Danika’s Dancing Day shows children how to turn ordinary activities into fun dances. How can parents fit this book into their larger dance instruction?

Danika’s Dancing Day is suggested for near the end of the Dance-It-Out! series. Moving through all of the books in the series and even into the dance series for older kids: Dancing Shapes, and then Ballet Inspiration and Choreography Concepts (debuting this spring) would further kids’ body awareness and dance knowledge. I’ve had parents tell me that they turn other stories into dance adventures after sharing the series, so kids can get even more general movement, body awareness, coordination, and balance practice. And of course, the books can be a springboard to formal dance classes.

What is a critical first step for children in dance?

In my opinion, joy is paramount. Having fun and enjoying movement come pretty naturally to young children, so if we approach dance as a playful bonding experience, they’ll almost always love it.

The thing I’ve seen kids develop in just a couple weeks of dance classes is in their sense of self—understanding their physical edges in space and how to move safely around others people and things is an important component of both dance class and life.

What were some new ideas you wanted to introduce in this book that was different from the other books in the series?

This story builds on previous concepts and is intended for a slightly older audience. We name several of the movements mentioned in earlier books and build on movements. For example, we explore kitty tails from the floor in Sadoni Squirrel, practice standing on one foot (arabesque) in The Cat with the Crooked Tail, learn a jump with detailed instructions in Mira Monkey, and in Danika—combine all of these with bigger jumps and a named sauté arabesque.

This is book 12 of the Dance-It-Out! Collection of Creative Movement Stories. Do you have plans to write more books in the series, or are you working on a different project?

We have 3 upcoming Dance-It-Out! books assigned to illustrators: Eka Adopts an Elephant, The Grumpy Goat, and Frankie’s Wish. Our latest series of how-to ballet books for kids 8+ debuts with Dance Stance this spring.

Author Links: GoodReads | Facebook | Website | Instagram | Twitter