SJHS Dance Class Gets Moving!

Springville Junior High’s dance class has been working hard to learn steps, rhythm, and all different types of dances. The dance class is an elective class that the eighth and ninth grade boys and girls can take to express themselves in another way. Each semester, new kids come into the class to learn the dances and show what talents they have with technique and how well they can follow the steps given. Mrs. Maughan, the dance teacher, said, “Dance is an elective, and the main point is to learn an appreciation for dance and movement. Students should leave my class having improved their technical ability in dance and their knowledge of it as a subject.” There is a lot to learn in the dance class, and the students work hard to try their best.

“We dance to all different types and styles, and we always have fun when we dance,” said Katelyn Vaughan, an eighth grader in the dance class. The dance class also dances to all different types and kinds of music to learn different beats and how fast they need to move to really stay with the music. One week they’re dancing to a country song, and the next they’re dancing to a techno song. The class just finished up learning the line dance and now they’re working on a contemporary dance. According to Sammy Gutierrez, another eighth grader who really enjoys the class, the moves are easy to learn because it’s a class for beginners. Sammy feels Mrs. Maughan takes it slow and shows them the moves step by step. 

“The class is so fun! You get to move and express your feelings through your body. Most of all, you don’t have to sit in a desk!” Katelyn said. The students are constantly moving and always learning something new from Mrs. Maughan. Alexis Bowers, an eighth-grade girl at SJHS in the class, said, “It influences me because I like to dance so I have been able to learn more and you have more experience in the end.” Many of her students think that Mrs. Maughan is an amazing teacher and she is very easy to learn from, especially right after having a baby! 

The class works hard all semester to learn the dances and at the end of the semester they do a dance performance in front of their parents and family to show what they have learned. Sammy said, “Dance is a lot of fun and anyone can do it because it is really easy to learn from Mrs. Maughan.” All kids in seventh and eighth graders are able to sign up for the dance class next year, many students say it’s really fun!