Students attending Dunsmore’s Hilltoppers award ceremony on Jan. 31 were entertained by performances by the second grade classes. The two second grade Japanese FLAG classes, led by Naomi Erelewine and Susan Tenpas, sang the Japanese song “Warabigami,” which is a lullaby from Okinawa, Japan. The Japanese FLAG students performed a dance known as yosakoi, a dance that combines traditional Japanese dance movements with contemporary music. The students used wooden clappers, known as naruko, to keep the beat as they danced.
The second grade students from the classes of Sherry Orozco and Debbie Kramer performed the Austrian polka, a dance that is popular in the Bavarian Alps in Germany, which is home to the mountain goat, Dunsmore’s official mascot. Students wore folk costumes from the region including traditional lederhosen made by the students and their families. Students danced the most common steps of the polka dance, called the heel and toe and away we go.
Contributed by Viehanoosh NAZARIAN