The Clarkston JV Dance Team, taken by photographer Scott.
The Clarkston JV Dance team has been working hard to put on a great show and dance their best. Tenly Dasuqi, 14, a freshman at Clarkston Junior High, has been dancing for the past three years. She and other dancers perform at JV football games on Wednesdays at Clarkston High School. Not only do they dance at football games, but they also take part in competitions with other dancers during the winter.
Tryouts for the team took place in July of this year. Since then, they have been working multiple days a week practicing their dances.
“One of my happiest moments in dance was from the competition we went to last year. We didn’t win, but it was a really fun experience being with my team for the whole day, going through that whole process of competition, doing my solo, and I’m looking forward to this year,” Dasuqi said.
While it is hard work, Dasuqi agrees that it is a great achievement to be able to spend her time with her friends doing something she loves. At their most recent game, they performed a pom dance to the song “TNT.”
The dance team not only builds a community for the dancers, but it also allows parents to become involved. They participate in the dancers’ fundraising events, form cliques with other parents, and, on top of that, take care of their daughters if they have a bad practice and cheer them along. They get to see how the dance team affects the dancers, and the benefits and disadvantages.
Jennifer Dasuqi, mother of Tenley Dasuqi, said, “It’s a benefit [for the dancers] because you’re constantly adjusting and adapting and learning how to work with people as you grow, and as a teenager, especially, that skill is invaluable to be able to learn.”
Dasuqi explains how the things they learn in dance can benefit them throughout their whole life and teach them important lessons for their future.
Another JV dancer, Addison Engle, said, “I love my teammates and I love team bonding! Dancing is very fun for me since I’ve been doing it since I was 4.”
Engle and others’ perspectives show how everyone gains a positive experience from being a dancer. It highlights each dancer’s journey and how they grow and learn new things from being on the team. Dance can impact everyone all around, and is a healthy way to have fun, exercise, and benefit your health. It is apparent that whether during practice, at school, at home and wherever their future may take them, this dance team will teach them important skills that will last them a lifetime.