Posted by on Dec 8, 2017 in Blogs
As a parent, you want nothing more than to see your child succeed. Unfortunately, disappointment is a part of life, and your child is bound to see their fair share. Dancing, similar to any sport, regularly teaches the hard lesson that sometimes hard work and determination aren’t enough. Sometimes, no matter how hard you try you still might not win. So how do you help your child get through these tough times and teach them how to use these disappointments as a way to grow into a better dancer and human? Join Elite as we highlight a couple tips you can try out the next time your child experiences disappointment.
Support Your Child
The best way to minimize your child’s disappointment is to make sure they know they are loved and supported no matter what. Before a competition, performance or try out, try having a discussion with your child. Learn how they are feeling about the event, and what their goals are. Let your child know that regardless of the result, you are proud of them. Try giving specific examples of why you’re already a proud parent – maybe they’ve had perfect class attendance, or have displayed a positive and supportive attitude. Showing them that there are a multitude of ways to succeed might help lessen the blow if and when disappointment strikes.
What To Do After A Dance Disappointment
Below are a few tactics you can try to help your child work through their dance disappointment.
- Validate emotions. Whether your child didn’t make the team or performed poorly at a competition, try to validate their emotions. Simply saying, “ It’s okay that you’re feeling disappointed”, can go a long way to helping your child overcome the emotion. It’s important to not belittle their reactions or feelings. Every child will react differently, and as a parent, your job is to be there to support them through those reactions.
- Recognize what’s in and out of your control. It can help to talk with your child about what things can be changed, and what things can’t. While you might not be able to go back and change the outcome, you can change what you do moving forward.
- Offer alternatives. Help your child realize that just because they might not have gotten the part they wanted, they don’t have to quit dance all together! Look for positives – now they have an opportunity to try different styles, or maybe take some classes at another studio. Every class and workshop will strengthen, challenge and improve their abilities as a dancer.
- Look for the positives. Let your child know that every athlete has experienced failure and that by failing you’re gaining valuable feedback on how you can improve. It’s impossible to improve if you don’t know your shortcomings, so each failure you encounter can help you elevate your training.
Elite Dance Studio offers a variety of children’s dance classes for all ages and skill levels. Our teachers are friendly and work hard to create a supportive environment for your child. Learn more about our class offerings, and don’t hesitate to give us a call if you have any questions!
