IJA eNewsletter – May 2020

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www.juggle.org

   IJA eNewsletter   

May 2020

Editors: Don Lewis & Martin Frost
(ijanews@juggle.org)

CONTENTS

  • IJA Board nominations are open
  • The IJA is having an online festival, including Online Juggling Championships
  • The 2020 World Joggling Championships are now open
  • World Juggling Day is June 20, 2020
  • Digital workshops in the time of COVID
  • Juggle safely
  • Watch the 2019 IJA fest videos free on eJuggle — DVD set also available
  • Latest articles in eJuggle
  • Upcoming juggling festivals

 

 

IJA Board nominations are open  by Don Lewis

The nomination period is open for Board of Director positions.  The election will take place online.  Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the El Paso festival is canceled so there will be no in-person voting.

I’m convinced that many of you are thinking hard about how you can best serve the IJA and make it better, and perhaps more relevant for all jugglers.  Even though we are not gathering this year, the IJA still needs interested Board members to lead it through the challenges and opportunities offered by this pandemic.

Nominate someone, or yourself.  That’s right, it is perfectly acceptable to nominate yourself.

It is a curious fact that when everything is going pretty well, no one is very interested in serving on the Board.  If things get a bit more challenging then nominations fly thick and fast to throw out the old rascals and bring in the new ones.  Actually, if things are going well, that is a great time to get on the Board.  You aren’t going to be distracted by mayhem and can actually promote your version of progress with a good chance of making it happen.

The IJA maintains Director and Officer insurance coverage to protect our decision makers.  Directors are considered to have a fiduciary duty to the IJA.  Fiduciary simply means managing in the best interests of the association, much as you might administer the affairs of a minor person that can’t make legal decisions. 

Information about the nomination process is available at juggle.org/business/nominations

The nomination deadline is 11:59pm PDT on June 25, 2020.  Participate!

The IJA is having an online festival, including Online Juggling Championships 

Although this year’s festival in El Paso has been canceled, the IJA will host a multi-platform online event July 13th-19th with workshops, shows, panel discussions, and more! Stay tuned to juggle.org/festival and our Facebook event page for more details.

As part of the online festival, we will also be hosting the 2020 IJA Online Juggling Championships for the Individuals and Juniors divisions.  Video submissions must be one continuous shot in landscape (horizontal) orientation.  Routines must be at least 5 minutes and no more than 8 minutes for Individuals or 7 minutes for Juniors.  The deadline for entering is 11:59pm EDT June 30th.  All medalists will receive a 2021 festival package, and 1st and 2nd place winners will receive some travel reimbursement.  In order to promote everyone’s health and safety during this time, there will be no Teams division in the online Championships.

For the Juniors division in 2021, anyone who would have been eligible to compete in Juniors in 2020 will remain eligible for 2021; you must have been under 18 as of July 16, 2020.  You do not have to compete in the online competition.

The 2020 World Joggling Championships are now open  by Emily Moore

Join us for our annual joggling event – online this year. As we introduced in last month’s article, there will be two types of events this year: Fun Run and Competitive.  Get ready to have some fun and/or really push yourself in this year’s unique joggling championships!

Fun Run — There’s no entry fee or requirement for a video, but you are encouraged to share.

Competitive — There’s a $25 entry fee and you’ll be eligible for awards and having

your achievements officially announced by the IJA.  You’ll need to shoot a continuous video that shows the juggling pattern at all times.

Enter either event by filling out the Registration Form, which includes a waiver.

Once you’ve finished either run, enter your results on the Submission Form.

Before you race, please read the instructions in both forms carefully, including for video requirements and examples.

The official events are:

  • 100 meter – 3 ball, 5 ball, 7 ball
  • 400 meter – 3 ball, 5 ball
  • 800 meter – 3 ball
  • 1 mile (1609.3 meter) – 3 ball
  • 5K – 3 ball

Other events are welcome but are not eligible for awards (competitive division).  For example, check out this 4-ball 100-meter run captured by a 360-degree camera (drag the image or click any of the four pointers in the corner to see different views).

Entry in both events will remain open until 12:00pm EDT July 18.

If you have questions, please contact: joggling2020@juggle.org

World Juggling Day is June 20, 2020  by Martin Frost

WJD is almost here, and although we may not be able to gather at festivals or pass clubs with friends, we can still share the spirit of the day with jugglers around the world by juggling wherever we are. To help you get into the mood, there is now a WJD sticker sheet available. Each sheet is only $8, and you can have any number of them mailed to you for only a $2 shipping fee (to anywhere in the world, of course).

Personally I’m planning to juggle on the 20th at 20:20:06 on 06/20/2020. Whenever, wherever, and whatever you juggle, have fun.

 

 

 

 Digital workshops in the time of COVID  by Scott Steiskal

Since COVID-19 hit, mathematicians and yoga instructors have reverted to teaching their craft online.  The grand power of the internet gives jugglers the ability to stay connected and spread their craft to each other.  We can now spread juggling in new and exciting ways.

Our juggling festival is happening online, and we have the opportunity to teach each other virtually.

However, teaching a live-streaming class is not the same as teaching an in-person class.  If you are planning to teach your first ever online workshop at the IJA virtual festival, follow these tips for teaching on the web.

