All dance students have been creating their own choreography alone or with partners with a song of choice for a project to end the school year off. Most of the decisions are given to the students on what they want to do for their choreography. The privilege of making their own choreography has brought back memories for some and is providing experience for many.

“The idea for the choreography project came from my experience with choreography,” dance teacher Nicole Nothe said. “When I was younger I would choreograph all the time in my free time and I learned a lot of things or I learned a lot of skills from the choreographing and I wanted to apply it in my curriculum so that the students could experience the same thing.”

While choreographing dance numbers may seem simple, there is more to it. Students have to meet a few requirements such as the song being school appropriate and meeting the minimum and maximum time limit which is around a minute and thirty seconds.

“Students will work together in creating movement,” Nothe said. “They will edit music through Audacity. They will get to learn how to chart their music and write choreography notes and produce the piece for an audience to watch. As well as costume design.”

While dance students are working hard to produce choreography, they are also having fun while doing it. Many dance students have rediscovered their passion for dancing.

“It’s been fun because you get to show your own personality and your own diva-licious self,” freshmen Andreonna Daniels said. “I like doing it.”

Although creating choreography is a fun experience, there are also struggles for some students in certain areas of the project.

“Coming up with moves and like making everything flow together all the way,” Daniels said. “And staying on beat.”

Although there are some struggles, there are also areas of strength.

“I am observing students meet the requirements in their choreography,” Nothe said. “And producing creative movement that would hold the audience’s attention.”

While the project has met a lot of requirements involving dancing, it has also learning experiences involving team work and capability.

“The students choreograph their own routine,” Nothe said. “It builds problem solving skills, communication, teamwork, and group work, leadership roles, and higher order of thinking.”

While the dance teachers have a strong perspective on how the students build strength by choreographing their own routine, it can mean a lot more to certain students.

“The dance one project helped a lot because you get to work with other people that are in the same boat as you are for trying to be on the drill team,” sophomore Ashley Carney. “You also get help from student teachers and Mrs. Nothe helps with the project and we had some returning members on drill team come into some of our classes and help us with the project.”