I think one of the biggest challenges when teaching very young children is figuring out where to start! Should you start with body parts? Pathways? Size? Levels? First Position? Maybe just freeze dance…
I can’t say I have the perfect answer to this. Some of my classes just need to learn how to take direction. Others want to learn all the steps and need to be encouraged into some creativity. Some of my 3-year olds can balance on one leg. Some can barely balance on two. 🙂 I have had some students simply sit and watch for 35 minutes of a 45 minute class. Every. Single. Week.
“Are you ready to dance, Bridget?” “Nope.” “Okay! Maybe soon!”
So, as I’m sure you all know, every student is different. Setting that aside, here is my cheat sheet for dance skills by age group! Click to view the whole sheet, or scroll down for an overview. 
3 year olds
I usually start my youngest classes at 2.5 years old, but we’re rounding up to 3 years! 3 year olds know the difference between walking and running, fast and slow. They can do several jumps, crawls, and rolls. They can kick, gallop, and march. They cannot stand in turn out! Don’t bother with that. 🙂 They LOVE to do bourree (or “ballerina”) walks. And my very favorite across the floor step is: chasse!
4 year olds
Once my students are 4, they can usually start to balance on one leg with some degree of confidence. Many can do one foot hops. They can also differentiate between first and second position, though not always well. Our favorite step in my ages 4-5 class right now is: pas de chat!
5 year olds
Once students are five, we get to introduce the skip! Woohoo! I love this because that lays the framework for saute passe and saute arabesque. We also start working on x-jumps, tendus, arabesque, and dancing with partners. Easy partner work in dances is so fun for the recital, too!
6-7 year olds
This is the oldest age group that I really set out dance steps that are age appropriate. They are right on the cusp of being able to learn almost anything! I like to challenge my 6 and 7 year old students with learning longer sequences and really focusing on technique. We work a lot on straight leg leaps, side leaps, and ball change kicks. We also start more formal ballet steps like glissade assemble, tombe pas de bourree, and rond de jambes. Finally, we start focusing on counting and rhythm.
8 years and up
From the time they are 8, I feel like each of my students needs a more individualized approach. Some are still trying to get a nice straight leap. Others are working on chaine turns. Others can switch leap and pirouette and we’re working on improving performance quality.
I hope this gave you an idea of where to start. Or maybe, you saw a new step you haven’t tried with your little ones yet! What is your favorite dance step to do with those precious young dancers?
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