If your child has asked to take dance lessons, you may be wondering whether enrolling them is really worth the cost. Dance lessons can be a bit pricey, and the cost may seem like a lot for some fun and entertainment. But the important thing to realize is that by taking dance classes, your child will be getting a lot more than just a few hours of fun. Most parents find that dance lessons are well worth the cost because they offer kids the following benefits.
Improved Creativity
Gone are the days when employers are looking for workers who follow a script and do the same thing over and over again. In most fields, employers are instead looking for workers who are creative and innovative, coming up with new ideas and new ways to do things better than the competition. Dance lessons can help foster this creativity in your child. Dance is like art put into motion. Even if your child has a pre-choreographed dance that they are performing, it is up to them to put their own signature spin on it. And as your child advances in their dance lessons, they will begin choreographing their own dances, which further builds creative thinking and planning.
Exercise
Dance can be an excellent workout. It provides cardiovascular benefits, stretching, and strength training all in one! Kids often lead quite sedentary lives while they are in school, sitting at a desk for much of the day. And many come home to spend additional hours playing video games or watching television. When they enroll in dance classes, your child will be getting exercise that will help him or her to avoid weight gain, heart disease, and other health problems later in life.
Social Interaction
The school environment can make for some difficult social interactions between children. Cliques form early on, and children may stick with the same friends year after year. They do not always get a lot of practice making new friends and meeting new people in school, but they can get this practice in dance classes since many of the children in their classes will be people they have never met before. The ability to make new friends and get to know new people will make it easier for them to maintain a strong social circle as they move onto college and then into the workplace.
Improved Self-Esteem
Dance takes a lot of work to master, and when your child does succeed, he or she will be very proud. This helps boost self-esteem, which is so important and children grow up. Children who are more self-confident will go further in the workplace. They will have the confidence to ask for raises, chase after their dreams, and make bold decisions.
Better Discipline
When children are very young, it's up to their parents to discipline them and make sure they do what needs to be done. But as they grow older, discipline needs to come from within. They need to learn to do their homework on their own, make smart decisions when confronted with a choice, and take care of responsibilities before engaging in fun. Dance helps teach kids that discipline. They need to stay dedicated to practice until they make something perfect, and they need to take good care of their bodies in order to perform well.
If your child is asking to participate in dance classes, you should strongly consider saying "yes" and enrolling them. Whether they enroll in ballet, hip hop, tap, or something else entirely, the lessons they learn in dance class will continue to pay off as they grow up.
