At this special time, when commencing the dance year, classes for our littlest dancers are full of excited, anxious young people. We want to do our very best to make the introduction to dance as happy and easy as possible.

At PMPA, our purpose is to provide the highest-quality junior dance education in a secure, nurturing, and stimulating environment. PMPA serves the physical, emotional, and intellectual needs of the junior dance students. We meet these goals with our age-appropriate curriculum and ongoing communication with parents.

The first few weeks of classes serve as an introductory phase to help students become comfortable with the overall dance experience, the classroom, their teacher, and their classmates.

Right from the beginning we focus on your child’s coordination, listening skills, musical awareness, and developing imagination. We accomplish this through age-appropriate music and song, simple stretching exercises, ballet and tumbling basics, and games in an environment of creativity. Some Twinkle Toes & Mini Men students will incorporate simple tap-dance movement at ages 3 and 4.

Dance is about helping children learn to tap into their imaginations and express themselves creatively, not necessarily about learning steps (although they do get introduced to some basic steps). So don’t be disappointed if your child doesn’t pirouette around the house or look like a budding ballerina right away.

Twinkle Toes & Mini Men students perform four, informal performances per year, some in the studio, some on stage.
Separation From the Parent
The process of separating from the parent as the child attends dance class is an important accomplishment of Twinkle Toes & Mini Men children.
As children mature, they begin to identify themselves as independent personalities. In separating from you, the parent, your child is learning
• to develop an interest in the activities of the dance class;
• to feel comfortable with other children in the class;
• to understand that his/her parent will come back and pick him/her up;
• to understand that all parents leave their children and come back for them.

It is important to know that at times young children will explore the limits of attending dance class and say they don’t want to go. This period may occur anytime, but it is usually short-lived. Here are some suggestions that might help you handle the situation:

• Emphasize what the child is doing at the dance class rather than what you do while he/she is in class.
• Before you leave, see that the child is involved in an activity or is in the hands of a teacher.
• Avoid prolonged good-byes.
• Ask the teacher for help in separation. We expect the crying (and usually the tears are for the parent’s benefit) but you’ll find that they are short lived.

It May Not Be the Right Time

If your child cries or does not want to take class, don’t panic. If we push children and create more stress than they are already experiencing, they may come to perceive dance class as a bad experience. That kind of negativity could make them apprehensive about dance for a long time, which isn’t good for anyone involved. Never force your child into the classroom.

We recommend that children be encouraged to practice at home but not forced to do so. Repetition is one of the key elements for success with junior dance students; the more they practice, the more confident they will feel. Practicing with your child allows you to join in the dance experience.

Stay and watch the class or drop and go – totally up to you.

We are lucky enough to have the technology to allow parents to watch classes in our Port Macquarie studios. You should feel free to watch your childs class and ask questions if there is anything covered that you are unsure of. Or if you have errands to run, or want to go get a coffee thats fine too! In Wauchope and Bonny Hills, we find the students concentrate harder when the distraction of observers in the room is eliminated. Please trust us and enjoy the time to yourself whilst your dancer is working hard in class.

We want all of our students dance experiences to be positive, please get in touch if you have any questions or if there is any way we can help!

Thanks for trusting us with your child’s dance education,

Miss Stacey