Children‘s well-being

Children‘s well-being and prevention against sexualized violence in dancing and dance dissemination

As dance teachers we work closely with children and adolescents. We create spaces for physical and cognitive-emotional encounters as well as for sensory and cognitive experiences. This kind of work comes along with a specific responsibility for the well-being, protection and realization of the young people’s rights in accordance with § 1 SGB VIII and the UN-children’s rights convention.

As initiative for the cultural education for children and adolescents Aktion Tanz engages in the environments of dance dissemination and dance production, where all – and especially young people – can grow in any form and further experience mutual respect and appreciation, free of discrimination, (sexualized) violence, sexual harassment and abuse of power.

For a clear positioning and orientation of our members as professionals in the field, Aktion Tanz formulated its mission statement “Kindeswohl und Prävention sexualisierter Gewalt“ in October 2020, a link to the content you will find here. (only available in German)

Since dancing and its dissemination are essentially based on physical-sensorial experiences, there is a specific need for a particular attentiveness towards the physical-mental well-being of children and adolescents and all further participants. In order to reinforce and maintain this attentiveness, information and knowledge about appropriate working methods and tools is required. Aktion Tanz aims at making this information and knowledge accessible on a longterm and continuous base.

Activity orientation

BKJ’s brochure “Schutz vor sexualisierter Gewalt. Prävention in der kulturellen Kinder- und Jugendbildung“ (available in German only) collects broad information and further first activity orientation on how to deal with suspected cases or how to establish a protection concept. Such a concept shall ultimately be established by any organization that is working in the field of dance and dance dissemination as an active contribution to maintain children’s well-being.

Contact points

In case you are in need of professional advice and information about the topic children’s well-being/sexualized violence, we recommend as first contact the advisory portal for sexual abuse of “Unabhängiger Beauftragter für Fragen des sexuellen Kindesmissbrauchs“: https://www.hilfeportal-missbrauch.de/startseite.html (available in German only). You can find further contacts for your region there as well as a national emergency phone number. The brochure mentioned above (Broschüre der BKJ) contains a more detailed overview from page 60 onwards.

Further education and information events

Aktion Tanz informs continuously about upcoming events regarding the topic children’s well-being in the section “Aktuelles“ (available in German only).