By: Shundrea Wilson

On April 30 there will 9 dance that involves the 6th, 7th,and 8th grades from League. They will be performing their amazing dances in the auditorium at League Academy around 7:30 and the cost to get in is $3.

7th grader Georgia Diakomihalis said “ My dance wasn’t really hard it easy because we didn’t have to do that much.” Diakomihalis character was the anxiety thought. Diakomihalis stated “ I didn’t really struggle with anything because it was really easy and I feel pretty good about the dance.” Diakomihalis also said “ I wasn't really stress the only thing I was stressed about was making sure we were together with the music.” Diakomihalie also stated “ I didn’t really spend any time outside of class to work on my dance because my dance was really easy.” Diakomihalis group name was “THOUGHTS” and her whole group came up with the name.

7th grader Jaleah Little said “ The dance wasn’t really hard it was pretty easy because I already knew what to do.” Little also said “ In our play “TAKEN” I am the kidnapper.” Little also replied with “ I feel really confident about my part because my group know their part and i know mine.” Little started that she was really nervous at the beginning and that she did struggle with her dance in the beginning. Little also replied with “ I was stressed at first because we had a date to complete the dance but I didn’t think we were ready to record it because we only had a few days to complete the dance.” Little also expressed that she spent time out of class to work on her dance at her house and at her grandma's house. She wanted to make sure she knew it until she could remember it and not mess up.

8th grader Tamia McGriff said “ No my dance wasn’t hard just the timing and being with the music and focusing on the right things was a little hard.” McGriff also said “ My character was the stereotype but I was also the critic.” She also stated in the beginning, she struggled with her part but now she knows it. McGriff also said “ I was stressed because I was scared I was gonna mess up and other people not getting their part right.” McGriff also stated that Oleisia Johnson came up with their dance name “XSCAPE”.

6th grader Julianna Young said “ We have been working on our dance “ IMAGINATION” since we started dance class in January and yes my part was hard because of the people I was dancing with.” Young was the Pirate in her dance. Young stated that she was confident about her because she knew it but she also struggled because she didn’t know where to line up at, who to stand beside, and when to go out. Young said “ I was stressed because I didn’t want to perform and I thought the people that were in my dance was going to mess up.” Young also explained that she did spend time out of class on her dance which was in the bathroom at school and at home for about 30 minutes. Young also said, “Stella Long came up with the dance name“IMAGINATION” for their group.”

The dance instructor Lynne McCain said, “What made me want to do the different dances was for the 6, 7, and 8th graders to force on the choreograph and show their skills.” McCain also said, “There were 6 classes performing but there are 9 different dances/ themes.” McCain replied with “It was challenging to plan because the student in their groups would have to communicate and make decisions together.” McCain said, “The purpose of the dances were for the students to show their own unique choreograph and show their dance skills and performing skills.” McCain also stated that she planned the dance for 2 months and that's how long the students had to rehearse and practice and they had got 5 days on the stage to practice. McCain said, “ Each class choose their own name titles but some people from the informance helped them to choose their name.” McCain feel that the dance was very successful because 250 people out to watch the dance.

All in all the dances were very good everyone looked happy to perform on stage. All the dancers showed their talent and skills. The 9 dances group names are “IMAGINATION”, “SHADOW”, “TAKEN”, “XSCAPE”, “SURVIVE”, “THOUGHTS”, “SINS”, “SIMILAR DIFFERENCES”, and “NEVERTHELESS SHE PERSISTED” all of the groups did a fantastic job. All of y’all should be proud of yourself because y’all did GREAT!!

By: Shundrea Abercrombie-Wilson

On Saturday, May 18, 6th graders from League Academy Strings are going to Carowinds to compete with different schools and play “Star Dancer” and other music selections.

Strings instructor Becky Leonard said, “I picked the music I did because I knew it was something the students would love to play and judges would enjoy to hear.” She also stated that it was a little hard to plan, because she had to see how the groups were set up, make sure there were enough chaperones, and do a lot of paperwork. That's one reason why she’s been planning the trip since the beginning of the school year—so everything is right.

Leonard said, “It's a tradition for the 6th graders to go to Carowinds every year. It's a little fun trip.” She also said that the 6th graders have been working on their music before Spring Break, around March. The price of the trip was $110, which pays for them to go to the Music in the Park festival, Carowinds, and their food.

Good luck to the 6th graders that are going to Carowinds to represent League Academy Strings.