Dance/gymnastics--when do you start attending more than 1 class/week

[Rosy]

I have a new dancer and a new gymnast...both are completely in love with their sport of choice and have a hard time waiting an entire week to go to practice. I'm wondering--at what point do we start going more than once a week? Any thoughts? Thanks!

[Sophia]

Sigh...when you can afford it?

My 8 y.o. just started ballet and I just *know* dance is going to be her thing.

I'm holding off on the second class for at least another year, because I know once we start two classes there's no going back.

[plansrme]

I have a daughter who does both, and at her dance studio, the girls go twice a week starting in about 2nd grade or 3rd grade.

 

In gym, she was going twice a week as soon as she was on a pre-team track. For her, that was 6, but it can be earlier (6 is very common, earlier is unusual but not unheard of) or later (up to 8 or so would be fairly common).

 

That said, it can vary a lot from one studio or gym to another, but I think our experience is pretty typical.

 

Terri

[Mejane]

Re. dance... I think a lot depends on the school. At eight, my daughter was registered for one class which met twice per week. When she moved to her present school at nine, she had one class but it met three days per week. If I'm remembering correctly, she was ten when she added a second class (same number of days, more hours.)

 

Enjoy these days! Now 17, my daughter dances six days per week. :001_smile:

[sewpeaceful]

I would speak with the teacher. Also, there are big differences from studio to studio. My dd, like many/most, started off in a recital studio - the year culminates to a 2 minute show and tell. Ultimately, I moved her to a performance studio meaning they put on a show at the end of the year, and usually even midyear, like the Nutcracker. My family very much prefers the performance studio because it suits our family's goals better. Think about what you want for her: recreational with exposure to everything, classical ballet to point (I don't mean Julliard bound, but maybe you do), jazz and hip hop, where are you headed? Whatever the answer, be sure she is in a studio that will help you achieve that goal.

 

And my dd started 2 hours of ballet a week (1 class) at age 6. Now she is 8, takes 2 hours of ballet every Tuesday and they want me to put her in another 1.5 hours of ballet/modern dance. Our finances need to settle down from our big move before we can do that.

 

Do be careful of too much too soon because they can burn out, no matter how excited they are at the beginning. My dd burned out doing 2 hours aweek at age 6 so we had to take a semester off for her to rest. She was more ready for it when she was 7.

 

YOU know your dd best. Best of luck to you! And when in doubt, if you are at the "right" studio, just ask the teacher what she recommends.

 

LB

[cathmom]

I made my dd wait until she was 13 to go twice a week lol. We couldn't do it before then.

[Parrothead]

Dd goes to dance twice a week for three different classes - ballet, tap and jazz. She is there for 2.75 hours a week. She has been dancing off and on (last 4 years in a row) since she was 3. I'm not sure at this point when the current school will move those serious about dance to multiple dance classes a week. I don't think it will be much longer though.

[Hedgehog]

I think it varies from school to school/club to club. My older dds have done Classical Ballet from the age of 3, and they've been doing two classes a week from Grade 2 up. A few students don't do this, but it then takes them longer to be ready for the exam.

 

They also did Gymnastics for a while there, one 2hr session a week as they were beginners. They quit last term. We know a girl who is 8yo and does 8hrs (4 sessions) of Gymnastics a week - she's into competitive Gymnastics now.

[Matryoshka]

At our ballet studio, you can start taking multiple classes a week at any time, but it is required starting at Level 3, which is about 4th grade. At Level 6, the second pointe level, three times a week is required (and even more are encouraged).

 

This year I've got one in Level 3 and one in Level 6 - That's 5 classes a week, of which only two overlap - both in time and money I'm maxed out!

[LibraryLover]

Whe are already doing more than I would like, so from my vantage point, I would not add a day at her age. Even kids who have passion don't always like to switch gears to change and get their hair done up etc to go *again*. I am glad I held off this long. Next year will be Youth Ballet and that is 5 days a week during performace season. She could do it this year, but I can't manage it...and honestly, I think she is too young for that kind of commitment. It can creep up on you, so really, do you want to live in your car? Or replace pointe shoes twice a month until you really have to?

Edited September 23, 2010 by LibraryLover

[Rosy]

I would speak with the teacher. Also, there are big differences from studio to studio. My dd, like many/most, started off in a recital studio - the year culminates to a 2 minute show and tell. Ultimately, I moved her to a performance studio meaning they put on a show at the end of the year, and usually even midyear, like the Nutcracker. My family very much prefers the performance studio because it suits our family's goals better. Think about what you want for her: recreational with exposure to everything, classical ballet to point (I don't mean Julliard bound, but maybe you do), jazz and hip hop, where are you headed? Whatever the answer, be sure she is in a studio that will help you achieve that goal.

 

And my dd started 2 hours of ballet a week (1 class) at age 6. Now she is 8, takes 2 hours of ballet every Tuesday and they want me to put her in another 1.5 hours of ballet/modern dance. Our finances need to settle down from our big move before we can do that.

