Extracurricular activities are the cornerstone of raising children. Whether it is mathematics camp or swimming lessons, enrolling your son and/or daughter into an after-school and weekend activity can provide lifelong lessons – and give you a break from your children for a couple of hours every week!
Unsure what to enroll your kids in? What about ballet classes?
Ballet is a superb physical activity, art form, and exciting weekly event for children of all ages. You’re exercising, stimulating your creative juices, and learning about the greats, from Tchaikovsky to Barishnikov. There aren’t any negatives to a ballet class.
So, how do you ensure your kid is properly ready for instruction?
Here are five tips for preparing your child for ballet classes:
1. Do Not Push Your Child
We often hear about parents who live vicariously through their children. Mothers and fathers ensure their kids take on their interests and hobbies and succeed in these fields that they could not. It can seem unfair to the child, but it is completely understandable the older you get.
That said, when your child shows an interest in enrolling in a ballet class, you should encourage it (see below) and facilitate an environment of experimentation. After a couple of classes, and they feel disappointed in their lack of progress, you should refrain from pushing your son or daughter too much.
If you push your kid, then he or she will feel pressure, be miserable during their classes, and fail to try.
And that’s the worst thing you could do.
2. Ensure They Stretch Before Class
Like any other type of exercise, you need to stretch prior to your ballet class to make sure you’re not in pain afterwards.
We have all been there. After a couple of hours walking, playing tennis, or having fun at the gym, if you don’t stretch your muscles, you’ll feel it in the morning.
If you’re children don’t stretch beforehand, and they endure the achy muscles the next day, then it might discourage them from moving ahead with their classes.
So, take 15 minutes before your class to stretch.
3. Keep Them Hydrated
Similar to stretching, you can get quickly dehydrated if you do too much physical activity. It can be exhausting and uncomfortable when you don’t have enough water in your body.
Be sure your kids are drinking enough water prior to their ballet classes. Also, bring a bottle of water with you during the activity so they aren’t tiring themselves or uncomfortable.
Considering the way some kids behave when they get thirsty, it’s always a great idea to carry water.
4. Check with the Instructor for Necessities
When your children are starting their first ballet class, you should contact the instructor and find out what exactly they will need.
Typically, these are the necessities they will require moving forward:
- A pair of tights.
- A leotard.
- A pair of ballet shoes.
- Hair clips to tie your hair into a bun.
- A bottle of water (can’t stress this enough!).
And there you have it. You’re ready to enjoy your ballet classes and become the next Yaroslav Barishnikov.
5. Encourage Your Kids to Continue Their Studies
Remember when we recommended to not push your kids. Well, we meant it, but that doesn’t mean you can’t encourage your children to continue their studies if they inform you that they want to quit.
By explaining to them that Rome wasn’t built in a day and anything worth doing takes practice, you can foster encouragement that can make your child want to do their best and learn something that’s hard.
There’s a fine line between pushing and encouraging. We suggest the ladder.
Ballet is one of the greatest art forms known to man. It is also a popular physical activity for little girls all over the world. They’re performing “Swan Lake,” schools are attending “The Nutcracker,” and students are learning about the various forms of classical music.
It is a rich education that will pay dividends in the future – perhaps not as a career, but in terms of work ethic.
