Today we are featuring the first half of our Student Helpers in our latest edition of “Getting to Know You”!  The student helpers are part of Dance Connection’s Teacher Training Program and student teach in our classes each week.

Dance Connection believes in providing a warm, safe, and professional atmosphere where each student is cared for within the Dance Connection family. We are proud to also offer a Teacher Training Program to our more serious students. It is a forum for students to gain training in teaching as well as job responsibility. Enrollment in our Teacher Training Program will provide members with the highest standard of mentoring and guidance. Dance Connection is strongly committed to enriching and nourishing the future teachers and citizens of our community. Regardless of your future career path, Dance Connection feels confident that all members of the Teacher Training Program will leave our program having learned the important life skills of: respect, responsibility, accountability, discipline, confidence, and professionalism.

• Amelia Boschen
• Jeanna Diaz
• Sophia DeRosa
• Brookelynne Martin
• Ginger Mastrosimone
• Ava Michels
• Lindsay Quesada
• Kiara Zeledon

Amelia Boschen

Student Helper

1. What’s your favorite food? Tacos
2. What’s your favorite subject in school? Math
3. What do you like about being a dancer? What I like about being a dancer is that I can express myself in different ways and dance helps me make new friends.
4. What made you want to join the teacher training program? What made me want to join the teacher training program was that I wanted to work with the kids and teachers and to learn new things.
5. What’s something from dance that’s helped you in school or somewhere else in your life? What helps me is that I have learned to work with my fellow dancers and students and I can apply that to the world around me.

Jeanna Diaz

Student Helper

1. What’s your favorite food? Rice & Beans
2. What’s your favorite subject in school? Science
3. What do you like about being a dancer? I enjoy learning new techniques and challenging myself.
4. What made you want to join the teacher training program? I like being able to teach kids dance and watch them improve so much by the end of the year.
5. What’s something from dance that’s helped you in school or somewhere else in your life? Joining “full” competition team and having to memorize all the routines has helped me memorize what I learn in school and get better grades.

Sophia DeRosa

Student Helper

1. What’s your favorite food? Mashed potatoes
2. What’s your favorite subject in school? Science
3. What do you like about being a dancer? I like being challenged and learning new things.
4. What made you want to join the teacher training program? I wanted to do more things involving dancing and I really enjoy teaching.
5. What’s something from dance that’s helped you in school or somewhere else in your life? Miss Mary taught me that not everyone is always going to be equal and there is always going to be someone better. And she made me realize that when people are better, it should inspire you to push yourself more to get better.

Brookelynne Martin

Student Helper

1. What’s your favorite food? Ramen Noodles
2. What’s your favorite subject in school? Math
3. What do you like about being a dancer? Being able to have a unique experience and have a loving and positive dance family.
4. What made you want to join the teacher training program? Caring for younger ones and watching the smile on their faces when dancing.
5. What’s something from dance that’s helped you in school or somewhere else in your life? Learning to be positive and to be caring helps me a lot at school and at home.

Ginger Mastrosimone

Student Helper

1. What’s your favorite food? My favorite food is mac and cheese.
2. What’s your favorite subject in school? My favorite subject in school is math.
3. What do you like about being a dancer? As a dancer, I love getting many different opportunities and getting to experience things that not everyone has the chance to.
4. What made you want to join the teacher training program? I wanted to join the teacher training program because i love working with kids.
   
5. What’s something from dance that’s helped you in school or somewhere else in your life? Dance has helped me make new friends because when we go to competitions i always meet people from other teams and it’s fun to get to know them.

Ava Michels

Student Helper

1. What’s your favorite food? Chicken
2. What’s your favorite subject in school? Social Studies
3. What do you like about being a dancer? What I like about being a teacher is to watch the amazing progression each child goes through in a year. Being a teacher also reminds me of how much I looked up to my teachers and how I became better because of them.
4. What made you want to join the teacher training program? I wanted to join the Teacher Training Program to help and see children succeed and grow to their fullest.
   
5. What’s something from dance that’s helped you in school or somewhere else in your life? I have learned through dance that if you do not succeed then try, try again. This has helped me to never give up and conquer what seems to be “impossible.”
   

Lindsay Quesada

Student Helper

1. What’s your favorite food? Mozzarella Sticks
2. What’s your favorite subject in school? Math
3. What do you like about being a dancer? I like to spend quality time with all my dance partners. Dance makes me happy all the time. 
4. What made you want to join the teacher training program? I have the opportunity to help other to do what I love – dance 
   
5. What’s something from dance that’s helped you in school or somewhere else in your life? I learn to respect others. I learn how to stand straight up like a young lady. I learn lots of academic skills. I learn with all my teaches that practice makes perfect.
   

Kiara Zeledon

Student Helper

1. What’s your favorite food? My favorite food is Nutella and I especially like to have it with strawberries or in a crepe. 
   
2. What’s your favorite subject in school? My favorite subject in school in Science because of the fun experiments. 
   
3. What do you like about being a dancer? What I like about being a dancer is expressing feelings through dance, traveling to different places and seeing different stages and theaters, and also performing for people. 
   
4. What made you want to join the teacher training program? I wanted to join the teacher training program because I get to teach other kids something that I love and watch them grow as dancers. 
5. What’s something from dance that’s helped you in school or somewhere else in your life? Dance has helped me be a more positive person and look at the bright side of things. It has also taught me to never give up!