Teaching youngsters to dance

Now teacher Viv Wormley-Healing wants to make sure other children don't miss out - whether they have a shining talent or just want to try dance for the first time.

"When I was a child I didn't do any dance at all because no-one realised I wanted to do it.

"That is why I want to do this now.

"I would have liked to have had a career in dance but I discovered it too late."

Dance did inevitably become an important part of her life, and she became a regular face in local amateur productions, performing for instance for BLODS.

But it wasn't until recently that she decided to go for it and began training to take the necessary qualifications to be a teacher.

She has almost completed her International Dance Teachers Association exams and is already offering youngsters the chance to try for IDTA exams in tap and freestyle.

She has set up classes already and is currently teaching students in tap up to Grade Five as well as offering some freestyle classes which are building up gradually and aimed at pupils from age five up to teenagers.

She is delighted by the numbers of girls who have joined her class but says boys are less keen to give dance a go.

Viv said: "It is hard to encourage boys. They want to do it but have to get over the notion they are going to be with girls. But I do an under-5's group as well which is more of an introduction to dance of all types, doing expressive dance, learning music appreciation and moving to rhythm. There are bits of ballet, but it is not a ballet class. There are lots of boys in that who are under-5 and it is about instilling a love of dance in them and capturing that natural ability to move and channeling it.

"All children love moving around."

It's something she would love to have done herself as she was denied the chance herself.

"I have danced all my adult life but in an amateur way. Gradually over the last few years I have been trying to catch up by doing my qualifications. Now what I am aiming at is to have quite small classes, with 10-12 children per class. I remember my own children's experience when they went to other dance schools, when you have a child who is not quite a star but somewhere in the middle...in a big school they tend to be overlooked.

"Ideally I don't want to do bigger classes - that way you keep a nice group feeling and hopefully the children don't feel swamped".

She is putting her first group of pupils through exams in June, and meanwhile has plans to expand her classes which are held at Centre Stage in London Road - she has adult classes too in tap, dance expression, and keep fit.

For further details contact her on 01424 222658, or visit the website for full information on www.dancemoves.biz.