the student news source of shawnee mission south

SM South News

the student news source of shawnee mission south

SM South News

the student news source of shawnee mission south

SM South News

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A Waltz to Remember

For the past few weeks, the Interpersonal Skills classroom has been full of song and dance as they prepare to host a dance on Feb. 23. The dance will include Interpersonal Skills students from everywhere in the Shawnee Mission School District and offer food, games, and activities for the students attending.

“It’s just for the kids to experience the dance because a lot of them don’t attend the other dances, so it’s a good way for them to practice social skills, get to know new people, and how to act appropriately in situations like that,” said Interpersonal Skills teacher Mrs. Hochler, who organized the dance.

Though the dance has been done for many years, Hochler says this is the first year it’s been hosted during the school day.

“We run into problems with transportation when we have it at night,” she explained.

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The organizers expect between 100 and 150 students to be in attendance and are attempting to make sure as many students as possible have the same experience as they would at WPA. One of Mrs. Hochler’s students, Dillon Gomez, said he’d be wearing a tuxedo to the dance.

“I think it depends on the person, but a lot of people are going to have fun and dress up with it, like they would for WPA or any of the upcoming dances,” senior cadet Shana Rosenbloom said.

To accompany their more swanky attire, the students are learning ballroom dances from Mrs. Williams to perform for the visiting students.

“We’re learning the waltz, the fox trot, the salsa, and the swing,” Williams said. “Within this class, a lot of these kids don’t get to dance at the school dances and this is a form where they can get together and do the dances that they’ve learned.”

Gomez said he enjoys what he’s been learning and in preparation, he’s “just been practicing a few dance steps.”

The students will showcase the dances they’ve learned and teach visiting schools how to ballroom dance as well. In addition to the ballroom dances, students have been practicing their Cupid Shuffle and ChaCha slide. Hochler said many of the songs are for line dances in an attempt to get more students involved, but the music has a general Valentine theme.

The planning has taken about a month and many of the students took part in the process.

“[They’re learning] how to prioritize different objectives that have to get finished before we have the dance,” Hochler said. “We have a lot of different committees […] We have decorations, music, food, dancing, and games.”

Gomez said one of the most exciting aspects of holding the dance is being a part of the food and donations committee. His job has been to go to various businesses asking for donations. Money for decorations and games have been donated, as well as sandwiches from Mr. Goodcents.

“We’ve had a lot of nice people donate things so that we don’t have to pay for anything for the dance,” Rosenbloom said.

Hochler said that though the planning process hasn’t been too challenging, it’s been a good learning experience for everyone.

She said, “It’s good for them to do something for others. It helps develop empathy because a lot of the time, the students in our class, people do things for them and I think it’s good for them to learn to do things for others as well.”

By Hannah Strader

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A Waltz to Remember