MJ Dance Studio students continue to embrace its new online platform, introduced in response to Federal Government guidelines on social distancing and gatherings due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Now entering the third week of online classes, the studio is using live web camera feeds to engage students as term one comes to a close, with planning also taking place around a potential school holiday program.
Studio student Harriet Clark said while the online environment was not the same as her usual classes, she still loved being able to see and speak with other students.
“Online classes have many positives but the best thing is we can all pursue our passion for dance with our friends and dance teachers by our side,” Harriet said.
“With online classes we have been able to keep working towards all our goals as a studio together and be able to train with our teachers and work on our group routines.
“This way we will be ready to go back into the studio as soon as we can.”
Despite the separation of the digital world, Harriet said it had still been easy to communicate with her peers.
“It is different than being in the studio as we all we have to work with is the spaces we have in our homes which can be tricky but we just have to adjust,” she said.
“It is also different because we can have any choreographer teach us such as past dancers from MJ or choreographers who have come down before to teach us a routine.”
Harriet praised the online initiative, saying it kept the dancers together.
MJ Dance director Maria Slape said the decision to close the studio was made before the introduction of government restrictions in an effort to keep families safe.
“The dancers love seeing their friends online and we often start a little earlier to give them time to talk to each other,” Ms Slape said.
“We can still give corrections and technical tips and they can ask questions about choreography as well.
“It works and keeps the kids engaged, motivated and fit during this unusual time.”
