Dance experiences for all school pupils
A BRENTWOOD dance academy is giving young people experiences they will remember for a lifetime.
All pupils at Larchwood Primary School, in Larchwood Gardens, Pilgrims Hatch, get to produce a show with Don Rae Academy during the course of the year.
Every half-term, a different year group spends an entire day working on creating a dance performance to put on before they head home.
The latest visit saw Year 1 and 2 celebrate Chinese New Year, including a dragon dance around the school.
Head teacher Steve Bowsher said: “We have been working with Don Rae Academy for years now.
“Throughout the year, every pupil in every year group gets to take part. It gives them the opportunity to perform in front of others.
“This is part of our work to develop the wider curriculum, including dance, music and drama.
“It helps to build the confidence of our young people. We see children who we would not normally see take on the starring role and growing in confidence. It is a very good way of getting everyone involved; even those who tend to hide at the back to start with will be fully involved by the end of the day. They all end up loving the experience.
“The confidence they gain from this gets taken into other areas of their schooling and life. Some develop a love of dancing and musical theatre they may not have found in the national curriculum.
“One of our aims in our mission statement is to give children experiences they will remember for life. These kinds of opportunities are exactly the type of event we aim to put on.”
Year 6 is the final group to take part, with pupils and all teachers putting on a show together as a farewell celebration before they head to secondary school.