Stepping Stones
Moving in the Spirit's recreational, open-level offering, Stepping Stones provides students ages 3-18 with one hour of age-appropriate dance classes each week.
Stepping Stones dance classes provide creative movement experiences that encourage positive behavior and leadership skills. Students learn fundamental modern dance techniques while building a positive self-image, discipline, self-awareness, and respect for others.
Stepping Stones dancers of all ages collaborate with their teaching artists and peers to create choreography, which they premiere in an exciting year-end show with other Moving in the Spirit students.
Stepping Stones classes are based in modern dance and creative movement, with opportunities to study ballet, hip hop, jazz, and West African dance through additional Movement Labs classes (see below).
Students are introduced to the primary elements of dance through creative movement and improvisation.
They explore their imaginations and will establish foundational technical skills while developing a positive self-image, discipline, self-awareness, and respect for others.
This class introduces students to fundamental dance technique and terminology. Students explore spatial relationships, timing/tempo and choreography while simultaneously developing interpersonal skills.
Students study dance forms such as hip-hop, modern, and capoeira. They learn the fundamentals of improvisation and experiment with combining movements to create choreography.
Boys in Motion students learn leadership skills through collaborative problem solving and commitment.
Girls in Motion students learn modern dance technique while exploring ways to express meaning through dance. They collaborate and problem-solve with their peers while deepening their self-awareness and enhancing their leadership skills.
*Students in this class are strongly encouraged to enroll in one of our Movement Labs to learn additional dance styles and increase their stamina, strength, and technical abilities.
The Girls in Motion II curriculum is designed for our pre-teen students. The focus is on increasing technical skill, strength, and flexibility. Students collaborate and problem-solve with their peers to create choreography while deepening self-awareness and enhancing leadership skills.
Movement Labs offer additional training in specific dance styles:
Jazz - Emphasizes musicality, conditioning, strength, rhythm and stylization.
Beginning Ballet - Builds core strength and flexibility, supports healthy alignment.
West African Dance - Emphasizes musicality, conditioning, strength, rhythm and stylization.
Hip Hop - Emphasizes musicality, conditioning, strength, rhythm and stylization.
*Must also be enrolled in Mini Steps, Girls in Motion, Girls in Motion II, Boys in Motion, or Men in Motion.
In this 1.5 hour class, students are exposed to modern dance, jazz and ballet. They expand their application of space, time and energy to create unique choreography that expresses their thoughts and feelings about the world around them.
*Collective Motion students can enhance their dance technique by training with our advanced Apprentice Corporation company for teens.