Tap dancing is a form of dance that is different from many popular dance styles because of its focus on fancy footwork. It is for this reason that Tap is a great class choice for boys and girls alike who want to dance but are looking for a style that is as much analytical as it is physical.
Here are key benefits of Tap to bear in mind when considering whether your child will enjoy a Tap dance class:
• Mental Acuity: Tap stimulates your child’s mental processing because much of the style centers around learning and memorizing patterns or sequences. Repeating, reversing, and counting the rhythm patterns reinforces analytical concepts that your kid is already learning in school.
Tap Dancing at Misako Ballet Studio
• Emotional Release: Tap dancing is a safe emotional release for your child because the stomping, stepping, and tapping are vigorous activities that create sound. This can be particularly cathartic for kids who are very expressive and need fun, physical outlets for that expression.
• Great cardio workout: According to an article by Silver Sneakers, “An hour of tap dancing is thought to burn anywhere between 200 and 600 calories depending on your pace, the steps sequence and the effort used in the hour.” Tap dancing tones the major muscle groups in the legs and core. While the legs do most of the work, the arms are often lifted above the shoulders, which strengthens and tones those muscles. This elevates the heart rate, creating a solid cardio workout.
• Improves posture and balance. One of the first lessons kids learn in Misako Dance’s Tap class is proper weight placement over the balls of the feet. This pose must be paired with soft knees and an engaged core, which is strengthening, improving not only your child’s balance but their coordination and control as well.
Tao Dancing is Unique in its ability to improve mental acuity and posture, balance, and coordination.
• Sound generating. Tap and Hip Hop are among the dances that generate sound as part of the dance. With Tap dancing, the tapping sound can be heard over the music and this is as enjoyable as the tapping movement itself. This adds a whole new dimension to the art form.
• Space Conservative. In an age when many students prefer to take their classes virtually versus in the studio, Tap is particularly well suited to dancing in a smaller area of space. Tap dance can be practiced anywhere where there is a solid firm foundation.
Last but not least, Tap dancing is just plain fun. Exuberant, sound-generating, rhythmic, and smooth, Tap is a style best suited for your outgoing, expressive child, who loves the challenge of mental stimulation while dancing.
At Misako Ballet Studio, we currently offer Tap dance classes virtually. Interested? Reach out to us to explore how your child can benefit from this beautiful dance style!