"What I Learned"

I've had a wonderful experience working with Peirce, where we recently finished learning our final dance routine. With the auditions coming up and the final teams about to be selected for the competition at the end of the month, I wanted to take time to reflect on what all of the dancers have learned and will take with them, even those that won't go to the dance-off in a few weeks.

I asked each class to share something they have learned through our dance lessons. Here is some of what they had to say:

• "I learned that dances come from different cultures and traditions around the world."
• "I learned that you don't have to speak the same language to be able to dance together, like in Hispaniola where there are two countries that share a dance."
• "Some of the dances I thought would be really hard and only for adults, like waltz, were actually not too hard. We can dance them, too"
• "I learned about different rhythms and how it's important to stay slow if the step is slow."
• "I learned that some of today's music comes from long ago (like rock and roll starting as swing music)."

I am so proud of ALL of my students and wish I had a spot for all them on our team. But I know no one can take away the dances they've learned and the fun they've had over the past several weeks.