Anna C

No, I kept going purple! Just as well I wasn't on Centre Court today, I kept squeaking and shrieking! Thank goodness that's over! :-)

I think my dd's teacher encourages it as she sometimes looks as if she's sickling. She has reduced proprioception in her most hypermobile joints (ankles and elbows) so if the teacher asks her to "wing" the foot slightly it often ends up straight - if that makes sense.

What does your teacher think, Pointytoes? Have you discussed your ambitions?

How emotional was that! I was weeping buckets! Highly stressed at the moment watching Federer play Del Potro. I keep forgetting to breathe!

And the other thing to consider is that you may work for a couple of years towards an exam to make sure you're as polished as possible, then be ill or below par on the day and not get the mark you were expected to get! It really is just a snapshot on one day.

My dd usually takes her Graded exams in the June of her third term. Vocational exams usually take longer; it was about 6 terms for Inter Foundation.

Well I wondered that but do they mean that or do they mean Elementary as in "beginner"? I think I'll email them. :-)

Oops - DH has just informed me that our anniversary Pimms were £7.40 EACH, not £7.40 for two! :-/

What level are Anna's classes at Danceworks? On the danceworks website it simply says "Elementary" but when I tweeted them to ask what "Elementary" meant they didn't reply.

To me, it's all about finding a natural balance, because IMHO rushing through exams is no better than being (or feeling) behind. My dd is the youngest in her Intermediate class by between 3 and 5 years, but it's not because she's been rushed through. Her teacher is very good about entering each child for an exam when they are completely ready, even if that means only one or two children ineach session. For me, it's more about quality of training, but balancing that with having a certain level of dance vocabulary, particularly when auditioning for 16+ places. For 11+ places I think potential is more important so it must matter less which exams you've taken.

This looks fantastic, I do wish it was nearer to us! :-(

It's been a fantastic day for Team GB, hasn't it! Such a shame about the infringement in the women's team cycling sprint. I'm with you on the chitchat Anjuli; every time they start chatting I switch over to one of the other channels to find some more sport. The only chatting I like is at the aquatic centre with the lovely Claire Balding and Ian Thorp. And the great Michael Phelps has just won his 20th Olympic medal. Awesome.

Excellent! Lovely news. :-)

We were at Wimbledon on Tuesday (fabulous seats on Centre Court with a great lineup!). I was really impressed; the shuttle bus for disabled spectators was right outside Southfields station, and dropped us across the road from a small entrance which meant that we only had a 3 minute queue for security. As it was our wedding anniversary, dh and I had a Pimms each (£3.70 each, but a good slug of Pimms in each one). My only disappointments were: Locked toilets near our gangway, which meant only one disabled loo in the central hall, and the fact that they had taken all Wimbledon merchandise out of the shop and replaced it with Olympic merchandise. I had assumed that both would be on sale. Friendly volunteers and security staff, a decent cup of coffee, and the most fabulous military band playing a medley of James Bond theme tunes all added together with the great tennis made for a memorable day. By the time we left at 6.30 I could only shuffle (thank goodness for the shuttle bus!) but it was well worth it, especially as we got to see Murray play!

Yes, the cauldron is absolutely beautiful. Shame it can't be seen from outside the stadium to inspire everyone before the athletics start, but apart from that I love it. Loved the passing of the flame from "old" to young too.

Two physios have said that as none of my dd's many "clicks" are at all painful, then it's just a part of being hypermobile. But as everybody is different, I would suggest getting checked out. As Anjuli says, no harm in checking.

Yes, she's 13 and a half, and her teacher has only been asking for a winged foot in preparatory (and a slight wing to the non supporting foot in arabesque) for the last few months. As you say Anjuli, it's just adding little polishing touches now she's a bit older. :-)

Terrific news Pups_Mum, what a fantastic achievement! Well done indeed to your dd. We're waiting for G6 results here....

Yes, we use videora too. It's quite self explanatory but basically once it's installed and you start it, you go to find the dvd in explorer (ours is E:/) and ask videora to convert it to ipod format. You only have to convert dvds; if you have just the music cd then itunes will import it for you.

My dd's teacher has just asked her to start doing this when standing in a preparatory position, at the start of a dance. It does look nicer and I'm happy for her to do it as the foot isn't bearing any weight.

The trouble I found was that no local teacher would teach my dd at 11 or 12 because they only taught adult classes, and their insurance would only allow them to teach dd if I did the class too - impossible as I can't even lay on the floor! As to whether it's useful - well they do Pilates exercises before dd's Associate Classes, and my dd's core strength is amazing now.

My two-pence worth: Loved (in no particular order): The rural scene The singing by the childrens' choirs The transition to the Industrial Revolution (although I failed to realise that Brunel was played by Kenneth Brannagh) Evelyn Glennie The rings forged from steel Sir Steve Redgrave, the young athletes, and the cauldron James Bond and HM The Queen Did not like: How long each segment was, and how much history was missed out The commentary - or lack of it - sometimes I didn't know what the heck was going on! Arctic Monkeys, Dizzee Rascal, and Macca being wheeled out to sing pretty atrociously The Team GB tracksuits which looked as if they'd been bought at North Weald Market and above all, the scarceness of "wow!" moments. I know we could never compete with Sydney or Bejing, but both those ceremonies flowed so beautifully, and each section had something that outdid the previous in terms of jaw-dropping beauty or something truly spectacular. I felt that was missing in London which is a real shame. Just my opinion of course!

Yes, I'm pretty sure our teacher uses IDS too. :-)

My dd has a great dvd called "Pilates for young dancers" which she enjoys doing. There's a link here: http://moniquerichardspilates.com/dvd/ Monique sent me the dvd from Australia but it arrived within about a week. She also told us which exercises to do to start with as dd was only 11 when we got it and the dvd is designed for teenage ballet students.

My dd did the Tring Christmas weekend too, as well as their Easter Course when she was younger. It's a great taster to see how children cope with being away from home. :-)