Dancing is an amazing—yet often underrated—art form and medium of both exercise and expression. Dancing can be a great way to focus pent-up energy, reduce stress, and release those all-important endorphins to keep your little one healthy and happy too.

If you’re thinking of enrolling your child in dance classes, but you’re unsure of whether to do so, get inspired by this guide to all of the amazing reasons why you should. There are so many benefits of dancing, and many of them will be beneficial to your child not only now, but far into the future as well.

Talk about getting your money’s worth!

If you’d like to learn more about some of the compelling reasons your child should be taking dance classes, we’ve got you. Read on for everything you need to know about why dancing is an amazing activity and how your child can get even more out of it when they practice dancing at home.

1. Health Benefits of Dancing

One of the biggest benefits of dancing is the fact that it gets our kids moving. Childhood obesity is a worrying problem in the US. According to the CDC, obesity rates are as high as 20% among some age groups.

It’s recommended that kids get a minimum of an hour of moderate-intensity physical activity per day. Unfortunately, the rise in the prevalence of iPads, TV, and computer games can make this hard to achieve.

Taking your kids to dance classes ensures they’ll get moving each week, and in a way they’ll actually enjoy. This, in turn, can encourage them to dance at home more often, thus boosting their healthy movement levels even further. Being active is a habit that, when instilled in childhood, is easier to carry through to adulthood.

2. Improved Mood and Mental Health

Dancing isn’t only good for your child’s physical health. It can do wonders for their mental health as well.

We’ve all probably heard by now that physical activity can help with mental health, but how does it do this, exactly?

The reason has to do with the release of endorphins. When we exercise, chemicals known as endorphins are released in the brain. These chemicals can trigger a positive feeling in the body, which is what contributes to what we may know as “runner’s high” after a workout.

All these feelings of happiness are great news for your kids. Studies have shown that people who are happy as children and teenagers are more likely to have better levels of wellbeing in adulthood.

3. Sharpened Social Skills

There’s no denying that the pandemic has hit our kids hard. Depending on what age they were in 2020, they might have missed their first year of in-person learning, and it’s possible they never even got to interact with any kids much at all for the past 18 months.

While we know this will have an effect on development and mental health in kids, we don’t yet know exactly how much.

Dance classes are an amazing way for kids to make new friends, learn about interacting with both kids and adults, and figure out how to behave in social situations. Dance classes are fun and stress-free and offer a great backdrop against which your kids can interact with others in a natural and non-pressurized way.

Some of the friends your kids will make in these classes will remain their friends for years to come. It’s a great setting to meet kids outside of school, to interact with people from backgrounds different than their own.

4. Instills Discipline and Routine

One added benefit of dancing for kids is that attending classes regularly and on time helps them to learn the importance of discipline. For kids, routine is important, but it’s also something that can be difficult to establish.

Having responsibility and a routine to stick with each week is the first step toward becoming a more capable and independent young individual. As well as this, practicing at home will also help them to learn more about the importance of self-discipline and commitment.

5. More Composed and Capable Kids

Let’s face it, kids can be clumsy and a little unruly at the best of times. This is completely natural, of course, but it’s also something you’ll probably want them to grow out of eventually. 

One great thing about dancing is that it can help kids to learn to be more spatially aware and move with more grace and purpose. It can also help immensely with poor posture.

This is important because incorrect posture is something that’s so hard to correct for adults when it’s a habit that’s set in. It can also lead to numerous health problems later on in life.

How to Practice Dancing at Home for Kids

Of course, to reap many of these benefits, and to get the most out of dance classes, it’s a great idea to practice dancing themselves outside of a class setting. This is something that may take some getting used to, but it’s a great habit to get into.

So, how can you make it a little easier for kids to ease into this routine? It’s a good idea to have a set time each day for practice.

Of course, when you have kids, schedules are constantly changing so it can be difficult to make any plans. But even agreeing to practice for at least 30 minutes at some point during the day can help.

The other thing is to make it fun for them. Dancing should be enjoyable and never forced. Try to encourage them to practice their favorite routines and create their own steps to their current dance playlist obsession.

Finally, they’ll need some space. If your house is cramped, this can even be outdoors. The key is to give them proper space so it’s available for practice when they want to.

Get Your Little One Dancing Today

The benefits of dancing for kids really can’t be overstated. If this blog has piqued your interest, and you’d like to inquire about enrolling your child in a dance class, we’d be delighted to hear from you.

Get in touch to talk about arranging a free trial now.