The start of the summer can only mean one thing – fun, sun and lots of dancing! JCoSS is no exception to this and whilst the typical British weather does its best to dampen our spirits, the sun was well and truly shining when The Bollywood Company came to visit at the start of term.

A group of 60 able and ambitious Dance students in Year 7 and 8 took part in a vibrant, energetic Bollywood workshop. Students were treated to a variety of styles including Bhangra, Bollywood, and Kathak.

It was a real pleasure to see such high levels of engagement from all students and it was noted by the external practitioners how truly wonderful the students were to teach. From the student feedback forms, all students judged the enjoyment and learning experience as ‘excellent’ or ‘very good’. A common thread was that students enjoyed learning about another culture and genre of dance which got me thinking about where to go next…Salsa, African, Capoeira?

We still have a long way to go with building student confidence in this area. The vast majority of students shared a joint interest in wanting to be included in future opportunities for Dance but less than a ¼ considered performing in front of their peers.

I am hopeful that more and more students will step outside of their comfort zone and take up the opportunities available to them here at JCoSS. After 3 years, we now have a junior and senior dance company which have performed in professional settings.

All KS3 students are invited to attend dance club on a Monday lunchtime. It is a fun, relaxed atmosphere where we support and encourage each other. So what’s to lose? Don’t scratch your head thinking about it. Come and join and you never know…you might just enjoy it!