Dance class for 3's?

[PamL]

I am thinking about enrolling our 3.5 year old in dance classes. Do you think that is too young to go to a class? She loves to dance, but I am just wondering if it would be a waste of time and $. I am not expecting her to learn very much, but I wonder if I should pay $ for "playtime". Has anyone else had their 3 year olds in a dance class, and how did it work out?

[TXmom]

We haven't done dance classes, but ds #1 was in gymnastics when he was 3, and he was too young. Is there a lot of standing around waiting for a turn or instructions? Maybe a Gymboree or Kindermusic class would be better.

[AnnW]

TOO YOUNG!!!!!! Don't waste your money. Turn on the radio an let her dance till her hearts content. There are tons of programs (unfortunately) for ones that age, and they will teach them "point, point, point....tap, tap, tap" but they try to be structured and the little girls just want to dance and it ends up being a turn off. Buy her some taps shoes or ballet shoes and a tutu for dress up if you want, and let her play with those.

[Diane]

We enrolled our dd in dance class when she was 3 years old and she absolutely LOVED it. She did very well and continued to do it until this past year when Cheerleading conflicted with her schedule. She STILL misses it! I'll never forget watching all those little 3 year olds (during recital time) standing up on the stage trying to do their dance. Some of them did well remembering their steps, while some of the others tried hard to watch and copy what their neighbor was doing. LOL It was hilarious... and yet we were all so proud. If your dd likes to dance as well as mine always did... I'd really consider it. I've got a little one in my day care now, who just turned 3 on Friday and she's been going for about 4 months now and LOVES it too. She talks about her dance class all the time and tries to show everybody else what she's learned. Maybe for some kids it would be a waste but our experiences with it were always very positive. Good luck in deciding what to do, and if you do send her... I hope she enjoys it as much as my dd did. :)

[MAS]

My DD is in gymnastics and although she has a problem paying attention at times I feel it is well worth the money. In April I am putting her in swim lessons and in August ballet.

I didn't get to do all of these things as a child.. only because I was too afraid of failing and was way too shy. I feel the earlier the better.

[Amy2]

I really think it depends on the child, and the type of dance class. Some kids do much better in structured classes, like tap or ballet, while others are much better suited with Creative Dance type classes. I know my son wasn't good at structured stuff when he was three. His attention span was waaaaay to short. We take a Creative Dance class together now (he's almost five) a parent/child class and it's lots of fun, but at this point, I think he would do BETTER in a more structured situation. Especially tap where he could make tons of noise and move, move, move.
Most studios will allow you to take a single class or sometimes two to see if your kid likes it. You pay for just the one class, and then if you see it's not a good fit, you haven't thrown your money down the toilet.

[Mickey]

Maybe it does depend on the child, but generally speaking, I agree with Ann...too young. I tried to get my ds into Irish dancing because he LOVED to watch people do it and he loved the music and would dance around at home, but he made it through 1 1/2 classes and that was it. He wanted to do his own thing and was turned off when he was told that he had to do what everyone else was doing--he lost interest with all the waiting around and standing in line.

[andrea]

I was only 3 yo when my mother took me to my first dance class and I loved it. I have nothing but fond memories of my time dancing. I had to leave because we moved out of the area at aged 8 I was very unhappy. I had however notched up about 12 medals up to theat time all with very good marks. So I don't think it is a waste of time at all. If a child is going to be a good dancer its in them at any age. Besides which if nothing else it will help her develop her social skills, have something she enjoys to look forward to doing each week, boost her confidence and help to build her co-ordination. If she becomes a good dancer and gets some rewards such as medals or certificates then thats justa bonus. The emphasis at this age for any activity is fun anyway isn't it? My dd goes to tap/disco dance class and the class before is made of 2-4yos and some of them are very good!

