Offerings
Group instruction is a very useful way to begin learning to dance. It is the least expensive method and it is a very social experience. Most studios offer group classes for beginners while some offer a wider range of classes for more experienced dancers. Some classes can be of benefit even to very experienced dancers. Most group instruction focuses on the North American style of ballroom and latin dance while others offer more club styles such as salsa, two step (Texas or nightclub), hustle, West Coast Swing or any number of specialty dances or ethnic dances. Your choice may depend upon what is conveniently available. Regardless of your initial choice the experience will be of some benefit should you later change to something different.
Studios differ in the format used; length of the lesson, frequency of lessons, number of lessons in a session and cost. Some studios offer discounted introductory sessions. Other studios, particularly some of the studio chains quickly try to sell expensive lesson packages many of which include “no refund” policies.
Minimum costs for a couple will likely be around $40 per lesson and will be typically offered in 8 session blocks. Some studios encourage anyone to take group lessons one at a time but slightly discount costs for a complete session. As a beginner you will learn no more quickly from a $100 lesson than from a $40 lesson. An eight lesson session may be offered once or twice per week and each lesson will probably be between 45 minutes and one hour. One or two different dances may be taught in a session and beginners can not handle more. Many studios offer frequent practice parties once a week or more frequently at a cost of about $20 to $25 per couple and the benefit of practice can not be over emphasized.
Expectations
People take dance lessons for many different reasons, have different expectations and arrive at dance class with differing backgrounds. The reasons will affect individual motivation and it is reasonable to assume that more highly motivated students will learn more quickly but background will moderate the pace of learning. For example, men and women may have radically different childhood experiences; women are much more likely to have received dance lessons as a child than are men. This will likely result in a slower initial learning pace for the man. It is reasonable for an average couple without any dance or athletic background to learn the basics of three to four figures in two dances during an eight lesson session. If only one partner has prior athletic or dance experience it will not really improve expectations. Acculturation for many women often results in smoother, more elegant movement which may improve learning speed. These factors frequently result in women learning to dance more quickly than male partners. While this should be good news, often, it is not. One of the premises of a good dance partnership is the concept of lead and follow with the male partner (generally) assigned to lead. When the following partner knows more there is a tendency to be “helpful” by “back-leading.” This can be counterproductive. The leader doesn’t learn how to lead and often becomes frustrated and may, unfortunately, wish to give up the pursuit of dance.
Individuals learn differently. Rarely do both dance partners learn in the same way and it is challenging for an instructor teaching a group to engage every learning style. While a generalization, my observation is that women prefer to learn by doing while men seem to prefer to first understand the mechanics first then try to apply them. Compounding this is that some learn visually, some verbally and while both can be effective learning dance figures or footwork neither works particularly well in developing fitness, technique or performance skills which are the essence of good dancing. These latter elements require individual instruction, time and practice. They are never achieved with only group classes. Group instruction with regular practice can develop sufficient knowledge, skill and confidence for a couple to enjoy and be comfortable participating in any social dance event.