Whether you’ve got moves like an international pop star or can just about manage the actions to Wind the Bobbin Up, dancing with your kids is a great way to boost their confidence, help their wellbeing and allow them to express themselves.
That’s the message of Pussycat Doll and mum of three Kimberly Wyatt. She’s on a mission to inspire parents and children to take up dancing after the lockdowns of the last couple of years.
“I think it's hugely beneficial in getting kids moving, laughing and feeling good, which is why I feel like it's the perfect activity to support wellbeing,” says Kimberly.
And it could be crucial. Recent research commissioned by nursery group Busy Bees found that over half of parents of 0-4s were concerned about their children’s mental wellbeing post-pandemic, while 1 in 4 was worried about the impact on their children’s physical health.
Inclusivity
As an activity that’s available to all children and parents, regardless of their physical abilities or background, Kimberly feels that dance and movement provides the perfect solution to this problem. “It's inclusive and universal, and there's no right or wrong way to do it,” she says. “Some kids are great with academics and with sports, which is amazing and of course should be supported and pushed, but I think that there are holes there and dance really can fill those voids. It’s giving you something that every child can do.”
We're not talking about competitive dance but using it as a wonderful tool for exploring imagination and forming connections with others.
Even better, dance is an activity you can introduce children to from birth. Kimberly notes that it’s surprising how quickly they learn new ways of expressing themselves through movement. “As soon as they start walking, you put on some music, you can sometimes see their little groove and their little moves.”
Imagination
Dance is a great way to explore toddlers’ developing imaginations as you can encourage them to act out whatever character they want to be and talk to them all about the different scenarios they might find themselves in.
“It's one thing to learn dance moves and feel the power of that. But it's another to be able to go to space in a rocket and, through dance moves, put on your spacesuit and then shoot up to space,” says Kimberly.
The imaginative possibilities of dance and movement games are where their power lies for children’s development, according to Kimberly.
When you attach imagination to it, they can really find the way to unlock their potential because of the creativity within movement. That's when you see the magic happen.
Self-expression
It’s not just their imagination that can be nurtured through dance, it can also be a great way of allowing children to explore feelings. “I think emotional awareness can really be built and delivered to kids through dance,” says Kimberly. For example, you could try asking children to act out how they’re feeling through dance. This could help them to better understand connections between the ways they feel and the words for those emotions.
The self-expressive possibilities of dance helped Kimberly to come out of her shell in her early years. “I was an incredibly shy child, I found it very difficult to make friends, let alone open my mouth and speak to people. And dance was where I found a place to find confidence with the dance moves, choreography, tricks, jumps… whatever it might be that I was creating in the mirror was something I could feel proud of.”
Inspiring confidence
For Kimberly and her family, dance has become a fantastic bonding opportunity during the last couple of years. “Through the pandemic, when things got really tough and we didn't know what else to do, we put the music on in the kitchen and had a bit of a family dance. And that was our happy practice together – it’s what helped us all connect with one another again.”
Kimberly stresses the importance of following your child’s interests in order to help them to build confidence. “As a parent, it's about finding what my kids are into and supporting it. I've been lucky enough to land on dance with my eldest, she's really into it. But she's also into other things as well. It’s supporting that, finding opportunities for them to learn more [about the things they love] and help them ultimately unlock their potential.”
It's finding the stuff that works. And at the minute dance is working in our house.
You don’t have to be a professional dancer like Kimberly to inspire your child, but she does think that there is a lot of potential in sharing the things you are most passionate about. “I think it makes the most difference when I go to teach kids or teach a class and my kids come and watch me speak about what I love.”
Children are very receptive and are likely to sense when you’re enjoying yourself and want to join in. So by sharing the things you love with your children, whether that’s dance like Kimberly or something else, you’ll be a positive role model without even realising it.
