The MOST important question about what's taught in school.....Square Dancing!

[moniqueand2]

Yup, two weeks of square dancing in Middle School gym class in the Midwest during the 1980s.

 

[dreamin_disney]

there was a school around here that did it a few years ago(4 years ago) not sure if they still do as two of the teachers in charge retired. I think 4th and 5th grade. Some did singing in a group and the others did different dances. It was a tradition and they knew when they got to that grade they would have to participate in it. At the end of the performance those kids would celebrate with a party cook off of hot dogs, chili dogs, chips, sodas etc

oh and they would dress up in jeans, flannels and if they had boots, cowboy hats and handkerchief and girls would do the same with jeans or jean skirts . I hope they still do it. it was nice to see the siblings through out the years participate

 

[AustinMommyofThree]

There is an insidious history behind why square dancing is taught in schools: https://qz.com/1153516/americas-wholesome-square-dancing-tradition-is-a-tool-of-white-supremacy/

 

[FlightlessDuck]

Pennsylvania in the 80's, no square dancing. I know square dancing is the official dance of many states, mostly due to Henry Ford's antisemitism. Apparently it was to fight off Jazz.

https://mic.com/articles/186892/how...anti-semitic-jazz-dance-conspiracy#.bkJYFCpNW

 

[Sparkly]

Over here in the UK we did dancing in year 5 (5th grade in the US?) on Friday afternoons. Was pretty fun.

 

[CarolAnn856]

There is an insidious history behind why square dancing is taught in schools: https://qz.com/1153516/americas-wholesome-square-dancing-tradition-is-a-tool-of-white-supremacy/

That's a really interesting article, and the links are equally fascinating. I never knew about that, and I participated in organized square dancing in my teens (which, at the time and where I lived, had absolutely NOTHING to do with white supremacy, at least to my knowledge). It was just a fun activity.

 

[Jennasis]

Square dancing was part pf the gym curriculum in middle school and we all...all of us...hated every second of it. It really was just hogwashery.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Yup, did square dancing in elementary school and line dancing as well.

Line dancing was also taught in the dance class I took in high school (where we learned a variety of dances including Zumba).

 

[powellrj]

I never square danced in school in the 60’s, but my oldest who graduated in 2002 did in grade school. My next 2 who graduated in 09 and 14 never had it. Our senior center offers it on Monday night. I think it’s really popular.

 

[superme80]

I went to a Southern Baptist private school in the later 90s. Dancing was of the devil.

 

[Kellykins1218]

We learned it in Middle School in the mid 80's and loved it. It was a really fun class & we all looked forward to it.

 

[AppleDumpling]

Yes, I did square dancing in high school. Back then (late 70’s), gym class was single sex and the dancing was the only time the whole year that we got to “play” with the boys. A lot of us girls liked it and looked forward to it, but I don’t think the boys did so much.

Also when I was younger, in Girl Scouts (brownies and juniors) we had an annual father-daughter square dance that was always a lot of fun.

 

[DisneyHardin]

In the late 80's in Kentucky we learned it in Middle School Music Class.

 

[NYCgrrl]

No square dancing at any of my schools that I can recall but I do remember learning the Alley Cat during gym, and doing the hora and a Highland Fling for an Assembly Day performance.

 

[Kellykins1218]

There is an insidious history behind why square dancing is taught in schools: https://qz.com/1153516/americas-wholesome-square-dancing-tradition-is-a-tool-of-white-supremacy/

 

[fla4fun]

We had a dance unit in phys ed, but it wasn't just square dancing. Whatever the popular dances were at the time, we learned those as well. I can remember learning different line dances and stuff in addition to the square dancing. I am not an athlete, but I always got an A for the dance unit.

 

[design_mom]

My grade school was grades 1-8 (Catholic school). We had a square dancing unit in gym every year. At the end of the unit, they would have a big square-dancing party at the school (for students and their families). It was usually in the fall and they had hot dogs, caramel apples, etc. I didn't especially look forward to the gym class, but the square-dance party was pretty fun.

My kids had a dance unit in Elementary School but I believe they learned a school-appropriate hip-hop routine, not square dancing.

Edited to add: I thought it was taught for exercise and to give those of us who are not athletically inclined a chance to do something that we didn't suck at. Everyone can square dance. In my school you could literally see the eye rolls and sighing of the team captain who got stuck with me for basketball... but I could do the square dancing unit just fine. (And let's just say not all 4th graders are cut out for hip-hop dancing! There are some who can't do it at all, and some who do it TOO well.)

 

[DLgal]

We learned it in middle school in NJ in the early 90s.

My son's middle school still teaches a unit of this now, in CA.

 

[CarolAnn856]

Did you read the article or links? It's really interesting.

 

[Kellykins1218]

Did you read the article or links? It's really interesting.

I did. We did not learn square dancing because of any white supremacy. We learned it because our principal was a country musician and he & his wife were members of a clogging and square dance group. They loved it and made it fun for us.