HINGHAM — It’s a rainy afternoon after school, and fifth-graders pack a conference room at Glastonbury Abbey for their social dance class. The boys, all in navy blazers and khakis, tug at their ties, and the girls, in white gloves, hike up their tights under their taffeta and silk dresses. One girl runs across the room, so excited to see her friends she doesn’t realize her dress isn’t zipped up all the way. A mother quickly remedies the situation.

Chairs line the walls, leaving the middle of the room empty for dancing. The boys settle on one side, the girls on the other, and they all fidget and chat while they wait for class to begin. One brave boy breaks out from the crowd and starts dancing, and everyone giggles and hoots until a teacher herds him back to his seat.