Ballet Fever and its benefits for kids

For so long, I have been longing for the day I would have a little girl to enroll in ballet class. :) Call it my childhood frustration or what ( i have two left feet!), but it was a plus for me knowing that my beaboo also happens to love dancing especially ballet! She would dance and do pirouettes and tiptoe across the room at times when she feels like dancing (well more of pretending to be a ballerina) -- even at the mall at times. :)

So a few days ago, we trooped over to a dance studio in Gensan for her first ballet class. It was nice to see all the pictures of little ballerinas in their recital dance wearing their tutus and ballet slippers. The minute we walked into the office, beaboo's eyes (along with her dad) was all alight with excitement.
So I guess the decision for my 5 year old to learn ballet this summer is a good one! And it was also a nice factor that daddy seems to be excited as my little girl. Imagine buying all of my soon to be ballerina girl all the paraphernalia - tutus, leggings, leotards and ballet slippers almost as soon as we left the dance studio! Whew! Sure glad daddy is also as excited as I am. :)

So for her first week in ballet, she instantly made friends. I was surprised that my usual shy little girl suddenly let go of mommy's hand to eagerly join her new ballet teacher and classmates!

And in this latest event in my child's life, I've come upon some articles about the benefits of creative dance for pre-schoolers. So I've gathered, that engaging preschoolers in creative dance not only flexes their muscles but challenges them emotionally and cognitively. 

"When children dance together, something amazing happens. Creative dance is a tremendous learning modality for the individual, but what's thrilling to see as a teacher and parent is the way children begin to embrace new ideas that foster community building and social connections. Under the care of a dedicated teacher, even the tiniest dancers can look at and appreciate each other's choreographic efforts, applaud each other's determination and zeal and work together to solve problems. While they're just having a great time singing and dancing and being silly, they're also addressing important meta-cognitive learning needs. Simply put, these small dancers can begin to see the differences in the way they think and feel compared to other people, to accept and celebrate these differences, and to have the necessary vocabulary to sort out their experiences. This level of objectivity about other people is something that will serve any child well as he or she encounters the larger classes and variety of experiences that loom in early educational experiences. The creative dance method offers children and their caregivers tools for learning for a lifetime." - from sparkplugdance.org

Not only this, i can see the following benefits for kids as well:

• They learn to follow instructions
• They get a regular exercise which they may not get staying at home watching tv or playing with the computer
• They gain self confidence performing in front of groups of people
• They learn social skills as they interact with their classmates (so unlike social networks)
• They gain discipline as they learn the many positions in ballet
• They start to appreciate proper nutrition since they have to be fit and trim to be able to dance properly 
• They start to take pride in their bodies and what they can do through ballet
• They learn grace, coordination and balance with the varying positions in ballet

If you are in the Gensan area and want to enroll your child in classical ballet like we did, you can get in touch with the "Girlie S. Royeca Ballet and Performaing Arts School" at Block 1 Lot 1, Royeca Subd., Lagao, General Santos or call them through these numbers: (083) 553-8312/ 0917-7143240/ 0942-7381179