Free dance template, no account
Free Dance Student Evaluation Form
A mid-year report you can hand a parent: dance skills rated against the age group and level, a section for each style a dancer studies, and the space that matters most, in words, for what went well, what to work on, and one thing to practice at home. It describes what a dancer does, never size, shape or appearance.
What a dance student evaluation should include
Eight rows in the main table, one table for style skills, and three open-ended sections at the end.
- The main table. Technique, flexibility, turns, leaps, musicality, retention, performance and coachability, rated against the age group, with a column for what you saw.
- Style skills. Placement and line for ballet; isolations, timing and energy for jazz; fluidity, floor work and expression for contemporary; groove, isolations and sharpness for hip hop; clarity of sound, rhythm and speed for tap. Fill in the rows that match the styles the dancer studies and leave the rest blank.
- The writing. What went well (the strengths), what to work on (the areas for improvement), and one thing to practice at home.
- The last line. The date you went through it with the dancer. Worth filling in for the same reason a receipt is.
Effort and coachability are the exception to rating against the age group. They are marked against what you saw from this dancer, because nobody is below average for a ten-year-old at trying hard.
Dance student evaluation versus tryout evaluation
The two sheets rate similar skills and do different jobs.
- A tryout evaluation compares dancers. Several evaluators score the same group in one session, and the average sheets help a program place dancers and cast pieces. The dance tryout evaluation form is built for that, and the dance tryouts guide covers running the session.
- A student evaluation describes one dancer. One teacher, about halfway through the year, rating a dancer against the age group rather than classmates, with the writing a family keeps. That is this page. Its scale reads as strengths and focus areas for that reason.
| Tryout evaluation | Student evaluation | |
|---|---|---|
| When | Before the year | About halfway through it |
| Who scores | Several evaluators, independently | Usually one teacher |
| Compared with | The rest of the group | What is typical for the age group and level |
| Used for | Placing dancers and casting pieces | Development and a talk with the family |
| What you hand over | An averaged scorecard | A written report a parent keeps |
A program that holds auditions can use both: the tryout sheet to place dancers before the year, and this one halfway through it to say how each of them is doing.
Dance comments a parent can act on
The numbers give the page its shape and the sentences are what a family remembers. Vague praise and vague criticism are equally useless, and dance has a specific thing to say about almost everything. Compare:
- Technique. Not "needs better posture". Try "holds the placement at the barre but loses it when the combination travels. Keeping the ribs over the hips across the floor is the next thing."
- Musicality. Not "needs to listen to the music". Try "hits every count but dances on top of the beat. Letting the movement breathe with the phrase is the next thing."
- Retention. Not "slow to learn". Try "has the first eight counts clean by the second pass and loses the order in the last eight. Writing the sequence down after class is the next thing."
- Performance. Not "needs more energy". Try "the focus is clear in the first half and drops when the group changes formation. Keeping the eyes up through the transition is the next thing."
The last section, one thing to practice at home, is the most useful line on the page and the one most often left blank. In dance it is usually something small and safe: a stretch the teacher has taught, a balance on one foot, the order of a combination said out loud, or the music to listen to. It is never a lift, a trick or pointe work to try at home.
Rate the dancing, not the dancer's body
The style section can do real good, and a careless one does harm. A few rules for the rows the form gives it:
- Rate what the style needs. Ballet is rated on placement, line and extension. Jazz on isolations, timing and energy. Contemporary on fluidity, floor work and expression. Hip hop on groove, isolations and sharpness. Tap on the clarity of sound, rhythm and speed.
- Never comment on size, weight, shape or appearance. A comment about a body is not a skill note, and a dancer remembers it. Where flexibility or extension is the point, describe the movement and what to work on, not the dancer.
- Rate what is shown, not what is forced. A row is scored on the control a dancer shows. Never mark a dancer down for a range they have not had the chance to build, and never suggest stretching further at home to improve a score.
- Say what a dancer could do in another style. A ballet dancer with a good sense of timing, or a hip hop dancer who holds a clean line, is worth a sentence, because that is what a teacher looks for when classes are chosen.