[Diane]

Originally posted by andrea
I was only 3 yo when my mother took me to my first dance class and I loved it. I have nothing but fond memories of my time dancing. I had to leave because we moved out of the area at aged 8 I was very unhappy. I had however notched up about 12 medals up to theat time all with very good marks. So I don't think it is a waste of time at all. If a child is going to be a good dancer its in them at any age. Besides which if nothing else it will help her develop her social skills, have something she enjoys to look forward to doing each week, boost her confidence and help to build her co-ordination. If she becomes a good dancer and gets some rewards such as medals or certificates then thats justa bonus. The emphasis at this age for any activity is fun anyway isn't it? My dd goes to tap/disco dance class and the class before is made of 2-4yos and some of them are very good!

I couldln't agree with you more... I certainly don't consider the time my dd spent in dance class a waste of time either. She SOOo LOVED it! It did nothing but bring good things for her... (along with all the metals and certificates) as you said, the social skills, self confidence as well as her co-ordination. (She is now the "flier" on her Cheerleading squad) I've also got a little girl in my day care who is CONSTANTLY talking about dance class. I swear, if she had her own way she'd be going every day. LOL I think that if their heart is really in it and they enjoy dancing, they'll do well. It wouldn't hurt to let her try... the worst that can happen is that you pull her out but at least you've given her the opportunity to try. I couldn't say enough for it myself. :)

[coulie]

I teach parent/child gymnastics classes and there is a broad range of motives for parents enrolling their kids. Some do it because their girlfreind's kid is in it. So while I work with their children they socialise with each other. Some do it because they have several children or a new baby on the way, and they want to have some focus time with that particular child. Some enroll to give their child an opportunity to get their "ya ya's" out without destroying the living room. There's more but my point is, very few parents enroll their child with the expectation that this will be the sport for them. It's not realistic to expect that from a two's and three's gym class. It's simply a very fun activity that affords your child the opportunity to move and to socialize.
The only way to waste your money on your kid is to buy them a cartoon video and plop them in front of it (although sometimes that's a helpful sanity break for mom)or to buy them hoards of useless toys and junk.
Kids learn every second. Give lots of varied opportuniites and then talk with him/her about the experiences. A two year old will let you know if he/she "hates" something and if that's the case then don't force it on them. Otherwise, enroll and enjoy!

:)
Coulie

[Edensmom]

Hi Pam,

I went through a long process before making any conclusions about this issue, here's the story:

I put her in a ballet class and she hated it, she told me that the teacher wouldn't let her go potty in the middle of class. I immediately took her out of the class, what is she suppossed to "hold" it??? After that I was really against any classes. Eden was really missing those dance classes and I hated seeing her so disappointed, so I found another place and I took her for a trial class. She loved it and the teacher was brilliant. As opposed to the teacher in the other place who was totally unqualified to be a ballet teacher for 4 year olds and the parents are welcome to watch which was also missing at the first place.

So I can tell you this: Look for a place that allows parents to watch the class, and a younger teacher (kids can relate a lot better to a dance teacher than can actually do the moves with them and run around with high energy), and thirdly make sure you have her in a class with kids her same age this is also important for the child's self confidence.

Good luck

[Ryleigh]

We enrolled dd in a jazz dance class when she was three and she loved it. She was always asking when it was 'dance day'again. She enjoyed it so much that my mother in law paid to send her to ballet as well, which she did not enjoy and ended up dropping out. She started gymnastics at age four and is still going strong in both gymnastics and jazz. She has recently asked to join a line dancing class with a few of her friends, but we are worried that she is taking on too much right now. She has jazz on tues. and 3 hours of gym. mon. thurs. and sat. She makes me tired just watching her.

[Mickey]

What did you decide to do, Pam?

[Diane]

I was wondering the same thing... LOL

Diane P.

[PamL]

Originally posted by Mickey
What did you decide to do, Pam?

Thanks for asking! Well, we did decide to take her. The first class was a trial class. She LOVED it when she first went in, and was so excited. Towards the end, things got a little bit crazy, but I think that she just needs to get used to the way things work. We are going to try again, and see how it goes. By the way, we were lucky to get her in a class with only 3 other girls. Two of them are her age (3.5) and the other one is 5. I'll keep you updated!