When fifth-graders Billy Dusch and Avery Baker practice the cha-cha and samba at a South Side studio three times a week, their feet aren't the only part of them getting a workout.

Proponents of ballroom dancing say the activity helps young people develop poise, teamwork, confidence, perseverance and other important qualities.

"He's learned chivalry," Kate Baker, Avery's mother, said of Billy.

Mercy Behavioral Health and Pittsburgh Public Schools are so intrigued by the potential benefits that they're planning to introduce ballroom dancing classes for fifth-graders at six elementary schools next school year.

Details have not been finalized.

But the parties hope to implement the "Dancing Classrooms" program developed by internationally acclaimed dancer Pierre Dulaine, whose work with New York schoolchildren was the subject of the 2005 documentary "Mad Hot Ballroom" and the 2006 movie "Take The Lead."

The participating schools would be Arlington PreK-8; Phillips K-5, South Side; Spring Hill, K-5; West Liberty K-5; and Allegheny K-5 and King pre-K-8, both on the North Side. Fifth-graders would take ballroom dancing for two 45-minute periods a week for 10 weeks, culminating in "showcase" events open to the community.

If the program is a success, other schools would be added in future years.

Dancing Classrooms, started in 1994, is in 13 cities now, national network director John Ross said. As Mr. Ross tells it, the program's teaching style is as coquettish as a tango.

"It really isn't a ballroom dancing program. It is a social-development program that uses ballroom dancing as a tool," he said. "Learning to ballroom dance is not the goal."

Students are addressed as ladies and gentlemen. Gentlemen are shown how to escort and hold a lady. To erode social barriers, every girl dances with several boys.

The program's Web page -- www.dancingclassrooms.com -- shows dance floors full of whirling, gliding figures, the boys in ties, the girls in long dresses. The black-and-white photos better evoke the 1930s and '40s than an era of text messages and belly shirts.

"We love Dancing Classrooms," said Marian Fey, who oversees the program in 22 Omaha, Neb., schools. "I think it shows a young lady how she should be treated by a young man. I think it shows young men how they should treat other people."

Billy and Avery, students at Pittsburgh Phillips, are partly responsible for the school district's interest in the program.

Their former principal, Barbara Rudiak, now assistant superintendent for K-5 schools, had been interested in Dancing Classrooms since watching "Mad Hot Ballroom," which follows New York students preparing for a tournament. Her interest grew after visiting Art and Style Dance Studio on Pius Street, where she was struck by Billy's gentility and Avery's enthusiasm.

"Mad Hot Ballroom" and "Take The Lead," with Antonio Banderas playing Mr. Dulaine, also left an impression on Mark Rogalsky, a prevention supervisor at North Side-based Mercy Behavioral Health. The agency has a contract to provide substance-abuse prevention and other services to district students, and Mr. Rogalsky said he's interested in innovative prevention strategies.

When Dr. Rudiak and Mr. Rogalsky learned of each other's interest in Dancing Classrooms, a partnership was born.

Not everyone is likely to be a quick sell, however. Avery said she's certain some students will be shy at first.

When his mother and grandmother asked Billy about two years ago if he'd take ballroom dancing lessons, he gave a common guy's response:

"No."

He relented, in part, because a cousin decided to take lessons in hope of meeting a certain girl who was dancing. The cousin and the girl he admired eventually quit. Billy stayed, and in the six months he and Avery have been partners, they've won at least 10 first-place awards in their age and ability groups.

Dancing Classrooms offers school districts another approach for addressing behavioral and academic problems. Mr. Ross said research and surveys have shown the program's positive effect on school climate.

The television show "Dancing with the Stars" has focused a spotlight on ballroom dancing in recent years, but organizers of Dancing Classrooms said they want their program to outlast any TV-fueled craze.

Mr. Ross said the program costs about $3,000 to $4,000 annually per classroom. In Pittsburgh, schools would pay a portion of the cost, and Mercy Behavioral Health would seek grant money for the balance.

Instruction would be provided during gym classes. Parents could opt their children out of the program.

"Teaching artists" would be recruited from the community and trained in the so-called "Dulaine method." Rozana Sweeney, co-owner of Art and Style, said she would like to be part of the effort.

By the time their 20 lessons are over, students generally are acquainted with a half-dozen or so ballroom dances. They're not experts, by any means, but there's no pressure in these classes to earn A's or B's.

"I always tell my teachers, 'This is not dancing class. This is Dancing Classrooms,' " Mrs. Fey, the Omaha coordinator, said.