
    • Dancing Within Poetries workshop enables participants to explore their inner worlds, experience emotional resonance, and connect with themselves and others through art.
  • Somatic Mythology

    Somatic Mythology

    Somatic Mythology classes offer adults a unique experience, allowing them to delve into the depths of mythological stories through their bodies. Each session begins with the telling of a mythological story, and participants somatically trace the energy and emotions of the narrative within their bodies.

    Outcomes

    • Somatic Mythology aims to understand and internalize the archetypes and universal themes of mythology through bodily awareness.
    • This process helps participants form a deep connection with both personal and collective consciousness while also enhancing their abilities for physical expression.
    • Somatic Mythology classes provide a space that supports mental and physical transformation, strengthening both inner exploration and the connection to cultural heritage.
  • Dance Improvisation

    Dance Improvisation

    Atölye katılımcılara özgürce kendilerini ifade edebilecekleri, yaratıcı ve keşif dolu bir alan sunar. Süreçte, doğaçlama teknikleri kullanılarak bedenin sınırları keşfedilir, içsel duygular ve düşünceler anlık olarak harekete dökülür. Yetişkinler için Doğaçlama Dans Atölyesi, dansa yeni başlayanlardan deneyimli dansçılara kadar herkes için uygundur.

    Outcomes

    • The workshop enables participants to enhance their bodily awareness, explore their movement potential, and express themselves in a unique way through dance.
    • This process allows them to discover spontaneity, enrich their bodily expressions, and deeply experience the creative potential of dance.
    • Participants engage in individual and group exercises, improvising with different music, themes, and people which develops their socail skills and non-verbal langauge as well.
    • The workshop provides an opportunity for participants to experience both physical and emotional freedom, helping them explore their inner worlds and creativity.
    • By experiencing the inherent freedom and creativity of dance, this workshop contributes to personal growth and development.