There is information on how to sign up to teach a workshop at the end of this article.

TIP 1: DRESS REHEARSAL

When performing, jugglers rehearse their routine repeatedly.  The same should hold true for workshops.  This is doubly important if you are teaching online.  Your dress rehearsal should include:

  • A software test — Make sure you try the software you will be using to stream the class.  You will be concentrating on a lot of things and you want to make sure learning the software isn’t one of them.  Know how to start the camera, know how to mute all participants, and know how to kick someone out of the room if they are disruptive.
  • A hardware test — Do you have a microphone so people can hear you? How are you holding up your camera/phone? Is the room you are juggling in well lit? Make sure you handle all these things in advance.
  • Consider recording your tricks before the session — If the tricks you are demonstrating are already recorded on video, your class will be easier.  You won’t be running all over the room making sure you can be heard and seen, you know you’ll have a good run, and you’ll save time.
  • Have a plan — Know exactly what you are going to teach and write it down.  Providing a handout for your students will help let them know where you are headed.  Some great examples of handouts can be found on Matt Hall’s website.  Having a handout will also help students who momentarily lose internet connection.

TIP 2: FIND A FRIEND TO MANAGE/HOST YOUR ROOM

You will be busy teaching and interacting with your students.  If you get a friend to manage the room for you, you can concentrate on teaching.  Your friend should be listed as the host of the room and will be in charge of muting students, monitoring chats and starting videos.

TIP 3: USE THE CHAT FUNCTION

You should request that all of your students mute their audio when not speaking directly.  One student with a dog or loud furnace can make an insurmountable amount of background noise.  If students are using the chat function and your host is monitoring it, you can communicate back and forth with fewer interruptions.

TIP 4: MANAGE YOUR TIME

When teaching online, everything takes just a little more time.  Assume you will teach less than you would in person.  Each transition to a new trick, any feedback you offer your students, and any practice will involve a lot of moving back and forth.  A few tips here:

  • If you would normally teach several variations of a trick, consider teaching the base trick and then tell your students, “I have placed several spicy variations of this trick on my Instagram.  You can check them out on my social media.” You can also place links to your social media on your handouts.
  • You could tell students to leave videos of their attempts with a hashtag and comment there as a follow up.
  • If your students are willing to utilize their camera, you can offer feedback as the students attempt.  Make sure you keep track of time though.  Say to your students, “Feel free to try this trick for five minutes.  I will give as many of you feedback as I can.  My host will keep track of time.”

FINAL TIP: SHOW OFF YOUR PERSONALITY

You’re in the friendly confines of your home, so now is a great time to really show off your personality.  Leave a few of your personal items in the background, wear your favorite juggling clothes, have a roommate say hi.  We are among friends here — make sure you are having fun with your friends.

Want to lead a workshop at the IJA fest?

If you would like to teach an online workshop at our festival, please reach out using our workshop email ijaworkshopapplications@gmail.com.

Juggle safely  by Don Lewis

Most of the world is starting to open up and get back to business.  It isn’t business as usual.  In some ways it is quite unusual.  Social distancing is the buzzword of the moment.  Most people have figured out how to stay in their own bubble, and how to safely interact with others.  Masks are now being widely suggested by assorted health authorities.

Very few masks are good enough to be safe.  They do reduce the chance that you will contaminate others.  It is beginning to be seen as a gesture of respect to wear one.  Just don’t think that a mask is going to make you immune.

How you proceed at this point depends on where you are and who you might be around.  As soon as you widen your circle of contacts, the risk that they may have been exposed to the virus from one of their external contacts grows rapidly and exponentially.  Being outside doesn’t mean that you won’t breathe in air that someone else has recently exhaled.  Juggling that involves interaction and prop sharing, like club passing, is still a risk.  Skill sharing and demonstration at a distance is probably OK.

Even though there are assorted trials of potential vaccines and improbable treatment claims sprout almost daily, there is no definitive treatment for COVID-19.  There is no treatment for the common cold, either.  We may have a bit of a wait before a safe treatment is developed and made available.

In the meantime, gravity seems to be working just fine.  Juggle safely.

Watch the 2019 IJA fest videos free on eJuggle — DVD set also available

The official videos of the 72nd Annual IJA Festival are available to watch free on eJuggle for IJA members.

Relive all the excitement that our 2019 festival in Fort Wayne, IN, had to offer, including full stage competition routines and highlights of the activities that took place during the week.

The 2019 DVD set can also be purchased in the IJA store for $30 to IJA members and $40 for non-members.

With the 2020 IJA fest canceled, we hope you’ll enjoy revisiting the 2019 festival (but tune in for the 2020 IJA Online Festival this July).

2019 IJA Festival Video Part 1

2019 IJA Festival Video Part 2

2019 IJA Festival Video Part 3

2019 IJA Festival Video Part 4

Latest articles in eJuggle

Upcoming juggling festivals

Note: Virtually all juggling festivals planned for the coming months have been canceled or rescheduled because of the worldwide pandemic, though some will be held online. 

To find a juggling fest near you or online, check the fest list at The Juggling Edge.  Eventually festivals will return.

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