When you're first starting pointe, how long would you do it at the barre before you do center work?

432 years. jk Do you mean how many mins/ class--or do you mean pre-pointe releve exercises, with a more specific idea of what your wondering I'd be better able to articulate an answer

How long in terms of years.

i went into the center like in my second class but i think that might be fast i started late in the year and in my age to i practised a lot and really hard and i still am but go into the center when you feel comfortable and if you are not ask to go to a bar people have different pases.

*i did excersises like releves rises and echappes, piroette prep, and padeborres<---hehe sorry about spelling. Once again i think that i did this quickly so don't compare.

It really does depend on the class and how it's structured. For Ballet, Level IV (beginning pointe, as about age 12), I'd say no more than approximately 10 minutes at the barre at first, as a part of their regular classroom work. This is assuming that these students are coming to a ballet technique class four time a week, ideally. The exercises the students would be doing are probably going to be with two hand on the barre (facing it).

Later, as they get stronger you can progress to exercises with one hand on the barre.

Begnning center work should include basic technical vocabulary such as tendus, pliés, temps lié, port de corps, and learning how to walk in the boots -- such as "ballet walks" across the floor on the diagonal.

Then progressing onto things like élevés, relevés, piqués to two feet -- all with stays for control.

Most, if not all, of the gradual introduction of steps onto pointe should be first done at the barre. Or, even travelling down it, or in some cases, if you put two barres parallel to each other, then down both, holding on to both.

The process is progressive, and if a student is struggling too much with something, you can always go back to the barre and/or simplify it.

I agree with Dean.
Many things come into play when you are dealing with pointe work. The school and teacher's philosophy will be the first one.

When I used to teach, I would have 3x week ballet students doing a pre-pointe class. Then by the mid year, they were able to get their shoes, and take 15 -20 mins. out of the 3rd class to learn about how to tie shoes, how to break them in, rules about when to wear them and how.
Also, after a few weeks we would do about 10 mins or so of pointe work at the barre. The amount of pointe work in this class would increase, but still most everything was done with two hands facing barre.

By the next year, this 3rd class became a full pointe class. We did about 45 mins. of barre work, then did simple center work.
Each time a new step was added, we went back to the barre to learn it, and then brought it into center.

I never did believe in going into the center with no prep work.
Dancing en pointe is a very different technique from Ballet "flat" technique.
Many times I would give a combination of simple pointe steps, and some of the class would still be at the barre doing the combo, while others who are stronger, would do it in the center.

The more careful you are with pointe work, the stronger you will become. Almost every pointe class you take will start at the barre, and progress to center work. (unless you have just had a ballet class that warmed up your body and feet). If you get into a pointe class cold and try to do center warm-up, you could become injured.

Bek