Both partners stand upright, balancing with their weight on the balls of their feet. The partners hold each others' left hands at about eye level, with their elbows bent. The leader--traditionally the man--puts his hand on back of the follower--traditionally the woman--with his arm circling her. The follower puts her right hand on the leader's right arm. The partners will face each other throughout the basic dance steps. Keep your knees a little bent and loose as you will shift your weight constantly during the cha-cha and having your knees relaxed will help make this movement smooth.
When one partner does a back step, the the partner does a front step. This way the couple moves together closely during the dance. Couples should decide who will lead and who will follow before they begin dancing. Although it is traditional for a man to lead, it is certainly permissible for the woman to lead or for same-sex couples to dance; couples should decide who will lead and who will follow before they begin dancing.
For the basic step backwards, step back with your right foot on beat 2 of the music and shift your weight to your right leg. On beat 3, rock forward, shifting your weight to your right leg, but don't move your feet. On beat 4, step to the side with your right foot and put your weight back on your right leg. Slide your left foot over to be next to your right foot. On beat 1 of the next measure, shift your weight onto your left leg and step to the side with your right foot. Shift your weight to your right leg.
For the basic step forwards, rock forward on your left foot on beat 2 by sliding your left foot forward and shifting your weight to it. On beat 3, rock back onto your right leg, shifting your weight to it. On beat 4, step back to the left and shift your weight to your left leg. Slide your right foot up next to your left foot. On beat 1 of the next measure, shift your weight to your right leg and step to the left with your left foot, shifting your weight to your left leg.
To perform the cross-over, the partners turn a quarter-turn away from each other so that they can both move forward at the same time. On beat two, the leader steps to the left with his left foot crossing his his right foot and shifts his weight halfway through the cross-step. When the leader steps with the cross-step he pulls his partner with him, so that his partner mirrors his step. On beat three, both partners step back and rock back, then turn back to face each other with a sidestep from the right to the left on beat four.
In this step, the follower does a different move from the leader. On beat two, both partners do a cross-over to the leader's right. As they finish the cross-over, the leader lifts the follower's arm above her head and the follower turns in a circle going clockwise under her arm on beat three. The follower then makes a sidestep to face the leader and they make a standard step to come together.