Six-year-old Edmonton girl's dance moves go viral
Ana Malaniuk has Down syndrome, but that hasn't stopped her from busting a move
A six-year-old Edmonton girl is breaking down stereotypes and capturing hearts after a video of her dancing went gone viral.
Like many girls her age, Ana Malaniuk loves to dance. But she's a little different — Ana has Down syndrome.
She's been dancing since she was three years old, but when her mother, Sonja, enrolled her daughter in dance classes at a studio near their home, the owner told her Ana wasn't a good fit.
"We went to a studio for one class of 45 minutes and after the next morning I received a phone call from the owner saying, 'We don't think she's going to fit in this studio and we're not sure how this is going to work," Malaniuk said. " I said, 'How can you judge my child after one class of 45 minutes?'"
The owner suggested having an aide in the class for her daughter, but Malaniuk was no longer interested.
Friends recommended they try Amanda's Academy of Dance. It was a perfect match.
Ana now regularly takes regular classes with other kids her age. Initially, Malaniuk only filmed the video to help her daughter practice at home.
She's happy to see her daughter doing what she loves, and grateful for the positive response she's received after sharing the video of Ana's dancing.
"She looks forward to practices, rehearsals," Malaniuk said about her daughter. "It's been great to see there are people out there supporting our kids.
"She just loves dancing. It's her life."