Friday, November 18, 2011

Quiting? Or is it moving on?

Claire has told me she doesn't want to go to ballet anymore.  She's gone to 11 lessons so far - I counted.  She says it makes her tired and then she sits down on the floor and then she gets yelled at.  She showed me how she does the steps (she apparently tries to put a little of her own style in) and then she is told it's wrong.  She told me she just wants to dance at home.

Now the debate.  If I let her quit am I setting her up to quit anything if/when it gets hard?  Or have I let her try something new and she decided it wasn't for her?  Can a 5 year old decide this?  Or is she young enough that we can try again later?  Would I stifle something if I force her to continue?  Or should I give her the freedom to decide her own direction?  What if she quits and then asks to go to ballet next month?  Why is parenting so hard?

Sigh.

1 comment:

  1. Maybe you should let her quit ballet but find another dance class for her, like hip hop (not really the best imo) or interpretative dance.. Ballet, tap, and jazz are very into things being a certain way and leave very little room for interpretation.
    Maybe enrolling her into a more loose dancing class would be more suited to her taste.

    ReplyDelete