The annual teacher dance has been a tradition at Arapahoe for quite some time- but what’s behind the scenes? Mrs. McKnight explains how she and other staff members plan, rehearse, and perform!

Q: How long has the teacher dance been a tradition at AHS

A: A long time. It started in the late 90’s or earl 2000’s.

Q: How do you select the songs?

A: A couple of teachers get together and we discuss it. I ask students; “If you were going to dance in front of the school- what would you want to play.” This year, we did a mix of 80’s and today’s hits, because teachers like to dress in 80’s clothes and the neon matched the Glow in The Snow theme.

Q: What’s the choreography process like?

A: I start getting on YouTube and I look up “Choreography for (insert song)” Then, I get a group of friends together and teach it to them and they say “yeah no we can’t move like that” so we fine tune it. It’s a tedious process but we have a fun time putting it together.

Q: How long does the whole process take?

A: We start working on it all during fall finals week. I like to have the music selected during winter break so we can start choreographing. Then the week later I teach the science department, and the next we start practicing 3 days a week after school with the rest of the faculty.

Q: What else should students know about the teacher dance?

A: It’s a lot of fun. We do it to make kids smile and laugh. In the last two years especially, we’ve wanted you guys to get up and dance with us. We hope that’s what’s coming across and that you know how much we care!