1. Friendliness of Teachers
These are the people that will be teaching your child. Did they make sure to meet each child and learn their name? Your child should be in an environment where they feel comfortable, special, and cared for.
The Dawsonville Dance Difference
The teachers at Dawsonville Dance strive to cultivate good relationships with their students through personalized instruction.
2. Qualification of Teachers
Do the teachers have adequate dance experience? Dance, especially ballet, is something that most teachers will have started training in when they were children. Teachers should have years of training and performance experience. They should also continue their education by attending conferences, seminars, and shows.
The Dawsonville Dance Difference
Dawsonville Dance has an extremely qualified staff, as indicated by their bios and the numerous awards they have won.
3. Age-Appropriateness
Children are healthiest when they are allowed to just be children. A studio that focuses on health and technique does not need to have compromising moves or costumes. Also, a studio should not introduce your child to mature music with questionable lyrics.
The Dawsonville Dance Difference
At Dawsonville Dance our goal is to partner with you as a parent to do what is best for your child. Dawsonville Dance will always have non-compromising costuming and clean song lyrics.
4. Safety
As with any physical activity, there is a risk for injury. But a good dance studio will take great efforts to reduce the risks. A reputable dance studio will have a specially constructed dance floor. Dancing on concrete can send shock through a dancer’s ankles and knees, potentially creating injuries. A good dance floor will be “sprung” – have cushion – on the bottom, and a special vinyl mat – often called “marley” – on the top. If a studio spent time and money in making sure you have a safe area to practice, you can bet that they’ll watch out for your safety during class too.
The Dawsonville Dance Difference
Dawsonville Dance’s floor is state-of-the-art, and we even have a 6″x6″ model so you can see how it was constructed! Also, our teachers will not instruct students to attempt anything that would be hazardous, and we encourage students to not push through injuries that they should be resting.
5. Class Placement
Being placed in the proper class is very important for maximum growth. Children should be in a class where they are challenged to grow and learn, but not feel over their head. Often times in dance classes, this will mean placing students by experience and ability rather than based solely on age. This is a great time for your child to make friends of different ages. Sometimes a teacher will move a child to a new class they feel the child will do better in. This is a responsible thing for a teacher to do, because they should want your child to have the best dance class experience possible.
The Dawsonville Dance Difference
At Dawsonville Dance, we initially place new students based on age with more challenging programs becoming available as they progress through a level placement system. We also employ mid-year evaluations to make sure that students are progressing as needed.
6. Class Size
Having crowded dance classes is less than ideal for several reasons. First of all, there should be enough room in the studio for students to stretch and move in a group without worrying about bumping into each other. Secondly, there should be a reasonable amount of students in the class so that your child gets adequate attention from the teacher. Several things in dance classes are done by taking turns, so you want to be sure the class is not so full that they hardly get their turn.
The Dawsonville Dance Difference
Dawsonville Dance is proud of our small class sizes, designed to give your child the most benefit from their classes.
7. The Overall Feeling
Are students and parents happy at the studio? Is the staff pleasant? Is the studio well-kept and cared for? These are all signs that you are at the right studio. A studio should be a safe environment for children to learn and grow.
The Dawsonville Dance Difference
Dawsonville Dance is a family studio, run by a family, and run for families. We love our students and are honored that you allow us to be a part of their lives!
Read more about our studio’s journey and how you can become a part of it.
Do we sound like the right dance studio for you?