I can speak from the ballet side. DD is now in her mid teens and a serious student of it. I agree with many of the statements here. Eating disorders can occur in any high level of sport/dance. It has more to do with wanting to be in control I think although watching yourself in the mirror incessantly with ballet probably could be a part of it for some too.

Ballet is all about corrections and typically dancers receive few compliments and they are hard earned. It is best to have a thick skin as a dancer. Ballet engages many senses and most dancers are extremely intelligent - I haven't figured out if they started out that way and are attracted to the mind/body challenge or the art form develops it - probably a bit of both.

It is an amazing, rich, historical, oral dance tradition but if I had the choice I would have steered DD away - we had no idea what it entailed. Check out Ballet Talk for Dancers for more information before you encourage your DD in it.

Becoming a professional is honestly as or more difficult than becoming an Olympian and the pay if any is abysmal and not enough to support oneself. However, if your DD, like ours, just has to do it, then you may choose to let her follow her passion. At the upper levels, the child has to love it or they will leave it - there's no way a parent could force their DC to work so hard at something.

She will come away with musicality, artistry, an amazingly strong, flexible yet controlled body, and a sharp mind with laser focus. She will be able to accept criticism readily and apply corrections to her work immediately. She will be amazingly organized and very hard working. She will also learn some French. Many of these are the traits any high level athlete has (except the artistry and musicality and French). They are held to very high standards at all times and are expected to become very independent by the time they head away for summer training. They are not hand held at any point and become "adults" in many ways by the time they are 14 and traveling alone, perhaps preparing their own meals, getting from point A to B on their own in large urban areas using public transit with tons of luggage.

Both gymnastics and ballet will eventually take up all of your daughter's free time - gymnasts peak about 5-7 years earlier than ballet dancers though so a gymnast puts in more hours at a younger age.

I would say you let your DD do both until age 8 and see if she has a preference for either. Plenty of gymnasts switch to ballet by 12 but if your child is too short, broad and muscular, I wouldn't encourage her to switch. Ballet has become a bit more forgiving about body types but not much, bu also a child's body changes so much before that dancer is ready for a professional career at 17-21.

With ballet be prepared for hours of driving, not seeing your child except at breakfast and before bed, weekends and evenings full of rehearsals, paying/sending them away for 4-8 weeks of intensive daily training in the summer, no holiday travel if doing Nutcracker, and $$$$$ by early teens.

Also, find the best training possible near your house and make sure it's not a competition studio. I wouldn't recommend pursuing one of the biggest names in DC - very few children move past the lower school there. If you are in MD, there are some very good options as well as out by Reston and in Arlington/Alexandria. By age 13, serious training during the summers, whether local or far away is necessary - big name schools in area are fine for summer intensive training.

Best of luck - ballet is not for the faint of heart parent or one without the willingness to sacrifice family activities/closeness, money or their own personal time to let their child follow a passion. Finally, as noted above, if your child doesn't have a fair amount of natural turnout, I wouldn't pursue ballet - it just won't work in the long run.

Putting your kid in competitive travel sports at age 6 is pretty low class. Just letting you know who does that stuff. Why do this to a kid at all? Is it actually fun for the kid or the family?

Let her do both and have fun since she is 6. When she's older, her body type and height will most likely choose for her if she wants to go beyond recreational ballet and gymnastics.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My husband was involved in competitive gymnastics from a young age through high school. The strain placed on his body back then has been causing him increasing pain as he has gotten older. Our daughter seems to have an aptitude for it, but neither of us want to encourage her to go down that path. It just isn't worth it.

My ds is a competitive gymnast. He has progressed rapidly and is a very young level 8. He has yet to have an injury. However, his friends involved in soccer and basketball have had numerous concussions, broken ankles, broken arms, broken wrists, broken thumbs, broken feet...I could go on. It's a shame to steer your child away from any sport because of the risk of injury. Every sport has a risk of injury.

He didn't have an injury. The long term wear and tear on his back and joints led to chronic pain later in life. Maybe it doesn't happen to everyone, but it's been really unpleasant for him. If my daughter is equally interested in competitive gymnastics or a traveling soccer team, for example, I'm signing her up for soccer.

Nope, doesn't happen to everyone. Former gymnast, current coach. No pain, no problems, physically in better shape than most people could ever imagine. I'm grateful to gymnastics for that! If your husband has chronic pain I would recommend seeing a doctor though, first to rule out autoimmune or other problems, and because it's very possible that through physical therapy corrective exercises he could alleviate his discomfort.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wrong. See Children of Theatre Street. You must start young in order to perfect the turnout from the hips while the bones are still growing and are pliable. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YU7UP9gXHt4

Classical ballet does not start until around age eight.

Call any conservatory in this country and they will tell you the exact same thing.

Auditions for the Vaganova School (the setting for the 1970s file The Children of Theater Street) have long been held at age 9 or 10, with students beginning in the school around age 10. Some students have "preparatory" classes beforehand, but the Vaganova syllabus is designed to begin around 10--though, of course, with "ideal" bodies.

So, back to OP's question.
--Injuries and eating disorders and the rest can occur in ballet, gymnastics, and any other physical activities.
--I don't think there are reliable statistics on the incidence of eating disorders and injuries in various activities.
--Your dd will likely "self-select" anyway based on what's to her taste.
--Regardless of the activity, it seems to me that your responsibility as a parent is to always focus on what's in her interest--no pressure to compete or perform with injuries, a healthy attitude toward food and weight, etc.
--For dance, the significant costume expenses are at performance and competition-focused schools, but not at ballet-focused schools.
--Ballet-focused schools will have only "movement" or pre-ballet for her age group.

Anonymous wrote:The moral of the story is...choose gymnastics. Dance moms are quite a piece of work.

Lol.

Very funny.

Signed, outspoken tap hip hop person

Anonymous wrote:Ballet is not the foundation of hop hop. It is not the foundation of rhythm tap.

One can be a very successful and professional hip hop or tap dancer without ever having donned a pair of pink tights or setting foot in a ballet class.

The movement required for hip hop is diametrically opposite to what is required for classical ballet.

Hip hop and tap are both welcoming of all body types. One does not need to be a thin tiny body with long graceful limbs and just the right head shape to become a professional dancer in tap or hip hop. Body types are just not an issue in those genres in the same way it is for ballet.

Ballet is very beneficial. Don't get me wrong. But to say that ballet is the only route for a child to become a dancer is just wrong. There are other ways and tap and hip hop are two styles that do not require ballet to be successful.

The moral of the story is...choose gymnastics. Dance moms are quite a piece of work.

Anonymous wrote:Most reputable dance studios (not the competition based ones) start pre-ballet and tap around age 4-5, and do not allow students to start other forms of dance (jazz, modern, etc) until 7-9, after they have had a couple years of ballet.

But it is not ballet before that age.

It is pre dance, movement, etc.

Most reputable dance studios (not the competition based ones) start pre-ballet and tap around age 4-5, and do not allow students to start other forms of dance (jazz, modern, etc) until 7-9, after they have had a couple years of ballet.

Anonymous wrote:Wrong. See Children of Theatre Street. You must start young in order to perfect the turnout from the hips while the bones are still growing and are pliable. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YU7UP9gXHt4

Classical ballet does not start until around age eight.

Call any conservatory in this country and they will tell you the exact same thing.

Ballet is not the foundation of hop hop. It is not the foundation of rhythm tap.