Reasons Your Child Thrives from Performing

Every dancer knows that moment, right before they perform, when they have "butterflies in their stomach" and the rush they feel when they hear the audience's applause. It feels better than going to Disneyland. Why? Why is performance so impactful for dancers?

Dance, Acting, Singing, Aerial Arts; they are all performing art. And performances are the magical moment when the training all comes together. Performing is often considered to be the highlight of a dancer's experience each year!

Performance gives students the opportunity to work together as a class, to learn choreography, practice memorization techniques, and show off the talents they have developed over time. Your dance recital may seem far away right now, but months of preparation are needed to make sure every dancer is as ready as they can be. Just as football teams must practice for months before the Super Bowl, dancers must practice for months before their recital!

So here are 5 reasons your child thrives from performing:

1. Achieving Goals

Performances teach children to work towards a goal. They begin practicing months before and are aware of the date in which it's taking place. This gives them a lot of time to prepare, but on the night of the first one they may still feel underprepared. This is where they'll learn lessons of working towards a date and being prepared.

The best thing about working towards a goal is completing it, and this is the euphoria they'll feel after their performance. There are little experiences better than feeling like you did amazing, then hearing the praise from family and peers.

The achievement of targets and goals is something that is useful all throughout life, and this is an amazing place to learn that skill.

2. Performing = Teamwork

Dance, acting, singing, aerial arts can be very individual, but when children work with their fellow performers in a group piece, they learn the positive aspects of working as a team to create the best end result. Teamwork and camaraderie are skills needed not only in dance class, but also school, future careers, and family life. Because this is a basic skill necessary in all aspects of life, it is never too early to start learning! Performing provides a wonderful opportunity for dancers to learn that anything one can do, a group can do better!

3. Performing teaches discipline

Once the full routine has been taught, "cleaning" the choreography begins. This is when our teachers help their students improve their routine by practicing many times, making it stronger and more polished with every run-through. This process makes it possible for the dancers to reach their full confidence with the steps, which in turn makes the goal feel truly achievable!

4. Performing Builds Confidence

Having confidence in class is important, being confident on stage in front of an audience is mandatory. With friends and family watching, if a dancer is unsure of the choreography, it will show not only in her performance but the performance of all the dancers on stage. Cleaning a routine will ensure that each performer knows the dance and is ready to perform well with the rest of their class. Dancers who aren't ready may end up dropping out of dance altogether to avoid that feeling in the future.

5. Pride

Another important lesson that performances teach kids is how to take pride in something. Part of growing up means learning to take pride in yourself, your environment and your possessions by putting effort and time into caring for these things. Performing serves as the culmination of all of the work your child has put into dancing up until that point. When kids learn that they'll be doing a show for their family and friends to attend they're often excited to put on the best they can. Kids quickly learn to take pride in the pending show by putting time and effort into learning and practicing their routines. Your child will light up with excitement when they see the people closest to them enjoying all of their hard work!

Performing can provide a lot more benefits to kids than just the benefits of dancing. Achieving a goal, teamwork, learning discipline, developing confidence and pride are all incredible benefits that will impact their entire lives. Performing is a wonderful place for family, friends and dancers to make lifetime memories.