Eight invaluable life skills that are learned through dance
Accountability
As a dancer, you are part of a team working together to present the best possible performance. Whether you are a member of the corps or the chorus, the prima ballerina or the leading man, a swing or an understudy, you are vital to the success of the production. If you skip rehearsal, phone it in, forget your entrance, or don’t give it all in every run through, the entire team suffers. You learn quickly that others rely on you, and that you are accountable to fulfill your role with humility and hard work.
Personal Responsibility
A lot more goes into dance class than one might realise. You need to remember your dancewear and shoes, arrive on time, warm yourself up, remember combinations and choreography, apply corrections from the instructor, follow proper etiquette, and interact with your fellow dancers safely and appropriately. Your dance teachers are there to guide and advise you, but ultimately, it is up to you to set and meet your personal goals. As a dance student, you will quickly learn that you are responsible for your own success in the studio, and you become empowered to make that success a reality.
Persistence
Dancing is hard – there’s no way around that! You have to work at it, spending hours in the studio perfecting your craft. You must practise simple and mundane elements over and over again before you can move on to the more exciting tricks and choreography. If you try to take shortcuts to success, you will quickly learn that it only leads to frustration, disappointment, or injury. Persistence is the name of the game in dance training!
Cooperation
Even though you spend a lot of time honing your individual skills in the studio, dancing is most often a group activity. In class, you share the space, using your spatial awareness and non-verbal communication skills to make sure that you move safely and allow others to do the same. In rehearsal, you often collaborate with others, working together as a group and with the choreographer to create, manipulate, and embody the artistic vision. In performance, you dance with your partner or the ensemble, working to create a sense of unity on stage. While legendary stories about famous performers’ egos abound, the truth is most dancers learn quickly that cooperation is key to their own success in the industry.
Creativity
We live in a creative economy. The ability to innovate, think outside the box, and approach problems in creative ways is valued in every field, now more than ever. Dance allows for creativity on multiple levels, whether it is personal self-expression through improvisation, creating your own choreography, or embodying another’s choreographic vision as a dancer. Steve Jobs even credits his creative successes in part to his experience with modern dance, stating, “I didn’t realise how much I learned about movement and perception from the class until a few years later, when I worked at Atari. I was able to relate how much resolution of movement you need in terms of perceiving things in certain ways for video games”.
Flexibility
Obviously, as a dancer you need to be physically flexible. But dancers need to be flexible in other ways, as well. You need to adapt when changes in the choreography are made right up until opening night. You need to be able to balance the viewpoints of different teachers, who might teach the same technique in radically different ways. You need to be able to handle disappointment and frustration with grace. The emotional, social, and cognitive flexibility needed to be a dancer are almost more important than the physical.
Attention to Detail
Dance is all about the details. The initiation of a movement, the tilt of the head in epaulment, and split second adjutants in timing all play a pivotal role in successful execution of dance technique and choreography. As a dancer, you are trained to observe with your eyes, ears, and kinesthetic sense. You learn to pick up the rhythmic patterns in your teacher’s voice. You learn to spot minuscule changes in height of a leg or the angle of an arm. You learn to feel the minute weight changes that make all the difference between a good balance and a great one.
Passion
If there is one word NOT to use to describe a dancer, it is apathetic. As a dancer, you care passionately about your art. You sacrifice for it. You devote time, energy, resources – everything you’ve got. You are inspired, and you strive to inspire others. Isn’t passion what the world needs most right now? The problems facing societies around the world require passionate individuals who know what it means to devote themselves to a cause. And dancers, in my opinion, do that better than anyone else!
Social Interaction
Learning how to communicate and collaborate with others is a vital part of growing up. Children’s dance classes teach children how to work as part of a team or with a partner. They will learn about respecting boundaries, encouraging and supporting each other, and problem solving. They may also make some friends through their time in our classes!
Discipline
Sometimes there are things we must do that we don’t want to, even if they are things we enjoy. Reaping the benefits of dance takes discipline, which means doing things we are required to do even when we don’t feel like it. Stretching, warmups, practicing, and learning are all things that dancers must do to develop. Our classes teach kids how to develop discipline, and this skill can help them in other areas of life such as academics and when doing chores.
Encourages Creativity
Your child, although part of a family and part of a dance group, has his or her own unique traits and strengths. Dance lessons allows students to create routines and add their unique flare to their moves, to help them express their creativity and individuality. While other parts of their life might seem more rigid, dance classes will help them enjoy their personal freedom, which will give them a better balance in life.
Taking Turns
Knowing to wait until it is your turn is an important skill that everyone uses in life. Dance classes help young kids develop this skill as they take turns going across the floor, sharing information with their teacher, freestyling, or doing solo moves. The earlier a child can understand and respect this rule, the sooner they will know how to interact with others in a respectful way.
Spatial Awareness
From the first few dance classes, your child will learn about spatial awareness. Teachers may use dots, colours, or shapes to keep the students standing in a certain area, so they can dance and move without accidentally bumping into the other classmates. It also teaches children not to play with props or move them, so they stay in a formation. Teaching kids to be aware of their space and the personal “bubbles” of others is an important skill that will help them avoid conflicts at school, on the playground, and as they interact with loved ones.
Listening
Dance classes require careful attention to the teacher so students can learn the techniques and theory behind each move. This means students must listen and watch more than they speak. The more a dancer can listen, the better they can stay on beat and develop their musical talent. Good listening skills will also help your child be successful in school and help them have better communication with others.
Emotional Development
Learning to express ourselves and deal with failure and disappointment in a healthy way shows emotional development. When your child experiences challenges as they dance, they will learn how to express themselves in a healthy, safe way, and learn how to overcome those feelings of failure and try again. Dance gives children the freedom to express and channel their emotions into movements in a safe environment, and the support they get from our teachers will increase their confidence and self-esteem.
Respect
A huge concept of dance classes is showing respect for others. Students are taught to respect each other’s space, take turns, listen, show support for each other, share, and more. Dancers are encouraged to give each other compliments, and mocking or put downs are never tolerated. Our experienced teachers create an environment that feels comfortable and loving, so each dancer’s confidence can be built.
Improves Physical Health
One of the best ways to get your child off the couch and exercising is to sign them up for dance classes. Dance is a great way to improve physical health. It targets all the muscles of the body, and can increase their flexibility, stamina, range of motion, and physical strength. It promotes their overall health and supports them as they pursue other activities and sports at school and recreationally.
Dressing to Impress
Dress codes in dance help students focus so they aren’t constantly wiping their hair out of their faces or fidgeting with their clothes. As they learn to dress appropriately at a young age, they will evoke a sense of organisation, cleanliness, and structure. Making a good impression and being appealing to others is possible when we take care of ourselves, and that’s what our teachers help students to learn.
How Dance Fitness Complex Can Help Your Child Develop Life Skills
If you’re looking for a fun way to help your child develop important skills that will give them a great future, dance classes are a great option. At Dance Fitness Complex, we provide students with extraordinary instructors that are certified and trained to teach your child how to dance and how to work well as part of a team. Our teachers will nurture your child’s social and emotional development and maturity, so they can do well in other areas of their life. Our studio inspires creativity and our instructors will motivate your child to dance with passion, creativity, and excitement.
Let your child experience the joys of dance by contacting us today.