Dance, dance, dance

The art form that I want to talk about today is dance.. oftentimes I will only get the opportunity to dance in group settings (because the style I love is partner dancing). My friends and I will just start kicking up our heels on a weeknight, weekend, any time. I rarely listen to country music on my own, but if it's playing I just can't keep my feet still. Although there are no musicians in my family, my siblings and I were raised with a huge appreciation for music. We learned how to tap our toes, bounce our feet, and sing aloud to any of our favourites. This movement has translated into dance for all of us. Feeling the music and translating that feeling into steps and turns is an interesting concept. I have met a couple of musicians in my life who have no desire to dance at all - they can create music by strumming a guitar, but don't feel comfortable moving their feet to the beat. I'm curious about why this is, and what I can do to encourage our youth to keep moving. Dance is not just a fun activity but can also be a sport and an art form. It can keep us healthy: physically, socially, mentally and emotionally and also promotes music appreciation. I hope that I can figure out more about this phenomenon so that I can help make dance interesting for my students!

This is a photo of me learning a completely new dance style: latin dance! - I had to watch the other dancers and just pick it up as I went, which was quite the challenge. For each song, the dancers changed the dance style so that it matched the beat. I learned a lot and was certainly sweating by the end! What fun :)

- in Fribourg, Switzerland 2012