Only the start of Task 4D

I know this will start blossoming into me posting so many videos/articles etc, but this subject I am thinking of doing is really letting me get my teeth stuck into something that I am enjoying as I am learning something new every time I research something, but also things I can put into my everyday practise as a dance teacher.

The first piece of literature is from this link and it did take me some time to find, as it wasn't on the first page of Google :) I really enjoyed reading this piece, and one comment struck a chord with me

'The practice of dance is highly structured and very ritualized, a selling point for children with autism.'

Which I totally agree with. On the saturday class I covered in my previous blog, the helper of the child in question actually praised me after the class for the way I taught and said that she liked the fact that I was 'structured, and also was strict and clear with the children on what I wanted' which is beneficial for the child. 

Also on this post it mentioned James Hobley - a child who competed on 'Britains got Talent' back in 2011. He had battled with autism and was homeschooled by his mum, and it was only a leaflet on a dance school that inspired him to dance and his confidence grew also. Here is the youtube video on this.

This actually sent shivers down my spine... his passion and also enthusiasm for dance is an inspiration to not only other children with autism, but also any dancer in general, that anybody can do anything if they believe in themselves.

Another thing I found online was a link with an article on which a mother who has two children (one with autism, one with Aspergers Syndrome) has released a dvd with the help of Pineapple Studios to help children with certain aspects such as co ordination, confidence, communication skills etc. Here is the link.

I liked this as she was really passionate about doing this for not only her children, but children everywhere with this condition. Debbie Moore - founder of Pineapple Studios said this in the article:

'Every child is different but experts agree that early intervention helps with development and dance aids children with autism.'

Which is great as that is how I feel about this subject, if the child does it early on then their confidence and communication skills especially will flourish and for a teacher, that is the best part of the job seeing children flourish :)

xxx