Staff Photo by Angela Lewis/Chattanooga Times Free Press
Maya Jaffar, right, and Elexis Foster wait with books on their heads for their turn to walk gracefully during their charm school class Saturday at Chattanooga College.“Remember, you’re a puppet on a string, you’re a puppet on a string. Pup-pet. Pup-pet.”
Over and over, Dr. Angela Slack calls out these words as her 13 students, ranging in age from 9 to 18 years old, take turns walking down a hallway and lowering themselves into a chair.
Simple tasks, such as the proper way to walk and sit, are key elements of Get Charmed, a charm school for girls. Slack is the director of the school.
When it’s time for a new student to take her turn, Slack walks with her, correcting her when she leads with the wrong foot. Sitting properly is important, too. Slack demonstrates how to feel the chair with one’s calves, lowering to the edge and sliding back.
Legs are together, she emphasizes, or crossed at the ankles. Crossing at the knee is OK but only while wearing pants, not a skirt or dress.