During my placement at Kennedy Collegiate Institute, I had the opportunity to teach a lesson to Grade 11 academic-level French students about zydeco music. Rather than simply introduce the music style to them through a lecture-based lesson, I decided to put my dance background to good use and invited the students into the cafeteria where I hosted a zydeco cha cha line dancing lesson.

Before teaching the steps, I explained that zydeco music originates from Louisiana and is a fusion of different music styles such as rock, rhythm, and blues. I also explained that the music is often played using the accordion, but guitar can also be an instrument.

After introducing the students to the dance vocabulary (ex. “pas”, “triple pas”, “tourner” et “avance”), I walked the students through the routine, one step at a time. The routine is choreographed in such a way that it can be repeated after a series of quarter turns. By the end of the lesson, the students thoroughly demonstrated excellent zydeco cha cha line dancing skills and a high interest in dancing, going as far as to engage in a dance-off to see who could keep dancing the longest without messing up.

I strongly believe that this lesson is a prime example of my commitment to students and student learning because I was able to engage students in a fun and interactive lesson while addressing curriculum expectations of having students make connections to other French-speaking communities and develop an awareness of cultural aspects of these communities. Having a class size of thirty-one students, I arranged students in three rows for the lesson. For every set of steps I taught, I would take the time to perform the steps with each row of students to ensure their comprehension while the other rows would watch and practise. This also allowed me to pay closer attention to any students who struggled to pick up the steps at first. While other students practised the steps, I could work with these students one-on-one to ensure that they were not left out.

To see a clip of the dance lesson, click here: https://youtu.be/u4BaAOhBWf8