Does my child have a talent for ballet?

Dear Parents,

I have been asked this question at countless occasions throughout my teaching career. The moment I get this question from an anxious parent, I knew that they do not fully understand the meaning of dance education.

So what exactly is dance education? What does it instil in the students? Well, teaching dance does not only involve teaching the students dance steps. If it is really the case, everyone of my students above grade 5 can be dance teachers, since they already know the bulk of the ballet syllabus. In my dance class, teaching dance is teaching of confidence, concentration, discipline, grace and creativity to each of the students. If the student can achieve these qualities during their learning years, they have already mastered the essence of ballet. Even though their steps are not perfect, they are considered talented and good students in my eyes.

I have many students who are so called "perfect" dancers. They can dance all the steps taught to near perfection, but they do not move me. If they are dancing without expression and life, they will be considered dance students forever. They will never become dancers. Can you consider them talented in this case?

Yearly examinations are a good gauge of the student's dancer quality. They however are not a perfect gauge either as there is some form of subjectivity to it. However, they are the best available benchmark for a student to judge where they actually stand.

I adopt an "open-door" teaching style whenever I can. This is a very good way to build the student's confidence. However, I do get many overly anxious parents who stand at the door every week and correct their daughter by shouting across the room. They often forget that there is a ballet teacher standing in the room. They do not realise that their actions come across as disrespect and rude. What are they telling their daughters? They are telling them its okie to be rude! So please stop that if you are guilty of that.

Having said that, I certainly do not mind parents standing outside and taking notes to correct their daughter at home. In fact, this is what I want to encourage all parents to do!

Parents of young students in pre-ballet and primary must take note that your daughter will be easily distracted if you stand outside the door. I fully understand your anxiety to make sure your daughter is coping well. Do not set high expectations for your daughter, let her develop freely and most important stay very humble and be always ready to learn. Certainly DO NOT tell her things like "you are the best dancer in the whole class!", "your friends are not dancing as well as you!". Remember over-confident students lose the attitude and willingless to learn as they think they are the best already. These are the students who would ultimately fail. Of course, small words of encouragement "well done, girl!", "you did well today" are fine.

You are welcomed to check on her progress but do so discretely. Stand at a location where she cannot see you. Do avoid filming or taking photographs as this instils the wrong idea in your daughter that ballet is all about being pretty, posing and taking photos.

So parents, please avoid over-pressurising your daughter and let her develop freely. Over-pressurising will cause her to ultimately lose interest in dancing! Remember learning to dance is not all about learning the steps!

~Ms Lovell