Learning to dance has been something children have enjoyed doing for generations. As well as learning a fantastic set of skills, there are solid reasons why children should learn to dance that extend far beyond their ability to perform certain steps. Let’s take a look at some of them.

Overall wellbeing improvements

There are tons of wellbeing improvements you can see when your child is regularly attending dance classes.  It is a fun exercise and a creative outlet that helps them to feel better about themselves and to get the activity levels that their bodies need to be healthy.

Many people find that activities like dance improve mood, helping with issues such as anxiety and depression which can even affect children in some cases.  It is a great stress release and a distraction from daily worries which can even affect kids, especially those at important points in their education such as exams.

Health benefits – As well as generally feeling better in themselves, there are clear benefits for the health of any child who is regularly dancing.

Top of the list is the development of strong and healthy muscles.  Dancing makes children’s natural activeness become something more purposeful and beneficial.  It helps them to use and develop muscles in key parts of their bodies.  It also helps them understand how their bodies work, what they can do, and how to push themselves positively.

Other benefits can include:

  • Improved heart and lung condition
  • Better endurance
  • Enhanced aerobic fitness and flexibility.
  • Improved coordination and agility

Children who dance are often found to have better spatial awareness.  In other words, they better understand the effect their movement has on the world around them.  This pairs with enhanced coordination and flexibility to allow them to adapt to their environment.  This often helps with non-dance activities such as sports or even riding a bike.

Social improvements – The final important area that dance can help with are social improvements.  Learning to socialise with others is key for children but isn’t always the easiest thing, especially for some kids.  Dance is a structured way to improve those social skills, bringing together children from all different age and geographic groups but with a shared interest in the dance.

Children improve their communication skills while learning to dance as they need to communicate what’s working and what isn’t.  They also learn the importance of teamwork, fulfilling their role in the team and how to work in a group environment.  All of these are skills that transfer to the wider world.

Self-confidence improvements – All of these factors add together, and the biggest benefit of dancing is often improvements in self-confidence.  If you feel more confident in yourself, healthier and more able to socialise with others, your self-confidence builds.  It also helps with areas such as self-motivation and persevering when starting something.

These skills and attributes are ones that can travel with children all of their lives, often long after they have stopped dancing.  But once learned, these skills become a natural habit.