Mahree Bok lives on a farm in South Africa. Her father is a policeman who cannot hide his joy when activist Steve Biko is caught by the South African authorities. Piper Dellums is the daughter of a US congressman from California and who lives in a nice home in Washington DC. When Mahree is chosen to spend a semester at the Dellums’ house, she doesn’t expect that her host family would be black. Nor do her hosts suspect that she is not a black South African.

This was going to be the first year that Marshal Middle School was not going to have a dance team. All that changes when the new Biology teacher, Ms. Bartlett, agrees to be the coach. Now the girls need to prove that they are ready to compete and are able to win; not only to themselves, but to their parents and coach. Using the chant “si, se puede” or “yes, I can” the Dance team builds their confidence to perform.