Children’s Program
The Children’s Program is designed to inspire your child to explore their world through the art of dance. Each class is developed to nurture your child’s physical, emotional and cognitive development as well as to encourage your child to practice new gross motor skills, explore movement concepts and most importantly, have fun exploring the limits of their imagination.
The skills and awareness gained from participation in dance as a child are invaluable! While the physical benefits are clear, dance has been shown to initiate skills like problem solving, learning how to navigate transitions successfully and how to confidently work in a group. All skills that are fundamental for school readiness. Most importantly, dance and movement will give your child a way to express themselves and learn to comprehend their world as their verbal communication and expression continues to develop. Seeing all these skills emerge, builds not only an awareness and appreciation of their peers but also an understanding of “self” and a confidence that will last a lifetime. As your child progresses, skills and lessons become more challenging to engage their growing development.
Students are placed into the Children’s Program based on their age and level of experience. With the exception of Boost! and Intro to Creative Movement classes (Spring Only), class selection should be made according to the student’s age as of the start of the School Year (8/31/2023). Placement is for the entire school year, including the summer session. All Children’s Program classes are held at the St. Matthews Studios.
Class schedule information for the 2023 – 2024 School Year is now available.
Intro to Creative Movement (Ages 3 – 5) – Spring Only Class Offering
30 Minutes / Once a Week
$280 per semester ($70 per month with 4 Monthly Payments)
Intro to Creative Movement is a great introduction to our Creative Movement classes for students starting in January. With the introduction of a structured yet fun dance class setting, these young dancers will explore self-expression through movement and music, expand body awareness and build social sensibilities.
| Day | Time | Instructor | Location |
| Tuesday | 4:00 – 4:30 pm | Olivia Eckert | St. Matthews |
| Wednesday | 10:15 – 10:45 am | Lauren Frederick | St. Matthews |
| Sunday | 11:30 am – 12:00 pm | Olivia Eckert | St. Matthews |
*To be eligible for enrollment, students must be 3 years old as of January 8, 2024.
Capacity of 6 students per class section.
Creative Movement 1 (Ages 3 – 4)
30 Minutes / Once a Week
$280 per semester ($70 per month with 4 Monthly Payments)
Creative Movement 1 encourages children to use their imagination in a structured dance class setting to expand body awareness, develop loco-motor skills, and build social sensibilities.
| Day | Time | Instructor | Location |
| Monday | 5:30 – 6:00 pm | Robin Schulman | St. Matthews |
| Tuesday | 5:00 – 5:30 pm | Deana Law | St. Matthews |
| Wednesday | 4:00 – 4:30 pm | Molly Kays | St. Matthews |
| Thursday | 4:30 – 5:00 pm | Annie Honebrink | St. Matthews |
| Thursday | 5:45 – 6:15 pm | Annie Honebrink | St. Matthews |
| Saturday | 10:30 – 11:00 am | Sophie Broadwater | St. Matthews |
| Sunday | 10:00 – 10:30 am | Olivia Eckert | St. Matthews |
*To be eligible for enrollment, students must be 3 years old as of August 31, 2023.
Capacity of 8 students per class section.
Creative Movement 2 (Ages 4 – 5)
45 Minutes / Once a week
$375 per semester ($93.75 per month with 4 Monthly Payments)
Creative Movement 2 encourages creative thinking, while cultivating the movement base needed for ballet through improved concentration, gross motor skills, and the study of patterns in both music and movement.
| Day | Time | Instructor | Location |
| Monday | 6:00 – 6:45 pm | Robin Schulman | St. Matthews |
| Tuesday | 4:30 – 5:15 pm | Olivia Eckert | St. Matthews |
| Wednesday | 6:00 – 6:45 pm | Emma Melo | St. Matthews |
| Thursday | 5:00 – 5:45 pm | Annie Honebrink | St. Matthews |
| Saturday | 11:00 – 11:45 am | Sophie Broadwater | St. Matthews |
| Sunday | 11:45 – 12:30 pm | Amber Wickey | St. Matthews |
*To be eligible for enrollment, students must be 4 years old as of August 31, 2023.
Capacity of 10 students per class section.
Pre-Ballet (Ages 5 – 6)
1 Hour / Once a week
$470 per semester ($117.50 per month with 4 Monthly Payments)
In Pre-Ballet, we introduce French terms and basic ballet positions, which reinforce the structured movement activities from previous class levels; the addition of basic tap dance emphasizes rhythm skills and musicality.
| Day | Time | Instructor | Location |
| Monday | 4:30 – 5:30 pm | Robin Schulman | St. Matthews |
| Tuesday | 5:15 – 6:15 pm | Olivia Eckert | St. Matthews |
| Tuesday | 5:30 – 6:30 pm | Deana Law | St. Matthews |
| Wednesday | 5:00 – 6:00 pm | Emma Melo | St. Matthews |
| Sunday | 10:30 – 11:30 am | Olivia Eckert | St. Matthews |
| Sunday | 12:30 – 1:30 pm | Amber Wickey | St. Matthews |
*To be eligible for enrollment, students must be 5 years old as of August 31, 2023.
Capacity of 12 students per class section.
Dress Code
The student dress code maintains the tradition and aesthetic of classical ballet and allows instructors to see the full lines of the students’ bodies. As such, all students must wear the required uniform colors and styles. View the Uniform Page for more detailed uniform requirements for each level. Required styles and colors are reasonably priced and will be available for purchase through The Louisville Ballet School.