This is a GREAT question! Starting a new activity for parents is always an important decision with so many things to consider. As a mom, myself with a 4-year old, I find myself answer those same questions when we get ready to start a new activity:
- How will I know she will like it?
- Will she make new friends?
- Can I afford it?
- What with the other moms like?
- Does this studio promote good values?
- Will this be the right studio where my child felt welcome and would be challenged enough?
These are all the typical questions all parents go through, so don’t worry, you are in good company. So in the end how do you know it is worth it?
I started dance at age 3 and continued all the way through college. My studio was my 2nd home and there was no place else I wanted to be. I lived and breathed it every day because it lit me up. It became my passion and a way to escape those hard days at school or just the general stress that life brings. I even remember my dad and mom would shout at me from my room as I had the music blasting and pounding on the floor from practicing and saying it sounded like the floor was coming down.
My parents were willing to shell out thousands of dollars over the course of 18 years, attend every performance (even if it was hours long), sit through competitions, and purchasing many pairs of shoes, leotards, tights, and more without hesitating because they realized how dance was shaping me into a young child, teenager, and now adult I am today.
To them, it was NOT an expense in their budget BUT an investment in my future.
Dance offered me so much growth not just in staying physically active, but in developing my values, connecting in my relationships with friends, learning how to work as a team, building my character, increasing my confidence, and more. I had wonderful teachers who lead by example and gave me the path to find my self-worth and encourage me on my journey. So to me, it is not just a dance, but the values that dance and my studio taught me that I have taken with me into adulthood from school projects, being organized, job/college interviews, receiving performance evaluations and so much more.
Here is my top 10 list of how you know (and I have found) that dance is worth it:
- Their eyes light up when they talk about dance and their friends.
- They come home and show you what they are learning in class.
- You see their confidence start to bloom and become strong.
- Maybe they always stood in the back or wouldn’t talk to others. Now you see them wanting to be in the front, asking questions, and chatting away with new friends and others at the studio.
- You notice more emotional maturity in the way they express themselves.
- Their perseverance and work ethic is getting stronger every week.
- They meet challenges better and head-on with a look of determination.
- Focus and organization with school work improve and they have a greater sense of self-worth and accomplishment.
- They have good role models and teachers who support their journey.
- MOST IMPORTANT- You Smile Every Time You See Them On That Stage or After Dance Class!
All of these things come from dance. All of these are life skills.
Your child may not choose to continue with dance beyond grade school, BUT isn’t the confidence, self-worth, perseverance, work ethic, and determination worth more than gold?
Find the studio that will build that in your child. The one that is focused on proper development, love, and building confidence. That keeps class sizes low so that every child is given individualized attention and care. Where they value building relationships with all of their families regardless of the path they choose. Come see us here at Crossroads Irish Dance.
We would love to help build your child into the confident, passionate, well-rounded person they deserve to be.
