Tap danceis a form of dance characterized by using the sounds of tap shoes striking the floor as a form of percussion
Why is dance important?
First and foremost, dance is important because it's fun! Our teachers are dancers themselves and share their passion with their students. Additionally, the National Dance Education Organization says that dance trains a better combination of flexibility, strength, endurance, and coordination than most other physical pursuits. But beyond that, educators are increasingly recognizing the importance of the arts on cognitive development. Creative and aesthetic pursuits like dance have been repeatedly linked to improved physical, mental, and social well being, as well as academic achievement. More than ever, dance and the arts are being recognized as essential pieces of a complete education by leading teachers, administrators, and educational philosophers.
If your child is caught between taking dance classes or music lessons, Tap might be the answer. Tap is the most musical and rhythmically precise of all the styles of dance we teach. Tap develops complex motor skills, coordination, a sense of rhythm, and cardiovascular strength, all of which are important developmentally whether your child wants to become a dancer or not. The American Council on Exercise says Tap is a great activity for both the young and old because it easily modulates to any fitness level, meaning it's easy to learn the basics, but also easy to progress. There's also a strong connection between the rhythmic musicality that is core to Tap dance and improved mathematical understanding.
The National Dance Education Organization lists the following as reasons to learn standardized dance forms:
Provide a scaffold outlining the breadth and scope of learning and teaching dance as an art upon which to design curricula and course syllabi. Standards are a guide, not a directive nor a curriculum. They offer constructive support, suggesting areas of curriculum but not defining it. Standards allow each district or school to develop an approach most suited to local or individual values.
Serve as a springboard for creativity for the learning and teaching of dance making: improvisation, choreography, and composition. Standards suggest avenues of creative exploration in the arts-making processes of Performing, Creating, Responding to, and interconnecting dance learning to knowledge of other disciplines and life skills.
Define age-appropriate expectations and levels of achievement in the art of dance. Standards inform individual schools of dance and school districts what students should know and be able to do in the art of dance at certain benchmark levels when taught by a highly qualified dance teacher in a graduated curriculum.