This week we checked in with the Davey family to find out how Emma (age 9) and Jack (age 6) have been doing in our drama, dance and singing classes in Orpington.
Both Emma and Jack started in our Little Stars class at the age of 4. Emma has now graduated into our three hour Saturday session at Newstead Wood School. We asked their Dad, Dan, what attracted them to Spotlights in the first place:
“Emma always enjoyed dancing and singing around the house. Jack saw his sister enjoying herself at Spotlights and so wanted to join too.”
Dan first became aware of Spotlights at a school fete where our students were presenting some dancing and singing, “we had seen a class perform at a school fete so this had got our attention. The class was also in the local area and covered different areas of performance to help grow kids’ confidence – that’s why I chose Spotlights.”
It is always interesting to hear what children themselves say to their parents about our classes. Dan admits that Emma and Jack tell him, “Sometimes nothing!! But mostly quite a lot about the fun they have had with their friends. Usually it will be about a new dance routine or a song that they are learning.”
Emma and Jack often talk to their friends about the classes too, “Emma chats quite happily about it, rehearsing moves and practicing things with her friends while at school. Jack is different and not quite as chatty anyway, so probably only remembers to tell his friends after his performance and he can show off with a certificate!”
We love the fact that we get lots of referrals from current parents. Dan tells his friends, “the kids really seem to enjoy their time there and learn dancing, singing and acting, which so good for confidence when they are up on stage.”
When we plan our lessons in drama, dance and singing we use our unique STAR System curriculum.
The “S” in our STAR System stands for “self-confidence” and we make sure that every child is given opportunities to build their confidence in each discipline.
It’s great to hear how Emma has benefited from this, “Emma’s confidence has considerably improved as she now enjoys being on stage performing, even if she still has a few butterflies.”
The “T” in our STAR System is for “teamwork”. Dan says, “Both my children seem to realise the importance of working together for the benefit of a team, so that the overall performance is more important than the individuals.”
Each of our sessions includes dance. The “A” in our STAR System stands for “active learning”. This describes how we teach dance by getting all the children actively engaged and learning the steps from a professional teacher in performing arts.
Emma has even taken this technique outside the classroom, “Emma loves dancing best. She really enjoys music videos and copying dance moves with friends or at home, she loves the energy of the music and being able to perform to it.”
The “R” in our STAR System stands for “realising potential” and our mission is to ensure that every child we work with can realise their potential through our performing arts classes.
Dan’s view on this for Emma and Jack is, “they both come out of classes very happy and full of beans usually wanting to chat about the experience, this is so lovely to hear as a parent. Their school teachers have noted their achievements and mentioned their ability to hold their classes attention when talking about things. If they could both realise that there are opportunities out there for them growing up with a performance trained background, then this would be brilliant. Overall Spotlights does an excellent job thanks to all staff members – the kids love coming along, well done and thank you!!”
If you would like to find out more about how our drama, dance and singing classes can help your child with self-confidence, teamwork, active learning and realising their potential please get in touch to book a FREE trial class and sign up to our monthly newsletter for further updates.