Ballet families

[LibraryLover]

have you got for those of us with young daughters who are beginning their ballet journey (my dd is prepointe)?

I am concerned about injuries and how to prevent them. I believe that the school has a good handle on appropriate classes for growing children, but it's best to hear it from people who have been through it.

I don't have eating disorders concerns at this point in time as I see some excellent outreach, plus healthy -looking older girls at our school. Still, I suppose that can change on a dime.

[Perry]

have you got for those of us with young daughters who are beginning their ballet journey (my dd is prepointe)?

 

I am concerned about injuries and how to prevent them. I believe that the school has a good handle on appropriate classes for growing children, but it's best to hear it from people who have been through it.

 

I don't have eating disorders concerns at this point in time as I see some excellent outreach, plus healthy -looking older girls at our school. Still, I suppose that can change on a dime.

 

I really like the forum Ballet Talk. Here is part of a sticky that is posted there. You'd have to join to read it all, but it's a great site with a wealth of information.

 

THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT GOING ON POINTE

 

1. Pointe work is NOT for everyone, regardless of how long they study and how old they are.

 

2. Taking ballet for 5 years or 15 years or 30 years does not mean that you are well trained enough or have the physical facility to dance on pointe. Some people have had ballet "training" (and that is in quotes because there are, unfortunately, still thousands of schools in this country who hold ballet classes, but have no idea of what ballet training really is) for 10 years, once a week. Others have had 3 or 4 years, but many more classes per week. Which one will be more advanced? This is not a trick question. It depends on the training, however, it is more likely that the one with 3 or 4 years will be more advanced because the kinds of schools who even have once a week classes are not teaching ballet properly.

 

3. In a properly graded school with teachers who know what they are doing, students who have the potential to progress to the pointe level will be encouraged into at least 3 one hour and a half classes a week by the time they reach the age of 10 or 11 and have had 2 to 4 years of training. Pointe work would begin for these students as they arrive at the age of 12 or older and have at least 3 years of training.

When she gets to pointe, make sure she has her shoes fit by someone who really knows what they are doing. If it takes 5 minutes, they don't know what they are doing. Here are a couple articles.

 

Pointe shoes

 

When Can I Start Pointe Work?

Guidelines for Initiating Pointe Training

 

I wouldn't let my girls take pointe unless I was absolutely sure they were adequately prepared. While I really like our dance studio, it isn't a ballet school and I'm not comfortable with the pointe instruction, so I've decided against letting my girls take it. They are good dancers but neither of them plan to be professional ballerinas, so I'm not willing to risk their health.

 

The girls who take pointe at this studio are constantly having problems with their feet and backs.

[MamaAkins]

You may want to consider a visit to a doctor (especially a sport-doctor) prior to letting your daughter start pointe. At our studio, the girls have to be evaluated prior to starting pointe to check foot development, growth plates, ankle strength, etc. Eleven is the absolutely earliest they will even consider a child for pointe at our studio..usually they don't start pointe until 12 or 13 (sometimes later if they are still growing or not strong enough yet).

[elfgivas]

our third dd, age 12, got her pointe shoes 3 weeks ago. there has been no "bambi" stage, where their legs bend and they wobble, in large part due to the training she received last year in prepoint, and the daily things she has been doing.

 

the guidelines the studio + her parents came up with include

 

- 3 ballet classes a week min. for at least a year before she gets her shoes (she does 4 ballet, a tap and a jazz, and did last year, too)

- no new shoes due to foot growth for at least a year (she's at 1.5 years now)

- permission of her teacher

- doing daily leg and core exercises without needing to be reminded

- indications that she is good at listening to her body and has enough self discipline to stop when she is in pain.

 

the ballet studio also had lots of requirements including being able to balance on releve for at least a count of 12, etc, etc. which they must meet before being given permission to get their shoes.

 

hth,

ann

[Mejane]

Second what Perry said about BalletTalk and the fitting of pointe shoes. Also, don't let teachers push your kids (my son dances, too) too hard. I have had to teach my kids to speak up for themselves and be able to say no when they've had enough or are injured. Many schools still believe in "dancing through an injury." Very bad policy.

 

I know it's early for your daughter, but something I did not know until my daughter got a stress fracture... because dancers generally have almost no body fat, their bodies don't produce as much estrogen and can be "fooled" into false menopause, hence the skipping of periods. They can get brittle bones like an old lady and it can lead to stress fractures. Scary stuff. My daughter takes a cal/mag supplement and extra vitamin D everyday to keep her bones strong. I am hyper-vigilant about making sure she eats enough. The weight issue is huge with older, more serious students.

Edited September 24, 2010 by Mejane

[at the beach]

Second what Perry said about BalletTalk and the fitting of pointe shoes. Also, don't let teachers push your kids (my son dances, too) too hard. I have had to teach my kids to speak up for themselves and be able to say no when they've had enough or are injured. Many schools still believe in "dancing through an injury." Very bad policy.

 

I know it's early for your daughter, but something I did not know until my daughter got a stress fracture... because dancers generally have almost no body fat, their bodies don't produce as much estrogen and can be "fooled" into false menopause, hence the skipping of periods. They can get brittle bones like an old lady and it can lead to stress fractures. Scary stuff. My daughter takes a cal/mag supplement and extra vitamin D everyday to keep her bones strong. I am hyper-vigilant about making sure she eats enough. The weight issue is huge with older, more serious students.

 

Girls are basically changing the physiological structure of their feet and hips for pointe and turnout. My daughter is only 17, and already has horrible bunions and her toenails are trashed. So many of her teachers have joint problems; one is my age and she walks with a cane. This type of stuff is inherent in the dance world, and I anticipate my daughter will have some problems in the future. As beautiful as it is to watch and as much as she loves it, there are many days I wish she had never started dancing.

