Dancing and Exams finding a balance

I dance many hours a week but with GCSE's coming up many of my teachers at school are wanting me to stop dancing for a while to achieve higher grades. I don't want to have to stop going to some classes just because i have got exams, what should i do? reduce my hours, stop completely or continue with what i'm doing?

Is dance likely to be your future career? What grades are you currently on track for with your GCSEs (not predicted but actually likely to achieve)?

If dance is very important to you, as more than just a hobby, and you're going to get enough GCSEs for your next step, then dropping classes may not make sense.

If you're struggling to get passing grades in key subjects, or if dance is just a hobby for you, then it probably makes sense to reduce your classes for a month or so in order to get the grades you need.

Thanks thats what everyone says, i want to go into dancing as a career, and am getting 7's, 8's and 9's in all subjects. Some of my teachers are saying i can get higher though and i feel a lot of pressure from the school to make sure i achieve the highest grades possible, my targets grades pretty much all 9's. I just feel very conflicted as i'm getting many different viewpoints and many people are trying to persuade me to what they think is right.

If you're likely to get at least a 7 in all subjects, then I wouldn't worry about cutting down what you are doing. You won't be shutting any doors with those grades.

Only about 700 people in the country got all grade 9s last year, so those targets probably aren't achievable anyway.

Your teachers will be under a lot of pressure to ensure you do as well as possible, but it's not right they are passing that pressure on to you.

It is tough when you are academic but also have other passions. Dancing as a career is quite time limited, whereas you can do academia at any stage, so arguably dancing should be your priority right now.

Are your parents on board with your plans?

Yes at first they were hesitant but i explained my reasoning and my passion for dance and they came to agree. Although i'm sure my mum still wants me to do something with my brains.
My pastoral team at school also know about my plans but they think i'm putting too much pressure on myself doing so much and believe its burning me out but i'm not sure if i agree or not.

The school does have vested interests. These may not match yours.

What are your plans for next year and beyond?

If your parents are on side, then it may be worth getting them to ask the school to back off on this.Next

Next year i'm staying at school for sixth form to do a level 3 btec in double performing arts, maths and possibly further maths. Then after sixth form i'm hoping to go to dance collage down south.

If you're good at maths, there will always be lots of careers open to you if the dance doesn't work out. I stand by my statement that you can do something academic at any time, but dance is more time limited.

It might be that during exams you feel the need to drop the odd class, but I wouldn't stop everything. Ultimately, your teachers may have slightly different priorities to you.

Thanks, its nice to hear from someone else who gets dance as a proper career. It was nice to have some reinsurance.

Yeah, I don't dance, but I did used to ride relatively seriously, and obviously caring for a horse is a fairly big commitment.

Although I did end up following an academic route, I also worked as a riding instructor for two years after graduation- it wasn't the best paying job but I had so much fun whilst I figured out what I wanted to do with my life.

When I was at school, some of my teachers definitely didn't get it, and if I'd listened to them, I might not have had the options I had later on!

Thanks again good luck in the future.

I have a ballet exam in the middle of GCSEs as well (: good luck us

So your on track to get good grades but could still achieve higher? You are planning to continue with dance through further study/career so you must be pretty good? What level are you in dance & how many hours a week do you do a week/do you have any specific dance commitments next term?

My current achieved grades are:
Tap- Grade 8
Modern- Grade 7
Ballet- Grade 7
RAD Ballet- intermediate

I dance about 12 hours a week in my classes and have a competition and show both coming up next tern with the show the last week of exams.

That’s a great level to be at for year 11, with another couple of years to achieve more. Achieving level 3 or above puts you in a good position applying to dance college. Which exam are you due to take?

I would certainly recommend continuing with dance through exams, but maybe at a reduced level as you probably find dancing a way of relaxing. However I would be a bit concerned about how much you are committed to. Some students continue dancing all the way through, but aim to maybe not attend class the night before an exam etc, however if this will cause problems for others with show/comp preparation if you’re missing you may need to reconsider as you’d feel pressured to not miss/let others down.

At the end of the day, this is your future & only you know how much pressure you can put yourself under. So only commit to what you currently feel you can achieve comfortably then maybe reduce it slightly more to give yourself a bit more leeway.