Dancemania!

Dancemania is a longstanding and MUCH loved tradition at Churchill Alternative.

In the 2023-2024 school year, it's both a weekly club (where a core group of keen students learn the dances) and also an activity for the whole school.

During the spring and fall, the club leads the whole school in a few dances at the end of the day on Thursday.  Parents & guardians who are there for pickup are encouraged to jump in and participate as well.  During the winter, the club leads dances at some all-school gatherings. It's a fun time!

Here's the story of Dancemania from it's leader, teacher Tiiu Tsao:

Years ago, we had a teacher from Scotland who was here on exchange. She started Dancemania as a club. When she left, my class took over. We would learn or make up dances and teach them to the rest of the school a couple of times a week as our DPA. 

A few years ago, before the pandemic, we did a Dance-a-thon as a way to teach the new set of spring dances after a winter hiatus. In 2021, the Dance-a-thon was our first whole school activity after the pandemic and it managed to raise a lot of funds for our kinder yard. 

This year, we reverted to having Dancemania as a club rather than just my class leading the charge. It is so nice to get together as a school and dance together. Sometimes we see parents watching from the parking lot and are always hopeful they will join in on our moves. We are looking forward to this year's Dance-a-thon and to future years of Dancemania.

Below are some thoughts from our Dancemania team.

I find, especially on colder days, it is a great opportunity to get active and not have to be freezing outside.

It's nice to practice being on stage in front of a large group of people.

You can learn different dance moves and different songs.

I feel like I get to know some different people better.

You get to learn a lot of different types of dances and songs.

It is fun to dance with other kids.

It feels good to be helping to raise money for the Kinder Yard through the Dance-a-thon.

It feels nice to be able to have the spotlight on you and your group.

I like Dancemania because it is not just on you, you have a group. If you mess up, you have a team around you to help.

When you are on stage, you can go to the front if you feel brave and want to show off, but you can also blend in if you are a little bit shy and go to the back. 

It feels really great to be a leader and know that I am helping my school learn to dance. Without us, there would be no Dancemania and that makes me feel important.

It's cool that we are the reason that Dancemania is going and that kids get to dance. 

It was really cool when I found a new dance and brought it to the team and now the whole school is going to learn that dance. 

I like to take the dances home and teach my family the moves. 

I did the dances on New Years Eve at my house. It was fun.

I like that we get to have a say in picking the dances, it isn't just the teachers.