When I signed up for my dance class back in April, I was so excited for what could possibly come from it. I was naive to think that everything would be back to normal by the fall of 2020, but I had hoped that it would be. Traditionally, when people think of a dance class, they tend to think of two students dancing the Tango or the Waltz all around a dance floor. But that couldn't be further from the truth of what a ballroom dance class consists of now.
I was so nervous walking into my first class seven weeks ago. I wasn't quite sure what to expect from the people and the instructor. The first difference is a very obviously one; half of the course is taught through Zoom, which made me question how we were going to learn anything at all from the class. Because the class is hybrid, it meant that all of the students enrolled in it would take turns on what days they are supposed to go in durning the week, which they could find through their Canvas.
My first week of the class had my assigned day to go in on a Thursday, so I had already viewed the Zoom class from the first Tuesday of the class and I saw what the other students were doing on camera, but that didn't make it any less confusing or nerve racking. We were all so new to not only being in the class, but also the way that it was now being taught under the circumstances that we are being faced with.
One other major difference of taking a ballroom dance class during this time is not being allowed partners, obviously. When I first walked into the room I noticed a bunch of small circles on the ground, measured out with twelve feet between them so we are more conscious to keep our distance from the other students. This is our specific dot that we are supposed to stay on at all times unless we are dancing around the room.
Taking this course has had its challenges of not being allowed the traditional experience. Since the start of the course I have, however, thoroughly enjoyed what I have been taught and that I have even had to opportunity to take the course at this given time. It has been a very humbling experience for me to be a part of something such as this and I continue to be excited about what new dances I can learn from the course and the instructor who has continuously tried to teach us to the best of his ability.