 

Do be careful of too much too soon because they can burn out, no matter how excited they are at the beginning. My dd burned out doing 2 hours aweek at age 6 so we had to take a semester off for her to rest. She was more ready for it when she was 7.

 

YOU know your dd best. Best of luck to you! And when in doubt, if you are at the "right" studio, just ask the teacher what she recommends.

 

LB

I think we're in the "right" studio for our goals. She is in a "performance studio", probably one of the more serious and reputable ones in our area. I don't have any specific goals for her except for her to go as far as she'd like, my preference is classical and I'm wary of hip-hop (I want to see how our studio approaches it before enrolling DD). I think she actually prefers tap, which is fine with me too. She's 5 and in a pre-ballet/tap class now. I'm not necessarily planning to add a class at this point, but I like to plan ahead and am wondering what the norm is. I could see adding a class next year if she's still excited...though for her older sister, moving up from the Pre class to level 1 sort of killed her enthusiasm so maybe we'll hold off...

[Rosy]

We are already doing more than I would like, so from my vantage point, I would not add a day at her age. Even kids who have passion don't always like to switch gears to change and get their hair done up etc to go *again*. I am glad I held off this long. Next year will be Youth Ballet and that is 5 days a week during performance season. She could do it this year, but I can't manage it...and honestly, I think she is too young for that kind of commitment. It can creep up on you, so really, do you want to live in your car? Or replace pointe shoes twice a month until you really have to?

This is my other concern--the balance between encouraging her passion, and my own sanity. :P But do kids who only take a class a week end up falling behind the other kids? And at what point? I'm sure it's not necessary now, but around 2nd/3rd grade is it required to keep her up to speed with the other kids her age?

[MamaT]

Speaking from a mom who has two daughters, one a gymnast and one a dancer, wait as long as you can!

 

In my experience, the teachers (if they are good) will let you know when your daughters need more class time.

 

From a mom who is going two different directions 5 days a week . . .

[Melissa B]

In our gym you can be invited to the gymanstics pre-team (which is twice per week) anywhere between the ages of 4 and 7. Being invited means the student has completed a checklist of skills at the level considered acceptable by the team coach. Beyond the age of seven they do not accept students to the pre-team. The only way to make the team after that is to request a private try-out. The only time I've seen that happen is when a child has transfered from a different gym. Our recreational program has several levels and is also very good - but the kids only have practice once per week.

[jujsky]

We started going more than once/week last year. My daughter was 5 and in her 3rd year of dance. We went from one class to 3 classes. Much of this was due to the fact that up until that point there weren't a lot of classes she was eligible to take due to her age. This year she is taking 4 classes. We're actually heading out in a bit to do her back-to-back Thursday classes.

[jujsky]

This is my other concern--the balance between encouraging her passion, and my own sanity. :P But do kids who only take a class a week end up falling behind the other kids? And at what point? I'm sure it's not necessary now, but around 2nd/3rd grade is it required to keep her up to speed with the other kids her age?

 

I think this largely depends on the sport/activity and what your intention is for your child. If you want your child to go pro, they will quickly fall behind their peers if they aren't taking the same amount of classes. Speaking just for my daughter, she is never going to be a pro and our studio isn't one that has cranked out a lot of professional dancers. She isn't taking 4 dance classes to keep up with the other kids. She is taking 4 dance classes because she loves to dance, that's how she wants to spend her free time, and since she's going on her 4th year there pretty much all of her close friends are her dance friends. She will be old enough to audition for the dance company next year and because that is something she wants to be involved in (and because she is NOT naturally graceful or coordinated) she has to work very, very hard this year to make it, so 4 classes will help her reach her goal. My only intention with my kids is to have them involved in many things so they are out there interacting with others and growing through their experiences. She wanted to take theater again this year. It fell during the same time as her pre-team class. When given the option she chose dance. That's what she wants to do so I make it happen. If she didn't love it so much and didn't have it in her head that she wanted to do the dance company it is doubtful she would be taking so many classes. I've also made it clear (last year and this year) that if it gets to be too much for her she can drop some classes up to the first half of the year. After the first half the classes start their recital pieces so it will affect the entire class if she leaves at that point so it wouldn't be fair.

 

Mom burn-out? Oh, yeah! I completely experienced that last year! If you can have a couple of heavy activity days (back-to-back classes) and make those lighter school days, that works out much better. It is also a HUGE help if the other parent is involved where you have 2 children in 2 different activities. DS is in gymnastics and hockey. I take him to gymnastics, but DH takes him to hockey twice/week. I couldn't do it all -- there is no way! If your DH can't help and you are unable to arrange carpooling, you will probably have to limit how many classes each of your kids take.

[Wheres Toto]

My oldest started going to dance 4-5 days a week when she was 5. That's when she started competing. I kept waiting for her to get tired of it and we are now entering her 12th year. :glare:

[Holly]

My DD started going to gymnastics 2x a week last year (at age 7). She was in Level 3 class and Level 2 team.