:iagree::iagree::iagree: My daughter started pointe this month. She is 13. She's not in an exclusive ballet studio but has teachers who were professional ballet dancers. Last year she danced over 10 hours a week, not just ballet, though. This year, it's over 15, but again, not just ballet. Next summer, she wants to do a summer ballet intensive. I worry, worry, worry about all of it. Her feet, her bones, her getting enough protein because she doesn't eat meat and enough calcium. I wish she preferred tap, jazz and modern. I really do. Her teachers are very conscious of how important it is to be careful and they have excellent reputations. Still, I worry.

[DianeW88]

Um...realistically??? Be prepared to spend RIDICULOUS amounts of money and time over the next few years and have a good PT, masseuse and orthopedic surgeon on speed dial. I only wish I were half joking.

 

My dd is 17 and is an apprentice with the professional ballet company in our state. She dances over 35 hours a week. She lives in the studio. It's been a wonderful journey and we wouldn't trade a minute of it, but it is intense and expensive if your dd is serious about trying to make it as a professional. I'm just happy that as a company apprentice she now gets a point shoe allowance. As in "chorus of angels singing hallelujah in the background" happy. :lol:

 

Diane W.

married for 22 years

homeschooling 3 kiddos for 16 years

[Dmmetler]

So would I be better off encouraging my DD in the jazz/tap direction? She's 5 and currently takes one ballet class and one general "dance" class (Tap/Jazz/acrobatics) a week.

[Ellie]

So would I be better off encouraging my DD in the jazz/tap direction? She's 5 and currently takes one ballet class and one general "dance" class (Tap/Jazz/acrobatics) a week.

My vote would be ballet. I'm the mom of a ballet teacher. :-)

[MamaT]

You may want to consider a visit to a doctor (especially a sport-doctor) prior to letting your daughter start pointe. At our studio, the girls have to be evaluated prior to starting pointe to check foot development, growth plates, ankle strength, etc. Eleven is the absolutely earliest they will even consider a child for pointe at our studio..usually they don't start pointe until 12 or 13 (sometimes later if they are still growing or not strong enough yet).

 

I agree with this. My dd had to get x-rays of her feet and ankles and pass a strength test to go to the pointe class. They also were required to do ankle exercises for about 6 months prior with a stretchy thingy. The most important thing, IMO, is to be at the right studio with the right teachers.

[Mejane]

I had the thought that I was being too negative and didn't want to sound discouraging so I edited out that last paragraph, but I see Violet caught me. :D Ballet is a beautiful endeavor, but it is definitely something to go into empowered by knowlege.

[Mejane]

So would I be better off encouraging my DD in the jazz/tap direction? She's 5 and currently takes one ballet class and one general "dance" class (Tap/Jazz/acrobatics) a week.

 

Ballet is considered an essential base for any type of serious dance. My son is taking it although his real interest is jazz.

[Alyce]

When Dd first started ballet we went to a studio that had been recommended to us. I didn't know anything about ballet so we went there and she looked like she knew what she was doing. She retired that year so we went to another one. She studied at that studio for 3 years. I thought things were going well but noticed she didn't correct the students a lot. As Dd got older she wanted to be told more about how she was doing. So we changed to yet another studio. This instructor taught classical ballet and did a lot of work on technique. She was very much a Diva and Dd was glad to be over with it when she graduated high school. She is now a Dance major in college and to some extent is very grateful for her last instructor. She saw many of her fellow students having trouble doing many of the moves because they hadn't been instructed properly. She has also found that she herself was doing some moves wrong and unfortunately even the Diva didn't give her any correction on those but many of the moves that she was doing wrong was because she had never been instructed to do them right in the first place. She has had to relearn some moves and it has made her a better dancer. Check out the studios very carefully and don't just drop your child off like many parents. Watch the teacher and see how she teaches. She should frequently correct students and show them the moves and be able to do them herself not just tell the student how. Even though her last instructor was a Diva and had a reputation as being extremely hard on her students she taught my dd a lot. She was also at least 80 years old and could do every move she required of her students. She was one scrappy woman. If I could go back and re do it again I would have started her there to begin with even if I'd have to duct tape my mouth.

I would also not let your Dd dance if she has injured her foot, ankle or leg for at least two weeks. It takes that long for an injury in those areas to really heal. If she doesn't she may re injure it and suffer permanent damage that will cause problems in the future especially if she wants to be a professional.

[ma23peas]

So would I be better off encouraging my DD in the jazz/tap direction? She's 5 and currently takes one ballet class and one general "dance" class (Tap/Jazz/acrobatics) a week.

 

My girls take Irish dance and LOVE it!! Girls as young as 5 are in the beginner's class...even though they're on a performance team we look at it purely as exercise and a dance they can continue into adulthood...

 

hth!

Tara

[LibraryLover]

Thanks everyone! Lots of great info, and I see our school is on the right track. So much of what I read here is SOP at our school. (shoe fittings, no pointe for little girls etc). My dd has a well child check soon. I'll ask for a referral to a sports Dr at that time.

Edited September 26, 2010 by LibraryLover

[sagira]

Thanks for this thread. I learned so much. My three-year-old dd is taking ballet and tap (one hour class encompassing both disciplines). I would have never encouraged her to dance so young (I started folklore and Latin dances at five), but she is the one who kept asking me. I can't believe how young she is and how serious she is about her ballet. I'm not a ballet person at all, so learning about this subculture has been enlightening, and this thread has helped me file away pertinent information for the future should she continue to pursue this direction.