So you want to be a caller?
Would you like to be a square dance caller or improve your calling skills? You are in the right place! CALLERLAB can help. Whether you are just starting out or you have been calling for years, CALLERLAB has resources available to assist you in your training.
Publications
The CALLERLAB Starter Kit is the perfect collection of publications to help you get started. You can download a copy free on this page. The Starter Kit has 40 pages of important information for the beginning caller. It links to the program call lists with complete definitions with timing and styling recommendations, formation and arrangement diagrams and several other important documents that should be in every caller’s kit.
CALLERLAB has additional publications available for your purchase and use, in addition to many on-line Dance Program resources.
Some of the most experienced caller coaches quite literally “wrote the book.” The CALLERLAB Caller Curriculum Guidelines, with its Technical Supplement is the most complete guide to what caller coaches need to know. The twenty-one topics covered in this curriculum are divided into three categories; Essential, Important, and Desireable. You can see a list of the topics online.
Caller-Coaches
CALLERLAB has an accreditation program for Caller-Coaches. To be accredited, an applicant must demonstrate experience and pass rigorous written and oral testing. This program assures that accredited Coaches have both the knowledge and the experience to help you learn to call or to call better.
Most Coaches run annual schools and participate in the CALLERLAB Convention. You can get in touch with the coaches individually; consult the directory of coaches for addresses and phone numbers.
Our Annual Convention
At our annual Convention the program includes several sessions dedicated to improving the skills of our members. These are presented by world-renowned member-leaders, and often include the latest information available in this constantly changing field. The Convention sessions are taped and cassettes are offered for sale before you leave the Convention.
Recordings of Past Conventions
The training sessions at every convention are recorded. Audio tapes of interest sessions from past conventions are available on You Tube. Contact the Home Office if you have interests in these recordings.
Training Sessions At The National Square Dance Convention
Each year at the National Square Dance Convention, CALLERLAB provides several caller training sessions. These sessions are led by Accredited Coaches and other experienced callers; they cover subjects that are the most important in the approved curriculum. This training program is offered without charge to anyone registered for the Convention.
Caller Schools
List of Caller Schools Sponsored by CALLERLAB Members.
Our Web Site
We make many resources available right here on our web site:
- A list of the various square dance programs we maintain, including lists of the calls that make up those programs and definitions for the calls.
- A list of scholarships to support caller training.
- A Report of the decisions made by the Applications Review Committee.
Start Here!
The CALLERLAB Caller Training Committee created this kit to provide prospective callers and new callers with an introduction to the knowledge and skills they will need to study and acquire if they decide to learn to call modern western square dances.
The best news? It is available as a free download below.
