SQUARE DANCE LESSONS--BLAST, ALP, Classes & Workshops
The range of opportunities for learning to square dance is a lot like a menu--how hungry are you? And, how much time do you have? Do you want a light snack, an entree, or a four-course dinner complete with dessert? Each of the programs below will get you dancing. The intensity of the learning experience and the depth of what is covered will vary--but, you will be dancing--guaranteed.
Once you have learned basic square dancing and have moved into the square dance world, you will find that clubs begin dancing at the Mainstream level. From there you can progress into Plus, Advance (several levels) and on up to Challenge (another several levels). There are classes available for all of these levels in the WASCA area. To learn more and find scheduled programs click on the appropriate link below.
BLAST Sessions--4 to 8 hour intensive session that will get you dancing--From zero to dancing in a single day. It also may be structured as a refresher/refinement session for Basic, Mainstream, Plus, Advanced or Challenge. Click BLAST Sessions Schedule for a table of currently available sessions in the WASCA area. Click BLAST Session Details for more detailed information about BLAST sessions.
Accelerated Learning Program (ALP)--1 1/2 to 3 day session that goes from zero to dancing during the session and provides more time practicing what you are being taught and learning even more moves. Click ALP Sessions Schedule for a table of currently available sessions in the WASCA area. Click ALP Session Details for more detailed information on ALP sessions.
Annual Square Dance Lessons--Club (or other) sponsored lessons--based upon Member Club dance year or location (school year where they dance from September to May)--usually one night a week varying from 1 to 2 hours. The way that the lessons are structured varies. They may start at different square dance levels and end at different square dance levels. Click Square Dance Lessons Schedule for a table of currently available annual square Dance Lessons. Click Square Dance Lesson Details for more details/descriptions of the levels/structure of the square dance lessons.
Boomerangs Teaching Council--Lessons are taught year-round (12 months) and the lessons are broken into three 16-week sessions. There are 3 different types of classes (Basic, Mainstream, and Plus) being taught at the same time by 3 different callers during each of those sessions. If classes are taken one after the other, you will be dancing at the Plus level within 12 months. Click Boomerangs Teaching Council Schedule for a table of the current schedule of classes. Click Boomerangs to link to the Boomerangs website for more complete information.
Workshops--In addition to formal lessons, dancers can also learn, or re-learn, particular moves in more informal "workshops". Workshops may be held in conjunction with an event such as a festival or may be structured as a class itself. The workshop is structured around refresher training or refining execution of certain moves for the specified level of the workshop--Mainstream, Plus, Plus DBD, Advanced or Challenge. Click Square Dance Workshops Schedule for a table of currently scheduled workshops that are set up for the entire school year in the WASCA area.
Square Dance Levels--details
This series of levels is defined by an organization known as Callerlab (http://www.callerlab.org/). This is an International organization of square dance teachers who got together and defined all of these levels. If you really thirst for knowledge about square dance levels, click Callerlab Program Policy to see all of the levels currently defined. This convention is followed world-wide so that if you dance Plus in the U.S., you can dance Plus in Japan, or Plus in Norway, or Plus anywhere in the world. And, just to make it easier, square dance calling is always done in English. Now, if that is not universal communication among people what is?