Copyright Charleston Post and Courier
It’s called the Unified Dance, and for the past four years, it has been hosted by Sangaree Middle School in Goose Creek. The event has flourished into a must-attend event for students who face challenges. For middle school-aged kids, a time to dance and socialize is a nourishing experience that is part of growing up, and nobody should be excluded from the opportunity. The Halloween-themed party was Friday, Oct. 31. Kids from all over Berkeley County. Those schools included Hanahan Middle, Sedgefield Middle, Westview and Phillip Simmons. Another school making it to the party was St. Stephen Middle, which is roughly a 50-mile bus ride. This is the fourth year for the dance. Seeing the need for inclusion, two special education teachers from Sangaree Middle organized the first dance to bring together kids with disabilities and those with exceptions, allowing them to grow and connect. It has been a success. It started with three schools; this year, seven schools sent in the RSVP. Tanja Friday and Anna Malone enjoy watching the kids on the dance floor; it’s their reward. They took on a difficult and demanding part of the teaching profession. The dance day helps to revitalize their purpose. “We have students who constantly ask about it. It’s really a special treat and something that the kids look forward to,” Friday said. “Other teachers reach out to us and say they always have students asking about the Halloween dance.” Getting kids involved is the purpose. Sangaree is one of several others in the school district that have made efforts over the years to promote inclusion. Opportunities and classes for all kids to mingle and get involved are a growing trend. “We have three unified classes here at Sangaree Middle School, and they go across different grade levels. It’s our typical development students and our students with disabilities paired together,” Malone said. “We focus on including people and celebrating diversity. This dance really helps with all of that and brings them all together.”
