forced into fifth

[heleen]

I would like some advice.At my daughters rg-club they started teaching some ballet to the girls lately,and I wasn't quite happy with it to start with.Because I don't know what the coaches ballet background is,if there is any background at all.

But yesterday,my daughter told me they had to go into fifth position and her feet were not completely closed,so the coach came over and just pushed them together.She told me it didn't feel right in her knees.

So now I don't know if I should say something about it,can they do damnage to her by doing this?

[Victoria Leigh]

Yes, they can do damage by doing this. Anything that hurts the knees is doing damage, or potential damage. Forcing feet has nothing to do with rotating from the hips, and if the feet are turned out beyond the rotation from the hips, the knees and ankles will roll inward. And it does put a strain on the knees just standing in a position that is forced too far. I suggest checking the credentials of the person teaching in this program.

[heleen]

thank you Mrs Leigh,I think I will have to do that.It's not easy as a parent to interfear,and my daughter told me right from the start the lessons were verry different from those in the balletschool.But in the beginning it were little things which I could tell her only to remember the way she was told to do in the balletschool,and not at rg.

But when it's getting to a point where they can do damnage,I don't want to let them go on.