The Resident

Community

Cha-cha-cha lessons aim to teach children about health

ByMary Gottschalk

Can learning to dance the merengue remind children to opt for smaller portions of lemon meringue pie?

Alex Dziekanowski says it can.

Dziekanowski is the founder of Dance 4 Health, a nonprofit group that aims to teach children about health and fitness at the same time they're learning to cha cha.

"We are teaching dance, but our main focus is fitness and nutrition," he says. "We're trying to address the alarming obesity and diabetes affecting young kids."

For the past two years, Dance 4 Health has been working with the Santa Clara Valley YMCA, including the organization's after-school programs.

Now Dziekanowski is bringing the program to Hoover Community Center in San Jose's Rose Garden area, launching four twice-a-week, hour-long ballroom dancing classes.

"We have them dancing pretty much the whole class," he says. "We have them learning choreography, learning figures and putting together short routines. We just add other dynamics.

"During rest periods we talk about the food pyramid, food groups and serving sizes. With fitness we talk about posture, balance and strengthening the cardiovascular system.

"It's done pretty seamlessly in the class. It's a health promotion class disguised as a dance class."

Dziekanowski hopes that the community center location at 1677 Park Ave. will draw local students. Classes are open for ages 7 to 19.

Ages aren't as important as skills, he says, explaining that they try to organize classes by skill level.

"This spring we were working with first- through fifth-graders in one class, and we thought it might be a little off, but it worked out OK," he says.

Dziekanowski says dance instructors are culturally sensitive, so if the class is heavily Hispanic they will start off with merengue or salsa and then move on to a cha cha, a rumba and then a waltz.

The steps and techniques necessary to learn one dance are frequently useful in learning others, he says.

Dziekanowski says Dance 4 Health charges $5 a class, or $60 for 12 sessions.

However, as a nonprofit, the program "doesn't deny kids for lack of funds," Dziekanowski says.

Classes are scheduled to start on Sept. 2 and will take place from 3 to 4 p.m. and 4 to 5 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays and Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Dziekanowski is hoping interested parents and children will attend a class demonstration at 3:30 p.m. Aug. 28 in the community room of the Rose Garden Library, 1580 Naglee Ave. at Dana Avenue.

For those who are interested but cannot attend, call 408.497.1350 or visit www.dance4health.org.