Tots Tak The Floor!

By Lucy Rattenbury 

As a Mum of two, I am the first to admit that my second child (a lively 2.5-year-old boy) has been somewhat neglected in terms of extra-curricular activities.  The lovely, calm baby massage classes that I did with my first, were certainly the thing of dreams second time round, so when the chance came up to try out Highland Hustle Tots, I jumped at it.  Hailing from Englandshire and coming with my very own set of two left feet, the thought of Highland Dancing with my mud-loving twoligan sounded a bit like a recipe for disaster but I didn’t need to worry.  Here’s how it went….

So, for starters, what is Highland Hustle Tots I hear you ask?  Highland Hustle is the brain child of mum of 3, former PE teacher and champion Highland Dancer, Gillian Urquart, who started with her popular adult classes in Scone in 2014.  Highland Hustle has grown since then and now has franchises all over the world, including in Australia.    Highland Hustle Tots is where the Hustle journey begins and is aimed at preschool age children.  Inspired by Scotland and Highland dancing, the classes are energetic and focus on basic movement, rhythm and fun.

Inspired by Scotland and Highland dancing, the classes are energetic and focus on basic movement, rhythm and fun.  All of the Highland Hustle classes are designed so that anyone can join in, regardless of age, fitness or experience (luckily for me!).  This means that as well as mums, you also get dads, grandparents and other carers getting involved too.  With the class being full of activity, it takes the emphasis off having to make small talk with other parents (not that you can’t!) and so this makes it more accessible for those who find some baby and toddler classes a bit intimidating. 

The classes themselves involve fun routines and games, which become familiar after a couple of weeks and Alex certainly enjoyed it more as the weeks went on and he knew what was coming.  Being loosely based on Highland Dancing, the classes are high-energy and the parent or carer is very much involved.  This is not a class where the adults clap along politely on the side lines, but one where you will find yourself skipping, clapping and tapping along.  As well as burning some energy, the classes also teach a whole load of other skills. 

Counting and following basic patterns of movements, as well as coordination and body awareness are all incorporated into the 40-minute classes.  Props are also put to good use with bean bags, scarves, giant dice and (everyone’s favourite) a parachute making an appearance.  These each give the class a new focus and so help to keep the little people engaged.

Because you do the class side-by-side with your little one, it gives you some really nice bonding time away from TV screens and mobile phones.  There is a lovely mirroring exercise where you match different body parts together (fingers, hands, bottoms(!) etc.) and I always like having a peek around the room at this one, as inevitably every pair was doing it differently (with varying levels of success) but without fail, they were all smiling and talking to one another.

GALLERY

If you are considering joining one of these classes, here are my top tips for Highland Hustle Tots:

1. Make sure you are both wearing comfortable clothing and leave your stilettos at home – leggings or tracksuit bottoms with trainers are the best thing for this class.
2. You may want to take a drink along with you
3. Parking for the Perth classes is available over the road from the studio and it costs £1 for an hour so make sure you have change
4. If you have two pre-school aged children, as long as they are both confidently walking, you can take them both along (and there’s even a reduced rate for siblings).
5. Get involved! Go along ready to join in and you will have a blast.

Whilst this class is not going to turn Alex or I into professional dancers anytime soon, it has given us a weekly chance to do something fun together and teacher Gillian is great with the children.  To find out more and to find a class near you, you can go on their website>

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