Hip hop 'til you drop
Katelyn and Hailey Littlefield perform their 1960s dance routine in a school-wide dance-a-thon at Hayden Canyon Charter on Friday.
JOSA SNOW/Press
Hayden Canyon Charter's director of special education, Mica Clarkson leads an impromptu Zumba-style dance breakout during a dance-a-thon Friday. The dancers and students gather sponsors to raise money for mirrors.
From left, Hayden Canyon Charter Hip Hop Dance Club members Austin Bartel, Preston Dunn and Aiden Bergreen participate in a dance-a-thon to raise money to buy mirrors for the school's Wednesday dance class.
Hayden Canyon Charter dance students go head over heals in a school-wide dance-a-thon Friday.
HAYDEN — The Hayden Canyon Charter Hip Hop Dance Club invited students, staff and families to get down, boogie, groove and bust moves in a five-hour schoolwide dance-a-thon Friday.
The music spanned decades, starting in the 1950s through the pop songs of today. During each decade, the club students would perform one choreographed routine for the audience, to introduce each decade.
“We need mirrors,” director of special education Mica Clarkson said. “We’re an arts and science school and we don’t have mirrors. The kids need to see themselves to learn to dance.”
Clarkson conducted the 10 club students in their choreographed routines, but she credits a student for most of the work for the event.
Eighth grader Katelyn Littlefield loves to dance, perform and act, so it became a glaring problem for her that her school didn’t have a dance club. And it’s still a problem for her that they don’t have mirrors.
So Katelyn went to her school’s board and requested permission to start the HCC Hip Hop Dance Club. To celebrate the club’s approval, she asked if the dance club could host the dance-a-thon, to raise money for mirrors for HCC’s Wednesday dance classes, and she choreographed all the routines.
The students gathered sponsors and pledges for each song they danced to, based on an honor system. Students entered each song they danced to on a sheet to tally their totals.
Anyone who attended could dance or sponsor dancers by paying them per song or with flat donations.
Supporters loved to see the students swinging the day away, and dancing for a good cause.
