diddi dance are really passionate about dancing as a way for those in the EYFS to express themselves. With the use of trained specialists their network can provide sessions for nursery and reception classes with engaging content and freedom of movement to help children in their school life.
This age group may not always have the articulation to communicate their emotions yet, so dance is a great way of enabling them to do so. It also helps both their physical and mental health, as being active to music helps release those “happy hormones”.
The classes were devised and started by Anne-Marie Martin, a professional dancer with over 20 years teaching experience. After running for over 10 years in London they now have 40 locations all across the UK with more opening up all the time.
Ofsted states the importance of physical activity and are actively wanting to see children out of breath in early years settings on their visits.
The chief medical officer’s recommendations state children of preschool age who are capable of walking unaided should be physically active daily for at least 180 minutes (3 hours) spread throughout the day.
It can be hard for practitioners with all their day-to-day responsibilities to keep up with this, so having an energetic, full-of-fun specialist do a session for them can be valuable in a setting.
diddi dancers are taught to move with confidence and imagination, by using lots of different free-movement methods in every session, including galloping, jumping and twirling.
Using large and small props to build strength in their fine and gross motor skills which are fundamental to a child’s development.
A different dance style is explored every half term, breaking down classic dance steps to enable this age group to engage with the moves and ethos of the dance style. The styles range from hip hop and salsa to ballroom and jive.
In the 17 years diddi dance have been delivering sessions in EYFS settings, the syllabus has been tailored to cover the prime areas of learning. Working with early years experts in child development to ensure classes are delivered that are full of fun and meet the developmental needs of under 5s.
“We now have very strong evidence to suggest that being more active at any age can help promote better mental health and actually protect us from developing depression and anxiety” – Dr Brendan Stubbs
Dancing for the under 5s is not only a great way of keeping fit and active, but it’s also great fun! diddi dance sessions are gender neutral and use their own original music.
All diddi dance teachers are all fully enhanced DBS checked and are trained in the diddi dance way.
They are also proud to be fully accredited by the Exercise Movement and Dance Partnership as well as the Children’s Activities Association – giving parents peace of mind – and their training process is endorsed by the EMD Academy.
diddi dance offers a unique 45-minute class that easily fits into your EYFS setting. They engage and inspire the children’s own creativity by using action songs, dancing games, fun exercises, hoops and dance ribbons to their own funky pop songs.
If you are looking to add diddi dance’s accredited, award-winning classes to your school please find your local contact at diddidance.com/contact or email info@diddidance.com for further information about what they do and can offer your setting!
