Grades K–8 • Jersey City, New Jersey
Ballroom Dancing
McAuliffe students dance their way through character education in their ballroom dancing program. A group of 26 eighth-grade students meet weekly for lessons with a professional dancer to learn the steps and history of the Salsa, Mambo, Tango and the ChaCha. The program boasts many benefits, beginning with the promotion of kindness and respectful communication between male and female students. Because the student body has a strong Latin heritage, ballroom dancing encourages a deeper appreciation of the students’ own cultural contributions to the arts and history. Some students chosen for this group struggle academically yet have been able to find an avenue at which to excel through dance, increasing their self-esteem and self-motivation. Participants exhibit self-confidence after mastering and performing a new skill in front of their peers, and they expand their social skills and contacts because they are dancing and forming bonds with those they might not have otherwise socialized. Teachers take notice of the pride, enthusiasm, and camaraderie between dancers as they prepare for the Dance Showcase at a local historic theatre, where they and other participating schools demonstrate their talents.