To make my daughter do ballet

No dance school has hour-long ballet classes for kids of 5. I have just checked the minimum age requirements for several UK dance examining bodies, and all of them have a minimum recommended age of at least 7 for taking grade 1 ballet.

Speaking as a parent of a professional ballet dancer (who did ALL the bloody exams), there are things about this thread which do not make sense. Just saying.

I've known dozens of women and friends children who have done ballet and id argue its definitely not good for confidence and friendships. But each to their own.

I do think ita cruel to force a child to do a hobby they don't want to.

Let her stop if she does not enjoy it and get her to try other activities until she finds something she really likes.

Ballet is really bad for you. Ask any Chiropractor or Osteopath, they see so many adults who did ballet as a child and now have skeletal issues. It’s also really bad for their feet.

as someone who’s visited chiropractors and osteopaths, I wouldn’t let dd do ballet due to their advice.

Haha mine too, just not thinking of how much I’ve spent on riding lessons over the last 5 years 😬

She’s 5! Let her stop, there is plenty of time for her to have to do things she doesn’t like. Physical activity is important but there are lots of other things she could try like sport or climbing or just going out for walks.

I let my daughter pick her hobbies. Unfortunately she picked horses 🐴🤦‍♀️I wish I had made her stick with athletics that cost £3 per week 😭

The only rule I had with mine was that the couldn't quit after one bad week.
So they usually had 3 or so lessons after and then made the decision.

Leave the poor kid alone. 5 year olds don’t need tons of hobbies. I don’t make mine do anything she doesn’t enjoy. We try things now and again but she can pick them up and stop them as she chooses at the moment.

My feet and posture are utterly fucked from ballet. I’m glad DD isn’t the least interested.

I spent a lot of my childhood doing a particular activity and it's still an enormous part of my life now. I'm extremely grateful for my mum's continued support to keep me going when I didn't have the self-motivation. She was always holding me to account for putting in the work. However I think the important thing is that I did always want to do it. I just sometimes lacked the motivation needed to keep at it and improve. And that's where my mum came in. I started at the age of 5 and I don't remember it feeling at all pressured at that age, I believe her focus was on making sure I enjoyed it. The accountability came a bit later. My kids are a bit younger but I'm planning to have this type of approach for this stuff. When I didn't enjoy and want to improve at something, there was no pressure to continue.

The only thing I insist on is swimming lessons. Beyond that they do what they enjoy. 5 is extremely young and there is zero need for this.

Our kids probably had quite a lot of autonomy at home and they definitely do at school so I don't think choosing hobbies is their only chance to make a decision.

Its more about finishing a commitment and not quitting half way through something. My husband runs a football team for my DS and they had kids drop out mid way through the season and it's a proper pain in the arse. It impacts everything and generally teachers (ballet, football etc) do it because they are passionate about it, not to become millionaires. Teaching a child that you commit to what you started to not let down the rest of the class / your team etc is a good lesson

And yes actually, if I signed up for something after giving it a trial for a bit (and having an easy back out period) and then I committed to something, I'd finish that commitment even if I couldn't be arsed. Because I'd be letting people down otherwise.

I am by no means a people pleaser. But I am also not selfish. It's a balance. In work. And in leisure time.

Christ, she is 5. Why would she be thinking about a ballet career at that age? If she wants to go back to it later on, she can do.
Let her find something she has interest in and enjoys. It might not be your choice of activity, but you wont be the one doing it.
I was forced to do Judo, and I hated every second and was shit at it because I was not interested in it. I was berated for not trying hard enough. I still hold some resentment about it decades later.

My DD started ballet before she started school. After a couple of years she gave up and did something different then started back with a different style of dance. When that class closed she stopped dancing again, picked it up a couple of years later with ballet and a different style again. Took a couple of tries to find a ballet class she liked - her teacher doesn't do exams and isn't traditional, but is very good. Now at 15 she does ballet and contemporary, would love to do more styles and more hours, is en pointe and dances for about 6 hours a week. She's apparently good, and the dipping in and out hasn't done her any harm!

What activity would she like to do?

Another one to say 5 is young to make someone stick at something especially as she is doing 2 other types of dance. If she was a bit older and it was her only hobby I may say persevere but at 5 let her have a break.

I'm torn. I started ballet and also gave up at a similar age. But I really wish I hadn't! Dance later became a huge part of my life, and a good grounding in ballet would have been so beneficial. I also wish I'd done Latin and ballroom from a young age

On the other hand it seems wrong to make children do activities they dislike.

So I'm on the fence.

I’m in a similar situation with my son but he’s only 3, almost 4 😬
Hed been going to a sports class he loved for a few weeks, now he’s randomly decided he doesn’t like it and is never going back (his words)
I know he’s so young but my parents let me start and quit so many clubs when I was younger and I don’t think it was good for me. So I’m unsure whether to let him just quit or be determined that he does another few weeks and then see how he feels. I obviously won’t ‘force’ it longer than that.
I thought the class was really good for him, similar to your Dd and ballet

No, i’d never force my child to do something they wanted to quit, apart from seeing the block of lessons through if i’d paid for it.

since she is doing other dance things let her chose - she is young enough to go back to it in a few years if that is her choice

I’d be bribing her to stay on. But then, I did ballet for years and think I still reap the benefits.

I was made to do ballet from a young age, my feet are fucked, I hated it and I got grievance from my parents when I finally put my malformed foot down at 16 and said no. They had 'invested' so much for so many years....

Kid is 5, if she's not enjoying it it shouldn't be done.

My parents forced me to learn piano. Hated it at the time but I love it now and so pleased they made me.

Maybe ballet just isn't her thing? My daughter was similar and stopped wanting to go to ballet. She now does acrobatics dance instead which she loves and has kept doing for 3 years now.

Why not let her try another dance school or type of dance? Or football or cricket or martial arts or horseriding? All are great for fitness, balance, discipline etc. When you are five it needs to be FUN. Hell, when you are 45 it needs to be fun, or you won't be hauling yourself off the sofa to be fit and active.

My parents forced me to continue piano and swimming for years after I’d reached the end of my tether with them.

I’m a highly self-motivated Type A freak.

All that’ll happen is she’ll resent you, and maybe even have no respect for you because, essentially, you want her to be a prima.