It is finally August — the last full month of summer break. During the summer, children get a chance to take a step back from their life as a student. There’s a bit more freedom and countless new opportunities to take advantage of. For dancers, this time is especially important since it is a unique opportunity to put all of their focus into their dancing. In the spirit of summer, we wanted to discuss the importance of summer and its benefits for dancers.
Summer means more free time to dance→
Summer is a great time to work on old skills or try and learn new ones. Since it is a time without the stress of school, we are given the ability to spend more of our time focusing on dance. You can use this extra time to work on those difficult skills that kept confusing you over the last year or work on improving your flexibility. You can even try out a completely new style of dance! The possibilities are endless!
Summer is a great time to improve focus →
Summer is a time away from school and a time to focus on yourself. The stress of school is lifted from students’ shoulders. This relief allows them to regroup and learn new ways to channel that energy. Without the added pressures of school, dance students are able to really work on the mental and spiritual aspects of dance. They learn how to properly focus on themselves and their dance.
Summer allows for time to dance with friends and family →
Dance is a kind of activity that becomes more fun when you do it with people you love. The extra free time during summer also means more time to spend with friends and family and more time to dance with them! Fun family dance parties or going to the park and choreographing a piece with your friends is a great way to work on your dance skills while strengthening the important bonds in your life. Summer gives us a chance to finally do what we love the most with the people who mean the world to us!
Summer gives the chance to dance outdoors →
Another great thing about summer is being able to go outdoors. Studies say, the increased sunlight you can get during the summer gives off enough vitamin D to quite literally make you happier. The change of scenery also drastically improves your mood. This is what makes dancing outside so much more fun. The added scenery of nature and the joy naturally present outside gives us more energy and emotion to put into our dances! The change of scenery also makes practicing dance more fun which means students are more likely to want to practice what they have learnt!
Summer gives time to prepare for upcoming competitions or exams→
While summer gives us a chance to relax, it is still important to keep our minds and bodies active. Many dancers participate in competitions or enroll in a certification program. These can be very challenging things, especially if we leave all of the work for the last minute. That is why it is best to start brushing up on old dances and skills ahead of time. The free time during summer gives dancers a chance to start pacing themselves and preparing for the upcoming year.
In the summer, it is much easier to focus on ourselves and our dancing. However, it is very important that we continue doing these things during the school year as well. Throughout the year, we should practice our old dance skills and work to achieve new ones. While it may seem hard to make time for some of these things with the added pressures of school, with a little planning and scheduling, it is absolutely possible. Practicing these things will help us become a better dancer mentally, physically, and spiritually.
