Competition Time!

​The Street dance International qualifiers day competition took place on Sunday April 2nd..
I have been meaning to write this blog but have been so busy organising other events that time has run away with me. Belinda's Dance Academy took some of our amazing dancers (and parents!) to the competition and we managed to get 48 dancers to qualify for Finals day on May 14th in Watford!

The organisers of the competition, Belinda and Carrie-Ann, have so many behind-the-scenes jobs to do to ensure that the competition runs smoothly, from ordering the trophie to sorting out the judges. These competitions give the children something great to work towards and I have a lot of respect for anyone that chooses to organise them! 
As a teacher it is up to me to ensure each child dances in the right category, they all have their numbers displayed correctly, they have the right attire on and that they are smiling and happy on the day! 
I didn’t really have any issues with this competition and everything ran smoothly! I have been attending competitions now for over 16 years so I feel like I’m quite clued up on the rules and all the drama that goes along with competing, but that still doesn't stop me getting butterflies every time a child I teach is on... so competition days usually consist of me experiencing every emotion going and yes this usually includes tears!
We had qualifiers in each category from solos, pairs, groups and teams to electric boogie. The children have been practising for this day since we came back from the Christmas break and all the dancers achieved a personal best (even if they didn’t qualify, they were all amazing) Some children even fought in rounds that had over 30 competitors dancing against them and were still not phased at all! They are all so brave! 
We have been busy fundraising for the finals day and are hoping to pay for each of the children’s competition ticket... This is a staggering £720.00 and we are achieving this goal with the support of local businesses, which makes us feel like such a part of a community and is a lovely opportunity for the children! 
I have enjoyed being tagged in so many photos from proud parents and happy children! It's days like that which make my job so worthwhile! 

~Julie  xx