Anyone with a dd in dance school?

[ItsonlyExperiment626]

I'm thinking of enrolling dd in a dance school. Could someone please give me some advice as to what to ask and look for when I go visit the studio.

 

[DisneyJen0504]

I used to teach dance myself. I would definitely ask how many students per class, can you view your child's class through a mirror or door (usually one way so the students cannot see mom or dad), do they have recitals and how often, average cost to parents for classes, costumes and other items.
I would also ask how they handle certain situations with the children. I taught ballet and tap to 4 and 5 year olds. They were so adorable but often just weren't in the mood to dance. We required parents to stay in the waiting room (they could observe from the window) and if their child did not want to stay in the class, was upset or having a fit,the parent could come in and take them out, temporarily or for the rest of class. We never forced them.
Good luck!

 

[powellrj]

how old is your DD? If she is young I would ask around and see where other girls her age go. We have several schools in our area and there are some that the girls really just dance for fun( Thats the one we use to go to) and there are some that take it very serious and expect a lot in the way of time and money.

 

[rigs32]

Many school run on a calendar similar to the school year, so it might e akward for her to join a class there now. She'd have missed out on what they already learned.

 

[AMcaptured]

I would check to see if the dancing school competes or not. My daughter does not go to a dancing school that competes but my neice does and it is a huge committement for both the parents and the student.

 

[leebee]

My dd goes to a dance school that has a competition team but you are invited to join. That gave us the option of making the committment or not- and it is a HUGE committment, just like being on a sports team is.

 

[Tinijocaro]

Something else to consider is at recital time, where are the recitals, how many days do they go there to rehearse, and how much does it cost for family and friends to come to see the recital. My dd's studio rehearses right in town here, one rehearsal that lasts less than a half hour, and NO CHARGE to come to the recital. The other main place in town goes 40 minutes away for their 3 rehearsals and charges family and friends to attend.

Jackie

 

[ItsonlyExperiment626]

Thank you to everyone who replied. My dd is 4 and I'm only looking into having her go for the fun of it. No recitials.

A couple more question though. Would there generally be classes in the afternoon for girls her age since she is only in preschool in the mornings? What is a good class size for her age group? What is the average cost for classes? Would they just have a general dance class which does a little of every type of dance? If not, which dance class would be the best for her age?

 

[JVL1018]

My DD takes jazz and tap. I did not want a school that competes or was really gung ho about it all, I wanted it to be for fun.
She goes once a week jazz for 45 minutes, tap for 30.
It's all out in the open so parents are right there watching, though sometimes Miss Patti pulls a curtain closed if the girls are getting too giggly and showing off for Mom. LOL
They have a big recital in June(dance runs Sept-June).
My daughter loves it, and the teacher is fantastic.
Ask around.

 

[Sleepy]

My son is on a pre-pro track for ballet. If your daughter is interested in ballet, my only advice would be to not expect alot of "real" ballet at the age of 4. While it will be called ballet, it is more creative movement with skips, etc. You are learning more about social skills and following direction at this age. The body is not physically able to handle real ballet movement at this age. That usually comes around age 7 or 8. I would say a good price for a month.....one day a week...$20-$25. Maybe no more than 10 kids at the age of 4. Watch for the contract. Be careful for places that charge a ridiculous price for costumes and recital fees or a place that requires you buy everything from them in way of class uniform.......leos, tights and shoes. Really, at this age, any school is ok. I'd say tap and the ballet would be what a 4 year old would do. Jazz is usually for the older students. It's later on that you have to be more selective with training. Really, most places will try to get you to sign up for as many classes as they can, because afterall, this is a business and they want to make money. Remember, it's supoposed to be fun, so don't ovewhelm your daughter with too many classes a week. Start her off slow with maybe just one form of dance. Good luck with your search.

 

[Disney_1derland]

If you're just looking for something for fun, to let her try it without a huge commitment, check your local YMCA's. There, you only commit to one month at a time and the prices (at least in our area) are comparable to a 'real' dance school. We did this when dd wanted to try gymnastics and it was a good 'trial' for her at a young age. MOST dance schools do recitals, even for the little ones. The Y is much more relaxed and doesn't get into all of that.

 

[Disney_1derland]

Would there generally be classes in the afternoon for girls her age since she is only in preschool in the mornings? Our schools start classes at 3pm each day and run into the night with the younger classes being earlier in the day.

What is a good class size for her age group? I would shoot for no more than 7 kids per teacher, our classes have about 18 kids in them but there is the owner, 2 older teenage helpers (17 or older) and two younger teenage helpers (13-15), definitely enough help there to steer the class right

What is the average cost for classes?
We pay $40/month for one class a week and that's on the cheap side around here.

