Working on dances gives students the opportunity to explore different characters, emotions and scenarios. It allows them to explore creativity by acting out different stories. When children are young, the teacher guides them through all the aspects of their dance experience. The teacher guides the students through the learning of the dance steps, the choreography of the dance routine, the story or meaning of the dance, the facial expressions and the feeling that the dance evokes. Through many dance classes and rehearsals, the dancers begin to comprehend all the components that go into a dance routine and get the gist of the structured nature of a set dance piece. Although this sounds like the children are not involved in the creative process, the children do have an opportunity to explore their creativity!
At the end of each dance class, the children have their chance to exercise their creative side. The teacher plays several different pieces of music and the children show off their dance moves! When the music is soft and flowing, the children dance with soft and flowing movements. When the music is quick and exciting, the children leap and twirl and dart about the studio, dancing as they keep time with the music. Dance class is a place to learn dance steps from the teacher but it is also a place to keep a child’s creative spark glowing and growing!
Dance gives everyone the freedom to express themselves and to interpret music. This freedom is beneficial to a person’s mental well-being. For teenage students, performing emotional numbers can be a cathartic experience and help them deal with difficult situations that they may not be able to express verbally. A dance can play out a story or a theme. A dance can also be a vehicle to express joy and happiness or to vent sorrow or anger. This gives the dancers the freedom to explore their feelings and provide an outlet for their emotions.
At dance competitions, there is often a category called “Student Choreography”. Dancers can create a solo or group in the style of dance which they choose, with music that they select and with the dance steps that they feel best works with the music. Miss Desirae starting creating her own choreography and entering her routines in the Student Choreography when she was 10 years old. Those first choreography opportunities allowed her to develop her dance skills in a new and exciting way outside of regular dance classes. By have free movement at the end of each dance class, the children are getting a head start on their own choreography training for the future!
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See you on Thursday for another reason your child should be in dance!
