Ashley Thibodeau is the head ballet instructor at The Ballet Studio of Carmel, a dance studio in the Arts & Design District. On her company’s website, the studio “strives to reserve the art of ballet and instill a love of dance in all students by focusing on the whole child.”

Thibodeau has been teaching ballet for over 20 years and recently answered the following questions about her job.

Q: What is a typical day like for you as an instructor?

A: It can be different every day. For example, this morning I came in at 7:45 and I taught a private lesson to an adult student who wanted to get her first pair of pointe shoes, and she did. She went on pointe about a year ago.

Q: What is your first task of the day?

A: It’s usually wiping down the mirrors. I get handprints all over. I teach 3- and 4-year-olds, and even the 8-year-olds want to get really close just to see themselves. Sometimes, I see nose prints, too, so the mirrors are always a mess when I come in.

Q: What is your previous experience in dance?

A: I danced growing up. I started in a small studio and then went to a bigger, more professional ballet school. I danced for a professional ballet company, and then I got a degree in dance. I have a BFA in dance choreography.

Q: What is the toughest challenge of your job, and why?

A: That’s hard, because I feel like I have such a good job. I’d say it’s hard to let the kids go, like when they graduate or move on. You get invested in them, and you want them to move on. When they leave high school and go on to the next thing, that’s hard.

Q: What is the best part of your job?

A: The greatest part of my job is seeing the lessons that the kids learned from dance that are just life lessons. I just had a kid come to me and say, “Did you see how good my turns are getting?” And that made my day.

Q: How quickly can you get someone to go from zero knowledge of dancing to learning moves quickly?

A: Ballet is a slower build. You have to learn the basics. But if I think a person is committed to learn, within that first year, I’d say they can grow and learn a lot of the base skills required to learn the dancing stuff.

Q: What goes on behind the scenes that people might not be aware of?

A: I had a dad one time after a showcase say to me, “Oh! Now I see why she was coming to the studio so many times a week!” I don’t think people realize how much time these kids put in for that finished product. I think sometimes people think they get up there and dance around, and it’s a lot more than that.

Q: What is the age range of those you teach?

A: My youngest student I had this year was 2 1/2, and my oldest this year was 70.

To learn more, visit theballetstudiocarmel.com.