Reply to Anyone have a child who is in a highly competitive sport team?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Also, google "competitive dance teams" and look at the pictures and videos.  Little girls in expensive, often inappropriately sexy costumes and lots of makeup.

My friend's sister in law is a "dance mom" and no, the drama isn't there like it is on the show, but a lot of the other stuff is.  Pushy moms (not that OP would be, but it speaks to the atmosphere), lots of pressure, and for what?[/quote]

Meh, make up is for the stage lights. No big deal. Trust me, those girls are not running around in class or at school with fake eyelashes, red lipstick and glitter sparkle glam, even if the Dance Mom kids are.

Some of the costumes and dances are entirely inappropriate, but that is a direct result of specific coaches with poor judgement combined with irresponsible parents.

Most teams and studios are not that way.  Dance Moms is just a caricature of the bad eggs.

In the same way that involvement in competitive sports will not make your kid a hazing bully with steroid issues, eating disorders and a nasty competitive, dominant disposition unless the coaches and parents are already bad people, competitive dance will not turn your daughter into a makeup obsessed, mean spirited, pageant type diva who likes to spend her time acting sexy while wearing as few clothes as possible.  It is a silly generalization to make.

But, back to the original question, 5 days/week plus weekends for a novice 7 year old competitive dancer is a recipe for burnout and financial overload.

If you are interested, but not commited, see if your studio will consider a petite or min team that competes at the novice or recreational level. Those teams are for families that want to get their feet wet, and are not allowed to train more than 3-5 hours/week depending on the competition.  They are adjudicated separately from the serious kids, and your dancer will still get valuable feedback from professional judges.

Also consider, if this team is for competition this season, and the kids are all novice, you are way, way too late in the game to achieve any type of success this year, even rehearsing 5 days/week. You will invest a lot of time and money only to get blown out of the water by the experienced teams that have been working on their routines since August or September.  [/quote]

When did dance become a competitive sport? I danced as a child, and it was only for a couple of recitals a year. DD and her cousins all dance fairly seriously, with class and rehearsal several days a week. One cousin has done some professional performances while still in high school. But none of these kids has danced competitively. They dance for artistic performances. Even the oldest one who is auditioning in NYC considering a full time dance career has never done a competitive team, and that does not seem to be a problem for her.
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