What are the Benefits of Ballet for Kids?

The spotlight is on the ballerina who is gracefully dancing on stage in tune to the music. The audience is enthralled by the ballerina as she executes her seemingly effortless and elegant twirls and jumps. When the beautiful dance ends, the crowd erupts in deafening applause. Does your little girl yearn to wear a pink tutu of her own and dance as well as the lithe ballerina? If your answer is yes, then perhaps you would want to consider sending her to ballet lessons. Here are 4 benefits why you should enroll your child in a ballet school.

Physical Benefits of Ballet:

There is clinical evidence to show that kids who are involved in the performing arts spend less time on the couch watching TV or in front of their desk staring at a computer screen. Thus, this lowers their risk of developing health problems. All forms of dance, including ballet, helps your child to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

1. Improve Flexibility

You might not be surprised that toddler ballet lessons focus on flexibility. How else would your little dancer learn to do a flawless needle split? What you may not know however, is that in ballet schools, your child will also learn how to stretch safely.

Ballet teachers emphasize the importance of safety while becoming flexible from the very beginning of your child’s dance journey in ballet lessons. Your little dancer will be taught the best posture for each stretching exercise.

2. Improve Strength

Dancing is not just a fun way for your child to groove along to music but it is actually a great way for your child to release pent up energy and excitement. A huge plus factor is that dancing is exercise in disguise and helps to improve physical strength. Strength is critical to hold elegant ballet poses and perform rigorous dance routines.

Unfortunately, some underprepared dance programs may overlook the importance of strength training. Therefore, you should send your child to established ballet schools with highly trained instructors who know the safest and best way to pair both flexibility and strength training for your little dancer.

Non-Physical Benefits of Ballet:

Believe it or not, dancing can contribute significantly to your child’s development not just in the physical sense, but also in the cognitive sense. Dance is an creative outlet for young children while it also teaches them important social skills and discipline.

3. Creativity

Ballet is an art form, and also an creative outlet for your little dancer to express her emotions, thoughts and ideas through various body movements. In ballet lessons, children are encourage to move however they like according to the mood of the song played. For instance, when a happy tune is played, the class might leap and jump in joy. When a sad tune is played, the class might instead move languidly to express their sadness. Dancing on the dance floor is one of the best ways for children to discover their creativity.

4. Social Skills

Learning to socialize with others from a young age is a crucial part of a child’s development. Your little dancer gets to interact with her peers from various backgrounds and personalities. Your child will learn how to communicate and coordinate with other children in a group environment, and is constantly challenged to adapt in new ways. Ballet classes are also where friendships are forged and sometimes these budding friendships last for life. Friendships that dancers make in ballet lessons are strong because they are formed through teamwork and perseverance.

Get your child to join a ballet school and start her dance journey now. It will benefit her in numerous ways while at the same time she can have lots of fun.