About Us
Our Story
Vicky's Dance Academy, located in Gowrie & Fort Dodge, Iowa, has been providing exceptional dance and tumbling education for 36 years since its establishment in 1987. The academy takes pride in being recognized as a studio that offers outstanding instruction, inspiring children to learn and grow.
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Vicky's Dance Academy advocates that the best dancers are masters at various dance forms, open minded and disciplined. Her motto is to always explore new avenues of movement and to inspire dancers to truly dance from their heart.
Our Instructors.
Vicky Hollingsworth Vinchattle
Vicky Hollingsworth Vinchattle began her dance and gymnastics training at the age of five under the direction of her parents/teachers at Hollingsworth School of Dance & Gymnastics. Coming from a dance and gymnastics family, she grew up in the joy of the artistic world in which she studied with numerous master teachers.
Tiffany
DeCastro
Tiffany DeCastro is a professional dancer, choreographer, and teacher with over twenty years of classical dance training and an extensive professional resume. She is currently teaching alongside her mother and grandmother at their family-owned Dance & Gymnastics studios since relocating from Los Angeles.
Erica
Nordin
Erica was born and raised in Gowrie and still resides in Gowrie today. She graduated from Southeast Valley where she was active in the dance team and several other extracurriculars. Erica is now the marketing associate for Heartland Bank where she has worked full-time for the last several years.
Dance Changes Everything
Improved Physical Health
Dancing is an aerobic form of exercise and is a highly physical activity. Kids who take dance lessons regularly should expect to see a significant improvement in their overall physical health. According to Pro Dance Center, regular dance practice can increase your child’s flexibility, range of motion, physical strength and stamina. The repetitive movements involved in dance can improve muscle tone, correct poor posture, increase balance and coordination and improve overall cardiovascular health.
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Educational Benefits
Becoming a skilled dancer requires practice, discipline and focus, skills that can be useful in other areas of your child’s life. According to “FamilyTalk Magazine,” dance lessons can help to spark creativity in young children and help them to develop an appreciation for the arts. Students who regularly participate in dance lessons typically tend to perform better academically than their nonparticipating peers. “FamilyTalk Magazine” estimates that students who have a background in dance tend to achieve significantly higher SAT scores and do better in math and science competitions.
Improved Self-Esteem
As children adjust to the movements and postures required in dance, they begin to get a better sense of their bodies. As they become more comfortable in their own skin, their confidence and self-esteem also improve. According to EduDance, dance lessons can encourage children to foster a more positive attitude and explore their own self-expression. This can be particularly beneficial for children who are physically or mentally impaired or those who are attempting to deal with significant emotional problems.
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Socialization Benefits
In addition to being a physical activity, dancing is also a highly social activity. According to “FamilyTalk Magazine,” dance lessons can help children improve their social and communication skills, learn how to work as part of a team, develop a greater sense of trust and cooperation and make new friends. If your child is shy, enrolling her in dance can encourage her to reach out to other children her age and help to reduce her anxiety about new people or places. Dance can also help to alleviate fears related to performing in front of an audience.
USTA
The U.S.T.A. - United States Trampoline & Tumbling Association is over 30 years old. It was founded in 1971 by Larry Griswold and George Nissen (the founder of the trampoline). The U.S.T.A. started out with only about 200 members that competed in tumbling, trampoline, and double-mini trampoline and offered only one division of competition, not like it is now, we are divided into nine divisions for tumbling and six division for the double-mini and the trampoline. The first Nationals had approximately 250 athletes and now the largest Nationals had almost 2200 athletes in 5000 events. The U.S.T.A. is happy to announce that they give out over $2,000.00 worth of scholorships to graduating seniors or to athletes that are still competing and continuing their education.
Acrobatic Arts
Acrobatic Arts runs training and certification courses for dance teachers in the art of AcroDance. The program is based on safe and effective progressions with proven results in five divisions of AcroDance: Flexibility, Strength, Balancing, Limbering and Tumbling. Developed with input from professionals and experts in ballet, modern dance, jazz, contortion, artistic gymnastics, rhythmic gymnastics, sport acrobatics, yoga, acro yoga, pilates, physiotherapy, hand balancing and more, you will not find a more comprehensive program. Simple thoughtful progressions take the beginner preschool level dancer from log rolls and summersaults to the advanced dancer tumbling effortlessly across the stage!