lollie010 Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 After waiting for his sister at ballet since he was a few weeks old, my baseball and soccer star, expressed that he really wanted to try ballet. It's a wonderful classical school and the director placed him in ballet 2 so that she could teach him and he can be a mouse in the Nutcracker. He is so thrilled and I'm excited for him. He knows he's going to be the only boy and that some kids may pick on him, but he doesn't care. I have a hunch he might be pretty good at it eventually. I am open to any advice or been there done that stories! He's pretty cute in black ballet slippers with his skinny, white legs. :) 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
38carrots Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 :001_wub: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tammi K Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 My 14 year old just started last week. After years of having his skate coach ask, prod, push him to start ballet and having him adamantly refuse, he found himself dancing in a play and realized dance might be fun. So, he officially began ballet last week. As a figure skater he gets a bit of teasing from time to time. The thing is to encourage them to fully love their passion and not care what others think. (I admit that it hasn't hurt that he develop a well rounded interest in more popular sports. The kid is pretty good at high jump and he loves soccer/football. ) I hope your son loves it! 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lollie010 Posted November 4, 2015 Author Share Posted November 4, 2015 I think he might sleep in his slippers! <3 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lollie010 Posted November 4, 2015 Author Share Posted November 4, 2015 My 14 year old just started last week. After years of having his skate coach ask, prod, push him to start ballet and having him adamantly refuse, he found himself dancing in a play and realized dance might be fun. So, he officially began ballet last week. As a figure skater he gets a bit of teasing from time to time. The thing is to encourage them to fully love their passion and not care what others think. (I admit that it hasn't hurt that he develop a well rounded interest in more popular sports. The kid is pretty good at high jump and he loves soccer/football. ) I hope your son loves it! Starting at 14 is awesome! My guy thinks it will help him with balance and flexibility. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Storygirl Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 Hooray! When my older son was six, he was in ballet class with his younger sister. Younger son didn't want to participate and sat in the lobby with me. But then the next two years, both boys took class. They both stopped ballet now, but DS10 was a party boy and a soldier in our Nutcracker for two years. He thought it was a lot of fun. I wouldn't expect any of the ballet girls to make fun of him. If he tells his friends at school, they might tease. But maybe not. You never know. I wouldn't worry. Ballet boys are cool! When they are teens, they are already used to holding hands and dancing with girls, so they may feel less awkward at those first school dances. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AimeeM Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 That's precious :) I tried to put DS6 in a combo class (the school didn't offer "pure" anything for that age - 5 at the time) for tap and ballet, but he refused to wear the tight shorts/pants required, lol. He'll be starting tap, now that he's old enough, this month assuming his cardiology appointment this week clears him. He'll be the only boy in his class, too, lol. I bet yours looks like a doll in the slippers :) 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lollie010 Posted November 4, 2015 Author Share Posted November 4, 2015 Ballet boys are cool! When they are teens, they are already used to holding hands and dancing with girls, so they may feel less awkward at those first school dances. That makes me smile. I think it's going to be a fun ride. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lollie010 Posted November 4, 2015 Author Share Posted November 4, 2015 He'll be starting tap, now that he's old enough, this month assuming his cardiology appointment this week clears him. He'll be the only boy in his class, too, lol. Prayers that all goes well with the appointment. DS has severe allergies and he thinks that the little girls are less likely to show up with peanut butter dripping off their faces. :) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kroe1 Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 Last year I took some teen dancers to Universal Studios. While we were standing in line, another group of teens, all boys, tapped me on the shoulder. They pointed to the one boy in my group surrounded by all the beautiful girls. "What does that guy do?" one of the boys asked. I smiled and said that he is a dancer. The boys then told me they were all signing up for dance as soon as they got home. 😉 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 Both my boys are ballet dancers. My eldest is 15 and he is now in the company. They started at 4 or 5. No one has ever made fun of them or picked on them for dancing. I don't think it has ever occurred to them, or to me, that anyone would. Here is a great site to buy tights http://boysdancetoo.com/ Boys need leggings or tights that are truly opaque. The dance tights sold in most dance stores will show their underwear. And they have a crotch, and that doesn't work with boy dancers who wear t shirts, not leotards. At his age, you can also go to Walmart or Target and look for black leggings in the girls section. Not tights, the kind of legging a girl might wear under a skirt. They are footless and he wears thin black socks with them. You want them tight. So if he is 6 you might want the size lower than what you would usually buy. That way they are tight enough to show the leg. The teacher needs to see the outline of the kneecap to ensure his legs are correct. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jkacz Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 Both my boys started ballet almost 2 years ago, they are now 7 and 9. Their instructor has them and the other 3 or 4 preteen boys just wear shorts and a white t-shirt. No one has ever teased or picked on them for dancing, and it's funny how all the girls seem to know all the boys' names. My boys have been paired with several different girls for Nutcracker and other performances and they're very comfortable holding hands with them - maybe we can skip the girls are icky stage altogether. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenny in Florida Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 I wouldn't expect any of the ballet girls to make fun of him. If he tells his friends at school, they might tease. But maybe not. You never know. I wouldn't worry. Ballet boys are cool! When they are teens, they are already used to holding hands and dancing with girls, so they may feel less awkward at those first school dances. My son started ballet at 6 and was at the pre-pro school here for six or seven years. He did get teased by some of the girls in his classes now and then and by other (non-dancing) guys he knew at church and through other activities. He was always pretty secure in the knowledge that anyone who had a problem with him dancing was not someone whose opinion mattered much to him. So, he weathered that stuff pretty well. In addition to being used to holding hands with girls, my son got accustomed to spending time with girls and women and treating them as friends and equals well before he had any clue he wasn't supposed to do that. He's now 17 and has this lovely habit of treating females like people. It's one of my favorite things about him. (By the way, he still dances. However, he did leave the pre-pro school when it became clear that he wasn't interested in a career as a classical ballet dancer. He transitioned to a wonderful small, family-owned studio that nurtured his talents in genres beyond ballet. He's in college now and double majoring in musical theatre and dance.) 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivey Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 How cute! Make sure to take a picture of his first day! My 13yo has picked up ballet again this year after taking a few years off, and it's crazy to see the difference that those years have made. He did get a little teasing from other kids when he was younger, but this time around everyone just seems to think that it's really cool. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 Awe! My little guy loves it too :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Tick Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 My favorite boy at ballet school wrote his dance clothes for the local ps "dress for your sport" day and apparently for only positive feedback. Yay! That is great for your son! I hope he loves it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Marmalade Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 My son was 6 when he decided he was tired of watching his sister over and over in the Nutcracker and wanted to be a part of the fun. We've never looked back. After the first year of just ballet and hip-hop, our schedule was such that if I wanted kids in classes at the same time, he needed to try out for the competition teams and go from there. Dance is now totally is life. He's never been teased or picked on. He has such a confidence and a maturity at the age of almost-12 that I attribute to dance. One of our favorite times of the year is when the duets are being assigned for competition, because all the girls spend weeks speculating on who is going to get to dance with my DS that year. It's so fun, and it's a completely different experience being a dance mom to a boy than it is to a girl. I enjoy them both very much, and I'm so glad I have a daughter AND a son who dance so I can see it through both of their eyes. We did have to have a talk two years ago about how we don't "date" our dance friends (yes, at the age of 9, sigh) because then it could end up very awkward and uncomfortable if you have to partner with an ex for something. I think we nipped that one in the bud... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.