Students Graduate From Ballroom to Hip Hop

By Amy Deis
PioneerLocal.com

Moving to the sound of Jay-Z, Shakira and Jay Sean, Westview Hills Middle School students have been breaking it down as hip-hop dancers.

Every year the students have a dance unit in their gym class. In the past, the school hired a company to come in and teach the students ballroom dancing. This year, physical education teacher Gregg Boldman wanted to do something different.

“With hip hop, you see kids doing this stuff out in the hallways and after class,” he said.

The PTO sponsored hiring Jacqueline Howard to come and teach the sixth- through eighth-graders. Howard is a member of Chicago Rush Adrenaline dance team and a former Chicago Bulls Luvabulls. She also is a member of the internationally known hip-hop group Dance2XS.

She encourages each student not to just learn the moves but insert their own flair into the dance steps.

“You’re still adding style and expressing yourself,” she said.

During Tuesday’s session, Howard taught the sixth-graders a move they refer to as the Matrix where they move in slow motion. Moving in slow motion, Howard said, helps them understand the way the body moves, like what happens if they move their arm a certain way.

“You learn how to counterbalance your weight,” she said. “It’s all about form.”

One of the students’ favorite hip-hop exercises was standing in a circle while each student gets four beats to do four different moves. The students share ideas but still manage to insert themselves into the dance.

Learning hip-hop dance encourages the students to try new things but not feel stupid if they can’t get it the first time.

“We all embarrass ourselves,” sixth-grader Nick Curtiss said.

He prefers doing hip hop to the foxtrot.

“You don’t have to move along with the other person,” he said, demonstrating the kick-step-tap move.

For students like Nick, learning hip-hop dance was a bit easier because he has been dancing since he was 4. Sixth-grader Haley Henricksen said her cheerleading experience helped her do a handstand more easily.

Haley said learning how to transfer her body weight while moving quickly, however, has been difficult. She said Howard was instrumental in her mastering the steps.

“She’s really encouraging; I couldn’t do anything when we started,” Haley said.

One of the harder moves for Barret is a move called the six-step, which is a breakdance move where the person supports his body while his legs move around in a circle.

“It’s like Twister except you’re by yourself and it’s to music,” he said.

The sixth-graders learned how to incorporate the six-step with other hip-hop moves like The Reject (similar to the Running Man but backward) and the Pindrop.

“There’s no limits to what you can do,” Barret said.

Even if someone is a hesitant to try hip-hop dance, Willowbrook sixth-grader Camia Wright has some advice.

“Just pretend you know,” she said.