My approach to teaching is very traditional. I'm very exact, in my methodology and teach very sequentially. The first thing to be learnt in the School is the Opening & Closing Exercise which is the motor that drives all aspects of T'ai Chi from the form to the push hands and on to weapons. Then we apply the principles of Opening & Closing that we have learned and trained earlier to the Five Loosening Exercise. These Five Loosening Exercises are the building blocks to the form. The Five Loosening Exercise covers all the direction you can possibly move within Tai Chi. If you can't perform the Five Loosening Exercises correctly then it would be very hard near impossible to create the Tai Chi Form correctly.
Then we move into the Push Hands. The Push Hands is the accumulation of the three previous levels. What you do in the Opening & Closing is then carried into the Five Loosening Exercises from the Five Loosening Exercises is then applied to the Tai Chi Form. And finally from the Form it is realised in the Push Hands.
What you do through those four stages mustcompliment each other and never contradict each other. If you have a problem in the Loosening Exercises then more than likely its in the Opening & Closing. If you have mistakes in the Form. Chances are that's the mistakes are in the one of the Five Loosening Exercises. And if you can't make the Push Hands work the more than likely the mistake will be found in the Form. They say if you have problems in push hands the remedy is in the form.