Other sports, and the general version
This is the dance version. The general player evaluation form works for any sport, and the dance forms and templates page lists the other 5 dance documents.
Playbook Logix provides customizable templates for informational and administrative use. They are not legal advice and will not meet the requirements of every organization, sport or jurisdiction. Review anything you intend to rely on with your own attorney or your insurance carrier, and check your league and state requirements.
Common questions
What should a dance student evaluation form include?
Ratings for technique, flexibility, turns, leaps, musicality, retention, performance and coachability, a short section for the skills of the style the dancer studies, and three pieces of writing: what went well, what to work on, and one thing to practice at home. The writing is the part a family keeps.
When should we give out dance evaluations?
About halfway through the year, and before the first big performance if you can. Dance years run long, so halfway is a natural pause, and a report handed out after the recital is a report card, accurate and too late. The same page at the midpoint is a plan with a recital left to act on it.
Should each style be rated differently?
In a section of its own, yes. Ballet is judged on placement and line, jazz on sharpness and timing, contemporary on fluidity and control, hip hop on groove and isolations, and tap on the clarity of sound. Rate the rows that match the styles the dancer studies, and leave the others blank.
Why does the form not rate turnout?
Because turnout is partly a fact about a body, and rating it invites a dancer to force the feet past what the hips allow. The tryout scorecard asks only for controlled turnout, the rotation a dancer can hold from the hips, and this report rates placement, line and extension as the dancer shows them with control. A teacher can add a line of their own if their program rates it.
Should I mention size or body type in the comments?
No. A comment about weight, shape or appearance does harm that no skill note can undo, and a dancer remembers it for years. Describe what the dancer does and what to work on.
Should I rate dancers against their classmates?
No. Rate against what is typical for the age group and level. A ranking inside the class gives a family a list of your own roster, which tells them nothing and does harm if it circulates. The form says on its face which comparison you used.
Do I have to give one to every dancer?
Yes. Evaluating the dancers in the front row and skipping the rest tells them where they stand in the teachers' attention. Short and honest for everyone beats thorough for the dancers who are already getting the attention.
More dance tools
The rest of the dance toolkit
Dance Registration Form
Styles studied, training and level, dancewear and shoe sizes, and injury questions, on a form for sign-up night.
Open the generatorDance Code of Conduct
Dress code, stretching, advanced-skill and injury rules for dancers, and filming, casting and backstage rules for parents, on one page with one signature.
Open the generatorDance Tryout Evaluation Form
A scoring grid for technique, turns, leaps, musicality, retention and performance, with a table for how much of the combination each dancer keeps.
Open the generatorDance Tryouts & Audition Guide
A 90-minute run of show, seven stations from warm-up to a combination, a staffing plan, how to place dancers, and a safety plan.
Read the guideDance Costume & Equipment Checkout
Costume, headpiece, props and team jacket, with costume number, size, condition and replacement cost, and a return date.
Open the generatorPlaybook Logix
What Playbook Logix tracks behind a dance evaluation
Playbook Logix is registration, rosters, payments, schedules and team messaging for youth and adult sports, in one place. A report is only as good as the season behind it. This is what Playbook Logix keeps so the report is quicker to write.
Attendance behind the report
Mark each player present or absent from your phone at the field, and on the web see every player against every event with an attendance percentage. It is the number a parent is really asking about when they ask about playing time. Free on every plan.
How it worksThe player and the family together
Jersey number, position and the parent's contact details sit on the roster, so the player you are writing about is one click from the adult you are handing the report to.
How it worksReach families without a group text
A team message board for things that need a record, live chat for the quick stuff, and reminders that respect quiet hours, so parents see a schedule change and do not mute the app.
How it worksThe Starter plan is free, and the iPhone and Android app is free on every plan. Anything described above as Coach plan and above needs a paid plan. See the plans or the mobile app. Nothing you type into the template above is sent to us, whether or not you ever sign up.
Keep the whole season in one place
Schedules, attendance, messages to the team and a roster that is the same in everyone's pocket. There is a free plan.