This exercise will help students effectively engage the deep rotator muscles, crucial for ballet turnout.

Preparation: Have students lie on their backs with legs bent and feet placed in parallel over a fit ball. Their arms should be by their sides, palms up. If they tend to hyper-extend, have them bring their legs closer to the ball, so that their knees are always on top of the ball.

Steps:

1. Start with a slow bridging action. To help students move through their vertebrae, cue them to imagine 'zipping up a jacket'.

2. Students can check alignment themselves by placing their hands under the sacrum to check and align the pelvis.

3. Instruct students to alternate between plantar flexion and dorsiflexion three times.

4. Guide them to slowly externally rotate their legs.

5. Have them repeat the foot adjustments in this new position.

6. Finish with a gradual un-bridging to the mat. When they are stronger include the arms adjusting into first position.

Focus: Emphasise maintaining deep, controlled breathing in sync with music. Check pelvis alignment and correct leg rotation.