Disappointed with dd's dance exam result.

[User860131]

She's 6.5 and just had her result for grade 1 idst modern and got a low merit. This in itself I wouldn't be disappointed with. However she really practiced and seemed so confident. She seemed to be pulling all the right jazzy faces and have lots of energy etc and timing seemed good. She lost marks mostly on her set dances and 'sense of performance' and 'use of space' Tbh I'm worried that these are things that aren't really easy to fix or to explain to a young child especially when she seems to really be trying. She couldn't care less about the mark herself and is really happy to have passed. Obviously I'm happy if she's happy. However dancing is something she is probably going to get more and more serious about and I am really worried that the whole culture is just going to end up swallowing her whole and knocking her confidence. Is it really worth the time and money if a kid doesn't really have the aptitude for it? Are we better to cut our losses now? I hope I don't sound really awful saying this. It comes from a place of concern for my daughter and wanting to do what's right for her.

I think as your daughter gets older you’ll realise that her strengths and weaknesses may lie in different places to what you might have originally thought. I have learnt some of this the hard way but it’s also fine for a child to learn they’re not always the best at everything/some things won’t come easily.

My daughter seemed pretty talented at piano when she was little- was put in for her grade 1 when she was 7 and her teacher thought she’d ace it. She totally freaked out a few hours before the exam, lots of tears and the nerves just hit. She scraped a pass and initially I was a bit gutted for her but actually I was so proud that she pulled herself together, went in and managed to get through everything despite being so nervous. After that, we stepped down the pressure massively and spent a year playing for fun before even contemplating g2 pieces. My learning from that was that I’d totally underestimated how intimidating the venue and process was. The exam was in a massive church, it felt very formal and stuffy and I wasn’t allowed in.

As much as you’ve said you don’t like the idea of the examiner judging your child and passing comment, I actually found the ballet set up to be much nicer and more forgiving than music. My daughter did her primary ballet at around the same time and although there was work in the run-up, the day felt fun and child-centred. The kids were laughing and happy as they were getting ready and were really encouraging each other. Even if my daughter scores poorly, I’d take a ballet exam over a music exam any day.

My daughter has lessons but no longer takes the exams - she scored high merits (2/3 marks off distinction every time), but the preparation and extra lessons were insane and way too much pressure. Her love is for musical theatre and the dance lessons definitely help but the exams were just extra stress for her (and me!). She's 12 now and has been dance captain for two shows (and lead roles in others needing lots of great dancing)

She takes piano and musical theatre exams but dance exam pressure was on a whole other level.

Your daughter's mark was fab, I'm sure she's a lovely dancer and greet she is happy and enjoys it! Dance schools strive for really high marks but those who are getting merits are still beautiful and talented dancers!

She's only 6. Either a. She doesn't care about the grade b. She'll care enough to improve or c. She'll be bummed the grades aren't reflecting her effort and change activity. It will all be ok if you handle it encouragingly. As someone who didn't do well in dance competitions I'm pretty confident ;)

Just let her go & enjoy herself.
I still feel put out with my DParents for cancelling my ballet lessons when I was 6.
The teacher told them ‘I would never make a ballet dancer as I was too heavy footed’
They decided not to waste their money, but I loved my dancing & really missed it!
This was decades ago!!

If your little girl enjoys it, dance is so good for her development.

Enjoyment is THE most important thing, but while she is enjoying it, it is also doing her a ton of good.

Have a read of this
www.careforkids.com.au/blog/the-magic-of-dance-in-early-childhood#:~:text=Dance%20also%20teaches%20children%20teamwork,in%20relation%20to%20their%20peers.

And this, From Harvard medical Review:

Other studies show that dance helps reduce stress, increases levels of the feel-good hormone serotonin, and helps develop new neural connections, especially in regions involved in executive function, long-term memory, and spatial recognition.

And as dance mom of a young adult, who has paid a fortune on dance over the

Regardless of grades, if your daughter at the age of six can dance in front of a stranger, alone, or will as she progresses, she's set for life.
She will be the one confidently doing presentations at school, not freaking out about it, she'll learn how to manage her nerves and use them to her advantage.
It's like GCSE grades, by the time you are 18 no one cares if you, got a 4 or a 9, as long as you have your maths and English, the rest is irrelevant.
A low merit now isn't going to prevent her from being a lead ballerina! Spacial awareness comes with age and development, nothing anyone can do about that, you can't force development, just let her dance.

@IworkMiracles Dance exams are done in groups, not individually.

@taxi4ballet Mine went in as a small group, but the set dances were done individually whilst the others stood to the side.