We are doing it for our boys. It’s not at all some kind of fancy high society event, just kids dressing up and going to a little party at the neighborhood event center. I like the classes because they do teach manners in a fun and engaging way and make it a social thing the kids look forward to. The little dance/cotillion is a fun excuse for the kids to dress up and feel fancy and grown up.

I would compare it more to confirmation classes and confirmation than some elaborate debutante ball.

My DS is doing cotillion. He's in 7th. It's not expensive.

He's exposed to so many things, which is fine. I want to expose him to different things, as well. Old traditions, specific dances, formal ways of address, a formal place setting.

It's just for a more expansive perspective on life. The more knowledge, the better.

It seems like the thing that very status conscious people would do.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The kids in our NOVA area do it in middle school.

One of the things it focuses on teaching these days is how to talk to people in person vs online.

Where in NoVa??? Never heard of anyone doing it.

Provide your street address for the PP.

I’m not asking for suggestions. I’m just surprised this is actually a thing in Nova.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is an outdated southern tradition that most of the US, and the world, does not participate in. Find a manners class insteead

Can you suggest one? There aren't really any classes like this out there other than this.

Mrs. B in Falls Church does manners class. Boys and girls love her- she makes everything so fun.

Her classes are for little kids, not 7th/8th/9th.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The kids in our NOVA area do it in middle school.

One of the things it focuses on teaching these days is how to talk to people in person vs online.

Where in NoVa??? Never heard of anyone doing it.

Provide your street address for the PP.

Anonymous wrote:The kids in our NOVA area do it in middle school.

One of the things it focuses on teaching these days is how to talk to people in person vs online.

Where in NoVa??? Never heard of anyone doing it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Who does this? Teach your child manners at home, over the course of their whole childhood. If your child doesn’t have good manners, a 6 week course isn’t going to fix what home life over the past 12 yrs failed to teach. They will revert back to whatever your normal is at home.

I'm going to go out on a limb and guess you have one child, on non-athletic children.

Well I agree with the PP and I have multiple children who play travel sports... and would not be caught dead at cotillion.

Anonymous wrote:Who does this? Teach your child manners at home, over the course of their whole childhood. If your child doesn’t have good manners, a 6 week course isn’t going to fix what home life over the past 12 yrs failed to teach. They will revert back to whatever your normal is at home.

I'm going to go out on a limb and guess you have one child, on non-athletic children.

It allowed middle school boys and girls to socialize without one-on-one pressure. And because it was supervised, it allowed all teens present to participate equally. No cool kids dominating the wallflowers. At the time my kids complained and make fun of it. But a decade later they still bring it up in conversation, explaining it to their friends, what is was. They seem to be increasingly fond of the memory.

Anonymous wrote:Cotillion is so tacky and try-hard.

In your opinion. It's actually a very good way to socialize young kids and help them learn to navigate social engagements.

Who does this? Teach your child manners at home, over the course of their whole childhood. If your child doesn’t have good manners, a 6 week course isn’t going to fix what home life over the past 12 yrs failed to teach. They will revert back to whatever your normal is at home.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s not something I’d ever put my kids in. I can’t believe how many “woke” parents put their kids in it (looking at you arlington).

Get a dictionary.

No one "woke" is doing this. LOL only Maga morons.

Plenty of Ds in my area do it. It’s relatively popular in NOVA and everyone knows we have a lot of Ds here. But I do know most of the naysayers actually have no experience with it, like this comment.

I used to think the same as PP. but this is the first year I know kids old enough to participate. I was surprised at how many very liberal parents are having their kids do it. Liberal but not diverse is what I’ve seen. I teach my kid manners and so don’t see a need for it. Not knowing the foxtrot is not going to hold them back in life.

In my group I at least know of jews, Hispanics, Arabic and Asians doing it. But not sure what you mean by diverse.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do you need a manners class to teach your kids some manners?

Maybe you perfect people don’t. I never held myself out to be perfect. My 7th grader eats pretty sloppily despite the fact that I’m not modeling sloppy eating myself.

So tell him to eat more elegantly. A manners class will not solve this.

Feel free to do what you want with your own kid. My kid is doing cotillion because he’s attending private school as opposed to public for the first time this year & has a lot of friends in the neighborhood doing cotillion so he is doing it with them to have a standing activity to do with friends from the neighborhood once a month. And I don’t think learning some manner will hurt.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s not something I’d ever put my kids in. I can’t believe how many “woke” parents put their kids in it (looking at you arlington).

Get a dictionary.

No one "woke" is doing this. LOL only Maga morons.

Plenty of Ds in my area do it. It’s relatively popular in NOVA and everyone knows we have a lot of Ds here. But I do know most of the naysayers actually have no experience with it, like this comment.

I used to think the same as PP. but this is the first year I know kids old enough to participate. I was surprised at how many very liberal parents are having their kids do it. Liberal but not diverse is what I’ve seen. I teach my kid manners and so don’t see a need for it. Not knowing the foxtrot is not going to hold them back in life.