Research and student development
Confidence and connection through dance
Learning a dance gives students a reason to try, listen, cooperate, and keep going. Dancing Classrooms uses structured partner work to help children practice confidence, respect, focus, and social connection throughout the school-day residency.
What those skills look like in a lesson
- Trying again: working through an unfamiliar step and recovering after a mistake.
- Working with others: rotating partners and cooperating with different classmates.
- Paying attention: listening and noticing how one's choices affect a partner and the group.
- Participating actively: learning through music, movement, and shared practice.
These everyday experiences are the starting point. Research helps us examine students' perceptions of their relationships, confidence, and experience at school.
North Texas research
Studied with 624 fifth-grade students.
A quasi-experimental evaluation of Dancing Classrooms in North Texas found significant improvements in students' perceptions of social support, interaction across differences, self-efficacy, and school success.
These findings describe the study population and should not be treated as a guaranteed result for every student or campus.
Outcomes measured
Social and emotional learning
Students practice the skills during every lesson.
The Dancing Classrooms curriculum aligns with the CASEL social-emotional learning framework. Students practice self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making through structured partner work.
For North Texas schools
Review whether the residency fits your campus.
Dance to Success will discuss the student group, instructional space, schedule, staff involvement, and funding before a school makes a commitment.
