Learn more about our contemporary dance classes at nook dance centre

My child is booked in for a trial, what happens after the trial class?

We will follow up with you by email to see if your child would like to continue for the rest of the term. You will then complete the enrolment form and pay for the classes remaining in the term. If we don’t hear from you after a week post-trial, will assume you do not want to continue and we may offer your child's place to someone else so please get back to us quickly to secure your place in the class (if you want to continue). 

What should my child wear to their class(es)?

There is no set uniform at Nook, so your child can wear clothing they are comfortable moving in. We do have a few requests; please see below:

Clothing items that are suitable for our dance classes:

• Fitted T-shirt or singlet

• Leotard

• Leggings

• Bike-shorts or loose shorts with some stretch to them

• Tracksuit pants/ long pants with some stretch to them

• Fitted long sleeved T-shirt or jumper 

Clothing items that are NOT suitable for our dance classes:

• Jeans

• Skirts and dresses

• Shorts or pants with no stretch to them

• School uniform items

• ‘Oodies' or overly baggy T-shirts or Jumpers.

These guidelines ensure that children can move easily and safely in our classes.

Bare feet are required for Contemporary Dance classes (no socks for safety reasons). 

We prefer for long hair to be pulled back off faces so that it stays out of the way during the class.

What should my child bring to their class?

A full, labeled bottle of water and medication (e.g. asthma puffer) if applicable. Please leave toys and other personal items at home to avoid losing them at the studio/centre. 

Can I watch the class?

All our classes are visible from the waiting area so you are welcome to watch the class from the waiting area at any time. We prefer not to have parents/guardians in the dance room with us unless required e.g. a child is feeling too anxious to participate without their parent/guardian in the room.

We will have a Mid-year showing at the end of term 2 (more details to come) when we will invite family and friends into the studio/hall to see what we have been up to in our classes. 

We also have an End-Of-Year Show in term 4 which is a fantastic opportunity to watch the dancers in action! More information about this to come.

Can I drop my child off and come back at pick-up time?

Yes, you can. If you are planning to drop off and pick up, please ensure you check that your child is comfortable using the toilets at our venues on their own. If your child needs assistance using the toilets at our venues, you must stay at the venue to assist them.

If there are any issues during the class, e.g. your child is upset and needs you, we will have your mobile number on the roll and can call you to tell you to return to the hall. 

It is a requirement of Nook Dance Centre teachers to be first aid trained and our teachers have access to a first aid kit at all times. 

If you leave during the class, please ensure you return at least 5-minutes before pick-up time as it is a tricky juggle for teachers to have students remaining at the venue to keep an eye on while teaching the next class.

What do I do if we can’t make it to a class?

If you can’t make it to your trial class, please email us and we will move the trial class to another date. 

If your child is enrolled and they need to miss a class for any reason, you can book them in for a make-up class on a different day if you would like. We have multiple classes running for Prep-Grade 1 and Grade 2-3 students. Grade 4-6 students can attend a Grade 2-3 class as a make-up if desired. You will just need to email us to let us know which class and which date you would like to attend for the make-up class. You can book a make-up class at anytime within the term that the absence occurred. We can’t carry make-up classes across to the next term. 

Are there classes during the school holidays/on public holidays?

We run our classes very similarly to government school terms. We don’t run classes during the school holidays and we don’t run classes on public holidays. If your child’s class falls on a public holiday, the class won’t run that day and you won’t be charged for that class on your invoice. 

I don’t really know what Contemporary Dance is…

That’s ok, we get this a lot! Contemporary Dance is definitely not as well known to the general public as other dance forms such as Ballet or Hip Hop. Contemporary Dance as an art form is constantly changing and evolving. It involves a lot creative thinking and individual expression rather than focusing on dancing ‘correctly’ or aiming to dance ‘exactly like the teacher’.

Our Contemporary Dance classes teach children how to move their bodies safely with lots of freedom and release. There is typically an element of floor work in our Contemporary Classes (teaching children how to move efficiently along the floor) as well as standing work. A large focus in our Contemporary Dance classes is having the children explore and create their own movement ideas through improvisation and creative tasks. We ask our Contemporary Dancers to be courageous and have a go at everything (as long as they feel safe!) and we remind them that there are no wrong answers when creating their own movement!

You can see a few snippets of our Nook Contemporary Dancers in action if you visit our Instagram account (search @nookdancecentre) and have a look at some of our past videos.

Here are some links to short trailers of a few professional Australian Contemporary Dance works if you’re interested! These are all appropriate for children to see (some loud noises in Colossus!).

Stephanie Lake Company, Colossus: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qdn4LELnzpQ

Australian Dance Theatre, Tracker: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDMGQlzzJu4

Chunky Move, Rule of Thirds: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tL9inFSQkQ

Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any further questions or concerns!