Why is it so important that we teach age-appropriate movement here at SDC?  Because your child’s safety depends on it!

Safe movements for young dancers are dependent on their ages and rate of physical growth.  For example, growth plates in the skeleton—the growing tissues that help bones become strong—don’t reach full maturity until a child’s teen years.

This is one reason why an eight-year-old dancer will still be introduced to age-appropriate movements even if she has been dancing for six years.  Our instructors at SDC understand that certain skills may not be safe for her to practice just yet.

To develop proper technique and a love for dance, we help all of our students build a strong dance foundation over time.

At SDC, we take pride in knowing that our teaching methods must include different approaches for different ages. Our faculty take great care in their teacher education to learn how to instruct children of all ages with the most-relevant tools and resources.  Our curricula allow us to ensure the pace of learning is just right at each level.

Here are some examples you may notice from your child’s class:

• With little dancers, we focus on developing gross motor skills, such as marching, galloping, and hopping—not intricate technique
• Our younger dancers also work on non-locomotor movements such as bending, turning, stretching, and balancing on one foot
• Since the muscles that support a child’s hip joints are still developing, we never force a child’s “turnout” (the rotated position many dance steps are performed from)
• As our dancers grow, we introduce strength and flexibility exercises only at developmentally-appropriate times
• We ensure our dancers of all ages know to never overstretch their muscles, either in class or when they stretch on their own time
• In keeping with our modest standards, we also take great care in teaching a mix of family-friendly traditional and trendy movements (everything is “grandma-friendly”!)

Your child’s safe physical development in dance is a top priority in our classrooms, and it is a privilege for us to be a part of their personal growth in the classroom.  We appreciate your trust in us as we help your child progress in dance, step by step!

– Ms. Julie