Dancing With The 'Stars' of Oliver Beach Elementary

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Gabe Bohns wasn’t sure what to expect when he was told he would be participating in a week-long unit on ballroom dancing.

For the fifth-grader, dancing the tango, swing, cha-cha and merengue was awkward enough. Then add that the boys would be dancing with girls, and a whole different set of nerves set in for Bohns and many of the other students.

But to his surprise, Bohns said, learning to dance was actually fun.

“I definitely didn’t think I would like it,” said Bohns, 10. “But we had a fun time with it all and learned a lot about the countries where the dances came from too.”

Oliver Beach was one of 13 elementary schools in Baltimore County to start a ballroom dancing unit this year. A total of 26 schools now participate, according to a county news release.

The students learned a different dance Monday through Thursday of last week, each taught by a professional dance instructor. On Friday, the children dressed up and invited their parents to see a demonstration of what they learned.

Other Essex-Middle River elementary schools that taught the dance program were , , Sussex, and .

The fifth-grade ballroom dance program “is part of a larger initiative that addresses the needs for students in grades 5, 8 and 9 to develop respectful behaviors as well as knowledge and skills on the dance floor,” Baltimore County Public Schools announced.

“It goes beyond just teaching the kids some new dances,” Oliver Beach physical education teacher Amy Rey said. “It teaches them about etiquette and respect and other cultures as well.”

Fifth-grader Cheyanne Roberts, 10, said she enjoyed learning to swing and tango the best.

“I enjoyed dancing before,” she said. “But the more we did, the more into it we got.”

Oliver Beach principal Mary Ann Rigopoulos said she hopes to expand the program in future years so that the dances are integrated in other subjects, including social studies, music and art.

“The students were so engaged all week in this unit,” she said. “A unit like this can help them learn more about other cultures and just about interacting with one another in a new way.”