Choosing a children’s dance school is not always straightforward. From the outside, many schools can look similar. They may all offer dance classes, a show, a uniform and a timetable. The real difference is often in the structure behind the classes and the long-term pathway available to each child.
For younger children, a good place to start is by looking at the early years classes. Are they busy? Are the children engaged? Is there a clear progression from toddler ballet into more structured ballet training? At the Elite Dancers Academy, our early years ballet classes are designed to prepare children for the RAD ballet pathway, beginning with RAD Pre-Primary Ballet, the first class where children can work towards a Royal Academy of Dance exam.
Parents should also look at the school’s record with exams. A strong exam history shows that children are being taught properly, not rushed through grades or entered before they are ready. Elite has maintained a 100% pass rate in RAD ballet exams for over a decade, which is something we are incredibly proud of.
It is also worth looking towards the top of the school. Even if your child is only 3 or 4, ask what opportunities exist as they progress in age. Does the school compete? How successful are the senior students? Have those dancers been nurtured through the school over many years?
This matters because some competition schools operate mainly as academies for dancers who are already experienced, often attracting pupils who have trained elsewhere. A traditional dance school should be able to show how children can grow from their first class through to advanced training, exams, shows, private coaching and competition opportunities.
At Elite, many of our senior dancers started with us when they were very young. A good example of this is Acro. The same teachers who are teaching early years Mini Acro and our beginner-friendly Secondary Acro classes are also guiding our senior dancers to international competitions and helping them represent England on the global stage.
For parents, that should be reassuring. Whether a child is joining their first Acro class or training at a much higher level, they are part of a school with the experience, structure and teaching standards to support them properly from the beginning.
That does not mean every child has to make dance the main focus of their young, busy lives. In fact, the majority of our students attend once a week. For them, dance is a lovely break from school, a place to see friends, build confidence and enjoy moving to music. That is just as valuable.
For children who want more, the structure is there. Across Wimbledon, Chiswick, Southfields and Streatham, Elite offers classes throughout the week, including RAD ballet, Acro, Jazz, Lyrical, Commercial Dance, competition teams and private one-to-one coaching. This allows each child to take dance as far as they want to.
One final tip is to follow a few dance schools on social media. The personality of a school often comes through in the content it creates. You will quickly get a sense of the atmosphere, the standards, the opportunities and whether it feels like the right fit for your child.
