M36 — Extend
Teaching unit M36 of the CALLERLAB (New) Mainstream Suggested Teaching Order, effective
1 September 2026. Prerequisites: Tag formations,
Extend
At a glance
| Starting formation | One of the first four tagging formations: Double Pass Thru, 1/4 Tag, Ocean Waves, or 3/4 Tag |
| Ending formation | The next tagging formation along: 1/4 Tag, Ocean Waves, 3/4 Tag, or Completed Double Pass Thru |
| Timing | 2 beats |
| Unit | M36 of 50 |
Animation
▶ Play this call — pause, step and scrub it: Watching the animations.
Dance action
"Walk forward from one tagging formation to the next. Where possible, handedness is maintained,
as described in the comments below."
— CALLERLAB, Mainstream Dance Program Definitions, revised 29 March 2026.
What you do
Extend is a single step forward along a ladder of five formations. The ladder, in order, is:
- Double Pass Thru (also called Zero Tag)
- 1/4 Tag
- Ocean Waves (also called 1/2 Tag)
- 3/4 Tag
- Completed Double Pass Thru (also called Full Tag)
Extend moves you exactly one rung up that ladder.
- Find where you are on the ladder. Almost always that means the wave at position 3, or the 1/4 Tag at position 2.
- Check your hands. If you are holding a right hand now, you will still be holding a right hand after the Extend.
- Walk forward one step, straight ahead, into the next formation.
- Take the handhold for the new formation — a couple handhold or an Ocean Wave hand position.
Nothing else changes. Extend does not turn anybody around.
Timing
2 beats — one step forward and settle. It is the shortest call in this part of the program, which is why callers often run it straight into the next call.
Styling
"All dancers should have their hands in ready dancing position for the formation resulting from
the call (Couple handhold or Ocean Wave hand position)."
— CALLERLAB, Mainstream Dance Program Definitions, revised 29 March 2026.
Have your hands ready before you arrive, so the next call can start immediately. Extend is usually the filling between two calls, not a thing in itself.
Restrictions
The manual lists several limits. Extend is improper from Facing Lines or a Tidal Wave; from those formations callers should use "Step to a Wave", "Step Thru" or "Pass Thru" instead. It is also improper to use Extend to change handedness — "Heads Pass the Ocean, Extend to Left-Hand Waves" is wrong.
From a 1/4 Tag, the phrases "Centers Extend" and "Centers Extend to the Outsides" should not be used, because they wrongly suggest that only the Centers move. Everyone is active and everyone moves. Asking only some dancers to Extend — for example "Heads Pass the Ocean, Just the Boys Extend" — is classed as a gimmick.
Common faults
| What happens | Why | The fix |
|---|---|---|
| Half the square does not move | Assuming only the Centers are active | Everyone moves; step forward together |
| You end up in a left-hand wave | Adding a hand change | Extend never changes handedness — right stays right |
| You take two steps and overshoot | Treating it as a walk across the square | One step to the very next formation, then stop |
| You arrive without your hands ready | Leaving the handhold until later | Be in the new handhold as you land |
Where you meet it
Extend is a connector. You will hear it after "Heads Pass the Ocean" (to reach the wave), after Pass the Ocean from a 1/4 Tag, and before calls such as Swing Thru that need a full wave. It was originally named "Extend the Tag". See the course overview for where this unit sits.
Related calls
- Pass the Ocean — Extend usually follows it. See M35.
- Swing Thru — usually follows the Extend. See M33.
- Double Pass Thru — the bottom rung of the Extend ladder. See M24.
- Wheel and Deal — turns a line into a two-faced line, the other half of tagging. See M26.
- Tag formations — what the five rungs actually are. See Tag formations.
Also called / formerly
The call was originally named "Extend the Tag". In 1988 the name was shortened to "Extend" without any change to the dance action. When the starting formation is left-handed, callers often help by saying "Extend to Left-Hand Waves".
Manual source: Mainstream Dance Program Definitions, revised 29 March 2026, page 30. Reproduced under the permission in sources and attribution.