Question for Ballet Mums

peachyprice

elliebobs wrote: »

To be honest; if I had a daughter studying ballet I'd be more worried about the long term effects on her joints and muscles from forcing them into pretty unnatural positions for prolonged periods of time.

In the beginners class they spend a relatively short time en pointe. It's a 45 min lesson that replaces one of her grade classes, in that 45 mins they do grade, demi-pointe and small amount of pointe work, just strenthening excercises at the barre.

Itismehonest

I was a dancer & did pointe work through dancing school & then daily through college.

The 'damage' to feet differs from person to person. In my case, the knuckles of my toes bled regularly, others got blisters & some had little problem at all. Much is just down to an individual's skin & how much it can take. I had very strong feet & would snap the backs of my shoes regularly so I had my shoes made with steel backs.
The main things are
a) not to start pointework too early
b) don't spend too long en pointe in the early days - work up to it.
c) make sure you have good, well-fitting shoes.

Things are available to put inside the toes of the shoes. In my day it was fleece (as in sheep's wool not in the form that jackets are now made from). I believe you can still buy a form of fleece toepad.
I'm sure there will also be more modern equivalents.
Speak to a reliable manufacturer & supplier like Freed's

meritaten

so peachy - she is only ten. her bones are still soft and pliable.
such a lot depends on how much training she has had - the quality of the training and her personal bone structure!
some people think that 13 to 14 is about the right age to begin en pointe - others think its later. most agree that unless the child is doing intensive training then it shouldnt be before age 12.
she is way too young to start en pointe - even if extremely talented.
I would actually consult doctors if I were you - en pointe CAN cause a lot of problems (not just with feet) if undertaken too early.

juno

peachyprice wrote: »

She's coming up for 11.

Which means she's 10 - and that's too young for pointe, really.

peachyprice

No disrespect Meri, but you don't know my daughter, the teachers who have been teaching her since the age of 3 do.

Why on earth would you think I'd take advice as to what she should or should not do from a stranger on the internet, over people who have known her for years and know her strengths and weaknesses?

She's not going to do intensive training, where have I said that?

And if you read my first post properly that's not what I was asking.

elliebobs

peachyprice wrote: »

In the beginners class they spend a relatively short time en pointe. It's a 45 min lesson that replaces one of her grade classes, in that 45 mins they do grade, demi-pointe and small amount of pointe work, just strenthening excercises at the barre.

That sounds about right and like you've said before, she obv goes to a reputable school.

I loved pointe work, despite my horrible toes!, and still have my shoes hanging on my bedroom door. Mostly as a reminder that I could once do it; I give it another go every now and then and can't believe how I ever managed to walk let alone jump onto pointe:eek:

meritaten

no disrespect peachy - but it is not just me who is questioning the advisability of allowing her to go en pointe at just 10 years of age.
and if you didnt want the advice of people on the internet - why post?

Your own daughter is worried and nervous - having seen the state of the feet of others at this ballet school. That would set alarm bells ringing for me - I wouldnt want my daughter crippled by being either badly taught or persueing a career which would ruin her health.

peachyprice

juno wrote: »

Which means she's 10 - and that's too young for pointe, really.

All but 4 weeks when they go back.

As I've said above, they do very little pointe in the beginners class, it's a very slow process.

Her teachers honestly wouldn't let her do it if they didn't think she could. They assess each and every girl on their own merits, there's no blanket 'now you're in grade x you're ready for pointe'.

peachyprice

meritaten wrote: »

if you didnt want the advice of people on the internet - why post?

I didn't ask for advice about whether or not she should do pointe, I have professionals for that. I asked for advice from other mums as to how their girls kept their feet comfy.

The girls she has seen are girls that dance for hours and hours each day, that do pointe 4-5 times a week. She's never going to dance to that level, she's not intersted in being a performance ballerina.

She's in a school with girls who are dancing with London Childrens Ballet, Ballet Black, English Youth Ballet etc. So I hardly need to be concerned that you think she's being badly taught!

skintchick

I have a friend who used to dance with the Royal Ballet, joined them aged 19 from the Ballet School. Her feet are very nice! Nicer than mine! She told me that they were quite bad just after she stopped dancing but they have relaxed a lot now.

Don;t know if that helps much but it's all I know.

I had to give up ballet when I started pointe work as I have dodgy hips and knees and my legs couldn't take the strain of it, sadly.