Dance Offers Lifelong Skills

Posted

Dance is not just an art, beautiful movement, and fun. Dance is confidence, life lessons, friendships and fitness. From a 3-year-old twirling in a pink tutu to adults who always wanted to learn to dance, it is in the studio that we learn more than ballet, tap, jazz, modern, hip hop, and lyrical.

Dance teaches us accountability. Dancers learn from their mistakes and to make changes in themselves to become better dancers. They learn to accept “corrections” from others, and that by receiving those corrections, they are bettering themselves. With this, dancers also gain confidence by knowing they can be successful and accomplish their goals.

Dancers learn time management. Between school, family and social time, dancers learn to manage it all. If you ask a dancer how they are doing in school, more times than not, they have good grades and are thriving.

Dancers learn to work well with others. Dance is collaborative. Dancers work in groups to make movements cohesive. They learn to trust others and know they support each other both physically and emotionally.

Dance is friendship. Friends made in the studio will last a lifetime. These friends have sat together doing homework in the lobby, grabbing a snack between classes, spending hours in auditoriums rehearsing, perfecting, and being there for each other because they know the life of a dancer. Just as young dancers have these bonds, adult dancers find camaraderie in the studio. They often make friends in a class in a similar place in life.

Dance is fitness. Physical and cognitive fitness are integral in dance. Physical fitness is obvious as dancers are leaping and jumping throughout hour-long classes. But cognitive fitness is a big part of a dancer’s training as well.

Dancers must memorize short pieces of choreography that may change weekly while at the same time learning a three-minute dance to perform at the end of the year. They must learn patterns of steps as well as spatial patterns as they move. Adults may find this to be another reason to start dancing later in life!

Dance is a way of life and an art. All that dance teaches translates to everyday life outside of the studio. Dancers are accountable, confident, productive and cooperative. Try a class and lose yourself in an hour of movement and fun!

Email kgreer@spcommunitycenter.org or call 410-647-5843 to try a free class today. For more information, visit www.spcommunitycenter.org/dance.

Comments

No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here