From balancing on their toes to raising their arms, dance utilizes the
entire body and all of its muscle groups. Dance improves flexibility,
coordination, balance, range of motion, stamina, muscle tone, strength and
posture. But physical fitness is just one of many benefits of dance that
can enhance your child’s life in so many ways.
Dance helps children develop emotionally, socially and cognitively, and the
dedication, discipline and focus children must learn and practice are
important life skills that will transfer over to school, work and other
aspects of their lives.
Committing to a dance class involves showing up on time, every time, fully
prepared, with hair fixed and in proper clothing, and instills great habits
and accountability. Children learn that their actions not only affect
themselves, but others as well. The dedication involved in showing up for
rehearsals also shows kids that being committed to something can bring many
positives into their lives.
Through perseverance and self-motivation, children can be encouraged to
solve problems through experimentation. It is important that children learn
that if they don’t succeed, they need to try again. Being able to make
mistakes, ask for help, accept constructive feedback and make improvements
are great skills to have.
When they master a complicated movement, they have a sense of accomplishment that will encourage them to conquer other challenges throughout their lives.
Children strengthen their cognitive abilities and memory skills through
learning choreography. They develop enhanced sensory awareness and learn
nonverbal communication, which represents two thirds of all communication.
By understanding body language, they learn how to portray a message using
body movements, and how to interpret body signals from others.
Dance helps build self-confidence with each new routine they practice and
master. It also enables children to develop interpersonal skills, which is
vital to a child’s cognitive development. When children are part of a group
activity, such as a dance routine, they learn the importance of teamwork
and develop skills to work successfully in a group setting. This helps
children learn how to listen well, lead others and be patient.
Two local dancers, sisters Emily and Connie Schaffer, have been dancing
since they were toddlers. Emily (15) and Connie (12) dance ballet, pointe,
tap and jazz. They love dance and would like to share their thoughts with
you.
Which is your favorite dance style, and why?
Connie:
I like jazz because it is fun and not as strict as ballet. Jazz dances are
usually faster and more upbeat, and we usually dance to current pop music
during class. Also, our hair never has to be in a bun for performances and
the costumes are often really sparkly and fun.
Emily:
Tap and ballet. Tap is fun because it is rhythmic, and ballet is just so
beautiful and graceful that I love dancing it, especially lyrical ballet.
What is your favorite thing about dance?
Connie:
Definitely the performances. I love performing in front of an audience and
I love all of the costumes and the stage makeup. As we get older, we get to
be in more of the show. We perform in more dances and get to wear more
costumes. I have had as many as five costume changes in one performance. I
have had a few costumes that I wasn’t super crazy about, but mostly I have
loved my costumes, and I have loved every jazz costume I have ever had! We
perform each show four times, but I still wish that we could perform more
often!
Emily:
The performances because we get to show off all of our hard work. I also
love the costumes, hair and makeup. I have liked some costumes more than
others, but I have never had one that I didn’t like or wasn’t comfortable
in. My other favorite part about dancing has been the friends. I have made
a lot of great friends through dance, some of whom I have known and danced
with since preschool. I met many of my closest friends through dance. I
think that we have special friendships because we work so hard together to
create something special (a show), and then we get to share the experience
of performing that show together, sharing it with our families and friends.
What do you think the benefits of dance are?
Connie:
It is great exercise and improves strength, flexibility and balance. I
think dancers are more creative because we learn to interpret music and
tell stories through our bodies. We also get exposed to a lot of different
kinds of music. With all of the choreography dancers have to quickly learn,
I think that dance improves concentration and memory, too.
Emily:
Dance is great exercise, and dancers are usually fit and flexible. Every
part of your body has to be strong, including core, legs and arms. It
encourages good posture, which is second nature to most dancers – even when
not dancing. Performing in front of an audience is a huge confidence
builder. I started getting on stage in front of a lot of people when I was
very young, so while I still get nervous sometimes, I am kind of used to it
now, and actually really enjoy it. Every dancer will make a mistake on
stage at some point, or have a costume or prop malfunction, but you learn
to keep going and pretend like it didn’t happen. Dance teaches you to pick
yourself up and keep going, and to learn from your mistakes. Dancers also
learn to be disciplined. We have to show up to class on time, be neat with
our hair, tights and leotard, show respect to our teachers, follow
instructions and work very hard to perfect technique, which can be
repetitive sometimes. I think the benefits from learning to be disciplined,
even if it gets boring, stay with dancers even when they stop dancing.
Here are some outstanding, reputable dance studios in the metro area.
- Tiny Dancers
- tinydancers.com
- Alexandria, Fairfax, Mosaic
- Ballet, Tap, Jazz and Wiggletoes
- Joy of Motion Dance Center
- joyofmotion.org
- Bethesda, Multiple locations in Washington, D.C.
- Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Modern, Hip Hop, Flamenco, West African, Creative Movement, Stretch & Conditioning
- Imagination Stage
- imaginationstage.org
- Bethesda
- Ballet, Jazz, Modern
- Sterling Ballet Academy
- sterlingballet.com
- Sterling
- Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Lyrical, Hip Hop
- Vienna Dance Academy
- viennadanceacademy.com
- Vienna
- Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Lyrical, Hip Hop
- Culkin School of Traditional Irish Dance
- culkinschool.com
- Bethesda, Glen Echo, Rockville, Silver Spring
- Traditional Irish Dance
- Maryland Youth Ballet
- marylandyouthballet.org
- Silver Spring
- Ballet, Creative Movement
- Washington Ballet
- washingtonballet.org
- Washington, D.C.
- Ballet, Creative Movement
- City Dance School & Conservatory
- citydance.net
- Bethesda, Rockville, Washington, D.C.
- Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Flamenco, Modern, Creative Movement, Hip Hop, African, Afro-Pop, Bollywood and more
- Berrend Dance Center
- berrenddancecentre.com
- Olney
- Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Modern, Hip Hop, Music & Motion
- The Kirov Academy of Ballet
- kirovacademydc.org
- Washington. D.C.
- Ballet
- BalletNova Center for Dance
- balletnova.org
- Falls Church
- Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Modern, Hip Hop
- Metropolitan Ballet Theatre and Academy
- mbtdance.org
- Gaithersburg
- Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Modern, Hip Hop, Creative Movement, Adaptive Ballet for dancers with special needs
- Bethesda Conservatory of Dance
- bethesdaconservatoryofdance.com
- Bethesda
- Ballet, Creative Dance, Hip Hop, Tap, Lyrical, Jazz, Contemporary
- Creative Dance Center
- cdcdance.com
- Ashburn, Old Towne Ashburn and South Riding
- Acro, Ballet, Contemporary, Lyrical, Hip Hop, Tap, Pointe, Jazz, Musical Theater, Modern
Originally published: 01-01-18
Updated: 10-14-22
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