Class info /Descriptions
CURRICULUM AND CLASS DESCRIPTIONS
Our dance curriculum follows a planned progression throughout the entire school year. Many of our ballet classes and dance style classes will continue to enroll students throughout the fall and winter, but the best learning benefits and progress for each student will come from consistent attendance for the entire dance school year (Sept-June).
Minimum Age Requirements apply ~ the student must be the listed minimum age on or before August 31 of the current school year.
Rhythm & Movement - 18 months through 3+ years, with an adult > for this class, the minimum age for the student must be met by the 1st of the month in which you enroll: This is an interactive creative dance class for a child with a parent or caregiver helping them. Dance activities are built on the innate need of children to explore being with and without the influence of an adult. Activities include moving to nursery rhymes and music, and learning to participate and follow directions in a group. The use of props, such as balls, hoops, and scarves, is also included. Please wear comfortable, stretchy clothing, and children should wear bare feet.
Our Early Childhood Dance Curriculum for children between 3 and 7 years of age is specially designed to provide a strong foundation in dance and movement. Classes are divided by age for the best benefit of students, focusing on basic dance steps, gentle stretching, large locomotor movements, musical games, and creative movement. Kinderdance (3-4 year olds), Primary Dance 1 with Tap (4-5 year olds), Primary Dance 2 with Tap (5-6 year olds, usually in kindergarten), and Primary Dance 3 with Tap (6-7 year olds, usually in first grade). It teaches the basic physical elements of dance, and intellectual concepts such as self-awareness, creative expression through movement, imagination, teamwork, and fundamental body/health awareness. Students also learn the basics of classroom behavior and manners, which remain consistent throughout their dancing years. Training young children in the concepts of movement sequencing, patterning, and spatial relationships lays a strong foundation for the later development of reading, mathematics, and other educational skills. Our students actively engage in all these areas, learning more dance skills each year through appropriate progressions based on knowledge of early childhood development.
> Please go to our Home page and click on 'Studio Information,' 'Parent Information,' 'ASB Early Childhood Program ...' to find more details about our Early Childhood Dance Curriculum.
Classes listed below are for students age 7+ (in academic grade 2 and up), and are also leveled by experience.
~ Ballet (7 years -18 years) Levels 1 - 6 ~ Classes leveled by experience not just by age. ~ Ballet training enhances coordination and creates balance and flexibility. The emphasis is on clarity, precision, posture, correct technique, and body mechanics. Classes consist of barre work, adagio and allegro center floor work, and traveling combinations, ensuring students learn vital ballet techniques.
~ Pointe or Demi-pointe (11 years old & above) ~ Students who have entered ballet level 4 & up are chosen for demi-pointe or pointe class on an individual basis at the discretion of their teacher(s). All Demi-pointe / Pointe students must also take ballet class at least twice per week or they cannot take Demi-pointe / Pointe classes.
NOTE: We encourage and recommend that serious ballet students age 9+, wishing to eventually progress into Pointe shoes begin taking ballet classes twice per week. This training should begin when a student enters ASB Ballet Level 3. Students who have mastered the necessary ballet techniques and are then entering Ballet Level 4, may be recommended by their teacher for demi-pointe or pointe shoes and for our demi-pointe and pointe classes. All students must have permission from their ASB teacher(s) to begin and continue in demi-pointe and pointe classes.
-Adult / Teen Open classes (age 13+) are for Adults of all ages, and are open to Teens who are either beginners and therefore not ready to join their age group, or who want a more open, non-performing class structure. Current ADULT classes are Beginner Ballet, and Intermediate/Advanced Ballet.
STYLES:
Jazz Dance / Tap Dance / Lyrical Dance / Contemporary / Modern Dance — These classes include warm-up exercises and stretching, center floor exercises, traveling combinations, and choreographed routines.
~ Tap Dance (4 years old & above) ~ (included in Primary Dance classes age 4-6, and combined with Jazz classes for age 7-12, Separate class for age 13+). Tap is a dance form expressing intricate rhythmic patterns to various types of music. It develops flexibility, coordination, balance, musical timing, and is always fun! This style is very useful for those interested in musical theatre or professional performing.
~ Jazz Dance (7 years old & above) ~ Jazz is an exciting form of dance seen on television, on stage, and in films, combining the discipline of correct technical training with an emphasis on overall conditioning, stamina, and developing various performance styles. Classes can use jazz music, pop music, and theater show tunes.
~ Modern / Lyrical Dance (8 years old & above) ~ The technique develops a free use of the body using concepts such as contraction and release, fall and recovery, floor work, use of spiral, weight shifting, and isolations, allowing for creative expression and emotional storytelling.
~ Lyrical / Contemporary Dance (usually age 12 & above) ~ Lyrical dance is a form of dance that expresses emotions through smooth and controlled movements. Using music as inspiration, students will learn to express themselves while also mastering poise and correct placement of the body.
~ Advanced Contemporary Dance (usually age 14 & above) ~ This dance form combines elements of modern dance and classical ballet, often including aspects from jazz, postmodern, somatic movements, and lyrical dance. It incorporates modern dance concepts such as spiral, weight shift, contraction, fall and recovery, and often merges gesture and staccato movements in contrast to more fluid styles.