Dance Classes in the Bay Area for Kids

Most children have romantic ideas about dance class; Bay Area parents report that in the first years of life, their kids want nothing more than to be ballerinas. But the enthusiasm for the art soon gets lost after they encounter the rigid structure of a "traditional" dance class. The strictness of the instructor, the strain on their small bodies, and the uniformity of the class is the easiest way to kill a child's love for dance. So if you want your little one to keep tapping and swaying, consider these two great dance schools. Their classes teach children the discipline of various dance styles in a fun, light-hearted manner while promoting cultural diversity and lifelong friendships.

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Danceversity

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Nowhere else in the Bay Area can you find an exciting cultural program for kids and teens that uses world dance, costume, and music to celebrate diversity. Danceversity in Berkeley is a wonderful organization that offers weekly dance classes, workshops, a summer day camp, and performance opportunities to kids in the Bay Area. Danceversity's programs offers kids access to alternative dance styles from across the globe that favors artistic expression over competition and rankings. By using world dance as a means to understand community and culture, Danceversity hopes that each student will learn to respect various cultures and appreciate how their own culture relates to the world.

Danceversity offers 6 sessions that last 6 weeks; each session delves into a different dance style. The first session, Contemporary Jazz, is an important first class; the technique, footwork, and rhythm of jazz will help students transition to other dance styles. As students move on to Afro-Haitian dance in the second session, they'll instantly recognize the steps they learned in their Contemporary Jazz class. In session 3, students learn flamenco and the emotional rhythms of dance. Kids who love to laugh, smile, and move will enjoy session 4's Bollywood dance and session 5's Afro-Peruvian dance. The final session features Ethno-Contemporary dance, which fuses various dance techniques from around the world into a more contemporary style. Students who complete all 6 sessions will be invited by the school to be a teaching assistant at their popular DanceVersity summer day camp.

East West Music and Dance

If you're looking for a more conventional dance program that your child will enjoy, try East West Music and Dance. Kids as young as 2.5 years old can start grooving to music at the Mini-Tots program. This weekly program will teach fundamental dance skills and instill an early love for music and movement. From here, kids can continue to take ballet or enroll in the school's Hip Hop Jr class. Kids age 7 and older can choose among jazz, ballet, hip hop, and tap classes, while 8-year olds can enroll in the school's musical theater program. Seasoned young dancers age 13 and older can dance their hearts out at their Modern Dance program and Contemporary Dance program, which includes newer modern dance styles.

Dance Classes in the Bay Area for Kids

Jennifer Rasmussen writes for Bay Area For Kids, the premier resources guide exclusively for parents living in the San Francisco Bay Area. To learn more about Bay Area dance classes, visit http://www.bayareaforkids.com

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