Fifth Grade Dance Curriculum

Amber Rhyne

Master’s Defense

May 6, 2009

Introduction

The following is a model dance curriculum for a one year public school dance education program for fifth grade students.

Purpose: To be used as a model for Washington County Public Schools.

The curriculum lessons are designed for an encore dance class receiving dance once a week for 50 minutes.

Introduction

This curriculum is also aligned with: – The Maryland Fine Arts Standards in Dance– The American Association of Physical Education,

Health, Recreation, and Dance– National Dance Education Organization

5 units of study within the curriculum– Elements of dance, Multicultural Dance, Balance

and Acrobatic Dance, Ballet, and Social Dance

Related Research

Dance education is vital to a well rounded public education system.

Dance Education is:– Art Appreciation– Differentiated Instruction/Multiple Intelligences– Physical Education– Self-Esteem– Brain Development– Academic Achievement

Related Research: Art Appreciation

The art of emotion and universal expression Provides a connection between the audience

and the artist Art Education encourages students to take

risks, think creatively, and fosters cultural understanding, sensitivity, and diversity.

Related Research: Physical Education

Aerobic dancers showed– Higher mood benefits– Decreased BMI– Decreased heart rate– Decreased body weight– Increased positive attitude towards health– Increased self-esteem and emotional stability

Related Research:Brain Development

The brain learns the fastest between ages 4-12 Balance, coordination, and muscle movement

are stored in the cerebellum as well as cognition, higher order thinking, emotions, and long-term memory.

The most significant learning happens when the brain is learning something with novelty, repetition, brain stimulation, or emotional connection.

Related Research: Academic Achievement

Performing arts challenge students to – use reasoning skills– Think critically– Formulate ideas– Draw conclusions– Gain ownership of work

Correlations with movement arts and:– Higher college entrance scores– Singapore pre-school’s descriptive writing– Balance and motor development and reading skills

Rationale

Dance education is a form of personal expression and development through active problem-based learning.

This curriculum includes important concepts of exploration, dance technique, learning appropriate vocabulary, and creating choreography.

Dance education students formulate an image or opinion of the world and how the individual relates to this world culturally, socially, and personally.

Curriculum Design

arhyne.wikispaces.com/DNC550-mastersproject

Scope and Sequence Unit Map Lesson Plans, activities, assessments

Name: ___________________________________ Group: ______

1. Ballet started in which country? a. Germany b. France c. Spain

2. Why did people go to see a ballet when ballet fi rst began? a. To watch a story told through movement b. I t was great exercise c. I t was part of their education

3. Which phrase was used as our ballet warm up? Perf orm

a. plie, plie, releve b. tendu, releve, sauté ______ c. degage, tendu, degage

4. Which two skills are the exact opposite of each other?

a. sissone-assemble b. tendu-plie c. sauté- releve

5. List the fi ve movements you used f or your dance web?

6. Label positions 1-5 below. Place the correct position number under

the correct f eet.

_____ _____ _____ _____ _____ 7. Compare ballet dance to another type of dance or another sport? (Give 3 comparing details) Use the back if you need room.

Social Dance Competition

1

2

3

4

5

6

Swing

Chacha

Tango

Unit 1: Elements of Dance and Creative Movement

Overview: – Exploring dance concepts and the elements of

dance and creative movement; movement, body, time, space, force

– Communicating thoughts or ideas through choreographic choices by using the elements of dance within choreography.

– Enduring idea that dance has meaning.

Unit 1: Elements of Dance and Creative Movement

Explore movement vocabulary Communicate ideas using force Creating aesthetic movements Kaleidoscope choreography

– Graphic organizer and videotaping for evaluation

Unit 2: Elements of Dance and Multicultural Dance

Overview:– Learning three multicultural dances and comparing similarities

and differences between their elements of dance. German Plattle Dance Native American Rain Dance Highlife Dance from Ghana

– Creating a minimum of five adaptations to one dance learned.– Presenting adaptations to the class through an instructional

pamphlet, teaching the class, performing, or drawing an illustration.

Unit 3: Balance and Acrobatic Dance

Overview:– A skill-specific unit that involves balance and

acrobatic dance strategies.– Skills

Weight, weight transfer, balance point, center of gravity Break dancing Yoga Rolls, handstands, cartwheels, etc

– Self-Evaluation Checklist

Unit 4: Ballet

Overview:– Students will learn basic ballet vocabulary and

technique.– Students will memorize ballet movement phrases– Identify sports movements that best represent ballet

movements– Written assessment– Create ballet stories to perform behind a shadow

screen

Ballet in Sports

Unit 5: Social Dance

Social dance is any dance where you are dancing in a large group, small group, or with a partner.

Social Dances performed in this unit were square dances, Virginia Reel, and ballroom dances including Tango, Swing, and Chacha.

Social Dance Card

Reflection

Time is always a factor in a public school with school events, testing, etc.

Opportunities to gain time with students by using flexible groupings which allowed for individual group conferencing and re-teaching.

Consider the order of the units within the school year. What would the effect be if certain dance units were placed elsewhere in the year.

Reflection

Scope and Sequence Revisited– There was a strong emphasis in perceiving and

responding to dance requiring students to view and analyze dance through various media.

– Due to the fact that there is no formal performance, standards that addressed performance qualities such as projection, execution, memorization, and the affects of choreographic choices were less represented.

“Everything has rhythm, everything dances” – Maya Angelou