Culture Through Ballroom Dance

The following were comments made in writing by 4th and 5th grade dance students in response to a student feedback survey.  The "show" some of them refer to was a District Wide Performing Arts Festival where they danced before a large live audience of parents, educators and friends.

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I love that you taught us ballroom dancing. At first, I did not want to dance at all.  But when I got the hang of it, I loved it. At first I thought my partner was going to be a pain in the neck, but he turned out to be a great partner.  We get along and it's all thanks to you.  

--5th grade girl

I want to thank you for teaching me ballroom dancing.  It has been an amazing experience for me.  It's the only thing I've ever been good at. Now, I have confidence to try other things.  I'm going to convince other people to try ballroom dancing too.

                --5th grade boy

Ballroom dancing has made me more mature because I used to act like I didn't care about anything at school.  Ballroom dancing has made me nicer and more serious about my future.  Also, I've become more friendly towards the opposite gender.  Thank you for allowing me to do ballroom dancing. It has made me feel more grown-up.

--5th grade girl  

I love ballroom dancing with my partner. She is nice and talented.  She never gives up. I feel great when I'm doing ballroom dancing.  At first, I hated ballroom dancing, but now I don't.  When I grow up I want to be a ballroom dance teacher.  

--5th grade boy  

Ballroom dancing has been my passion to do ever since I've started watching it on Dancing With the Stars.  Than you for letting me do this.  My partner is the best dancer I've ever seen.  

--5th grade girl

 Ballroom dancing has been fun for me.  Thank you for teaching me all these steps. It feels great to be able to dance. I go home and show my brothers and sister the steps.  When I grow up I think I can probably be a dance teacher.

--5th grade boy

I liked it because it was fun. The show was exiting. It benefits me because I have more respect for teachers. Also I really love ballroom dance. I wish I could have ballroom dance every year.

--5^th Grade girl

I liked it because we did line dances. Also we learned all kinds of dances such as salsa, bachata, merengue and so on. Also I liked the steps.

--4^thGrade boy

I did like learning dances so I can be a good dancer.

--4^th Grade boy

What I liked was all the dances and I like the line dances too. There was nothing I did not like! When they teach us how to do a dance I listen so I can get better. I benefit by respect for the teacher and I really love ballroom dancing.  It was fun, I want you guys and lady to come Back.

--5^th Grade girl

I really liked Saturday Night Fever line dance. I really did like everything. I learned a lot of dancing.

--4^th Grade girl

My ballroom dance experience was quite fun especially when we did the Thriller line dance and the part I loved was when we danced in front of all those people and how Miss Sheila went behind the curtains and danced with us in Thriller. There was not a single part I didn’t like. How did I benefit by learning to dance? It took my hard working brain to memorize all the steps and different dances. . 

                 --4^th Grade girl



I liked the girls and all the dance steps and I liked when I was on TV.

--5^th Grade boy

I really liked it. I had fun doing the tango and the “Thriller”. It was just such a surprise to me. When they taught me how to dance I was a little confused but then I got the hang of it and it was awesome.

 --4^th Grade girl

In ballroom dance I like when we do the game. When we had to dance with the boys that was the same size as the girls. I watched the teachers danced first then we tried.

--5^th Grade girl

My ballroom dance experience was a good experience. I liked that they gave us the chance to perform at the Ballroom Dance Festival. It gave me more confidence and courage to perform in front of a large group of people. They also taught us very different styles from different places than the United states. The benefit of it was if you visit another country and they're doing the Merenge and someone asks you to dance, you know what to do. Plus you know how to dance for proms or something like that.

                 --5^th Grade girl



 I had fun every time I went to dance class and it was enjoyable.

--5^th Grade girl

One of the things that I liked about ballroom dancing was that when they taught us how to dance it was so exiting and the show was amazing. I benefited by having respect for the teachers and I really love ballroom dancing. It was so much fun. And I wish the teachers were coming back next year.

--4^th Grade girl

I liked learning Thriller it was fun. I benefited by learning dances from different times.  

                   5^th Grade girl

What I liked the most was I got to get a pretty dress. Thriller was fun. What I didn’t like was there were not enough boys, but we worked it out. I benefited by learning to dance with other people.

--5^th Grade girl

I learned a lot in ballroom dancing with my partner. My favorite dances were the tango, salsa and line dance.

--5^th Grade boy

I felt comforted and felt needed. I really liked the line dances and I think if they do it next year I would love to do it again and learn more.

--4^th Grade girl

 Feedback from Teachers

I have been aware for some time that very often children who are not academically excellent can often exel in the Arts.  For some of our children ballroom dancing has instilled the self-discipline and confidence needed for them to excell as students.  

In addition, what I have witnessed this year in the students who persevered is amazing.  Not only have they grown in social elegance, but they have become more confident learners and leaders amoung their peers.

5th grade teacher  

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 I would like to thank your organization for providing my students the opportunity to learn ballroom dancing.  I must admit I was skeptical when I first learned my students would be learning how to dance and would have to dance with partners of the opposite sex. Often at ten years old, students embarrass easily.  

I am please to report that I was totally wrong with my assumptions.  The students not only co-operated with each other and learned new dances, they enjoyed it!  This is the one activity that every student wanted to do.  There were no moans and groans, but only enthusiatic "when do we get to dance?"  

I would like to share one particular experience with the dance lessons.  I have a student who just doesn't quite seem to fit in.  She seldom speaks to other students.  I have worried about her all year and tried to encourage her to join others, but she was only secure in her own space.  I just knew she would not want to dance. Boy was I wrong. She was a dancing star! She is a great message for anyone who does not see the benefit of dance for children.

I would encourage anyone who is considering your program for their students....Just Do It!  It will amaze you how well the students perform.  The instructors were amazing with the way they related to the kids.                     5th grade teacher

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I am writing to share our ballroom dancing experience. Fifty students in grade five were involved with "Culture Through Ballroom Dance."  It was great for them as well as some staff who participated.  

I believe that ballroom dancing has allowed our students to build social awareness, confidence, mutual respect and self-esteem.  They have been inspired and they have inspired others (peers and adults).  

Dr. Adams and his staff were GREAT with our students. They were always patient and willing to provide individual assistance when needed.  It was a pleasure having them at our school.  

Elementary School Principal