While traditional team sports are a great way to get your kids physically active, they may not be right for everyone. Dance classes are a wonderful alternative to team sports and most studios offer classes for children as young as three. Participating in dance classes can have benefits for children of all ages.
Dancing is a extremely physical activity, and children who have dance lessons regularly should expect to see a significant improvement in their overall physical health.
Regular dance practice can increase your child's:
- Flexibility
- Range of motion
- Physical strength
- Stamina.
The repetitive movements involved in dance can also improve:
- Muscle tone
- Correct poor posture
- Increase balance and coordination
- Improve overall cardiovascular health
- Dancing is an aerobic form of exercise.
- For children who are overweight, it can also help them to lose weight and improve their eating habits.
In addition to being a physical activity, dancing is also a highly social activity. Dance lessons can help children improve their social skills and enable them to communicate better, learn teamwork, develop a greater sense of trust and cooperation and make new friends.
Becoming a skilled dancer requires practice, discipline and focus which are all skills that can be applied to other areas in life. Students who regularly participate in dance lessons typically tend to perform better academically than their nonparticipating peers.
As children adjust to the movements and postures required in dance, they begin to get a better sense of their bodies. Children who participate in dance also tend to have better self esteem.