Would they just have a general dance class which does a little of every type of dance?
Here, kids under 6 do combo classes, jazz/tap/ballet at 6 they can 'specialize'.

 

[Jenn Lynn]

My 4 year old started dance this year in a tap/ballet combo class. We pay $29/month, 1 class/week. Months where a week is skipped and not made up (like Dec.) the price is pro-rated. Enrollment was at the right before school started here. In the summer she offers fun clsses that are maybe a couple weeks long.

We do have a recital and there is a costume. We paid the fee up front at registration ($60 I think). Then they picked 3 for the parents to vote on. They were lion costumes and should be cute for preschoolers.

All of the classes were offered on weekday evenings here. We got to a school that was recommended to us from some Moms I met through YMCA gymnastics.

So far DD really loves it. I can tell a little bit in the way she moves when dancing around the house now. Nothing specific, she just moves differently.

 

[Marseeya]

Something to add on to what the others have added, check out the attitude of the other parents. You'll be spending a lot of time in the studio yourself, and you don't want to be where you'll have to deal with the cliques.

When my DD first started dance, I took her to a very reputable studio and while she was in her lesson, the mothers in the lounge were so rude and snarky. They sat there the whole time talking about people and spreading gossip. We never went back. The next studio we tried, the mothers were very friendly and warm. A few years later we had to find a new studio because of our schedule and, again, the mothers in this new studio were very cliqueish. I'm just not comfortable around people like that.

 

[BabyTigger99]

Also, check with your local Park and Rec department. Classes are usually very reasonably priced, with no pressure put on kids (this is who I teach with, and have for the last 10 years!)

 

[JVL1018]

We pay $18.50 a week for 2 classes(it was $11 a week last year when she took only one). They have a pay as you go, no commitment policy. If you miss a week, you don't have to pay for it.
That's what attracted me to this place last year-I wasn't sure if DD would love it and didn't want to be stuck.

 

[momof1princess]

please find out whether the school teaches traditional or contemporary dance. i made this mistake last year-i took dance lessons for 12 years from the best dance instructor in alabama (now retired), and i assumed since the place i enrolled my daughter was the largest and most prestigious in the area, she'd be learning the same things i learned-WRONG! after a year of instruction, she can barely show the 5 basic ballet positions! come to find out, it was a "contemporary" dance school, and as i saw at the recital, the technique, even for the girls who'd been taking lessons 10-12 years, is non-existent, the routines were sloppy & unorganized and on top of all this, her tap teacher was 15 minutes late for her 30 minute lesson each week-even after i complained to the director! i may get flamed for this, but i'm a traditionalist-if you're gonna do it, do it right, don't half-@#& it and expect parents to sit at a recital $500.00+ later and smile. of course you want your child to have fun, but they can have fun and STILL learn & have structure-a lot of my happiest childhood memories are of dance classes & my teacher. good luck!

 

[missypie]

Both our girls took community rec. classes for a while when they were in preschool before we went to a dance school.

Some of the studios choreograph very sexually explicit moves for even young girls, and have them wearing very suggestive costumes to recitals and/or competitons. There is really something sickening about seeing a bunch of 7 year olds bumping and grinding like strippers...and what's worse, the parents hoot and cheer and whistle. Sick. Talk to the dance school about this kind of thing because it's rampant.

 

[Sleepy]

Some of the studios choreograph very sexually explicit moves for even young girls, and have them wearing very suggestive costumes to recitals and/or competitons. There is really something sickening about seeing a bunch of 7 year olds bumping and grinding like strippers...and what's worse, the parents hoot and cheer and whistle. Sick. Talk to the dance school about this kind of thing because it's rampant.

Dolly Dinkle They are the type of school that usually give out huge trophies at recital for 5 year students.

 

[janette]

My 14yo DD has taken dance for the last 10 years. Right now she has classes 6days a week so it can really keep someone busy if they get serious about it.

As others have mentioned I'd check to see if they teach traditional techniques. Ballet is the most traditional form of dance and many other forms build on techniques learned in Ballet. The studio my DD attends requires all their students to take at least 1 Ballet class. The youngest kids take a combo Tap/Ballet class and are invited to add Jazz when the teachers think they are ready to add it.

Although you probably aren't considering the competitive side it helps to know how the school does in competitions. Look at pictures of the costumes and if you can see a performance. That will show you if there are some of the things missypie mentioned. I've been at some competitions that made me appreciate that our studio just doesn't go there.

I'd ask about if there is a difference on classes and other things offered to the non-competing dancers. A friend's studio doesn't allow non-competing dancers to attend conventions as part of their group and also separates the non-competing dancers and the competing dancers in classes. Our studio groups classes by age and skill level, this allows a talented dancer to progress at their pace without regard to whether they want to compete or not.