Dance: Multimodal Portfolio

 Hello everyone and welcome to my fifth and final post for my dance multimodal portfolio. It's a shame we are ending as quickly as we started but all classes and blogs must eventually come to an end. That being said, let's take full advantage of this post by exploring the concept of unison movement  and how it relates to dance and the classroom. What is Unison Movement? Why tell you when I can just show you: It really is amazing to see how visually striking unison dance performances can be. It should be noted that this performance is pretty advanced but could be used to generate interest in unison dance. The Ontario Curriculum  defines unison movement  as "A movement or action performed in exactly the same way by two or more people at the same time" (165). As can be seen in the definition and the video above, unison movement in dancing can be quite complex. On the other hand, this video is also valuable for education because it clearly illustrates how kids and younge...

 Hello everyone and welcome back for another installment of theoretical dance in action. This week we will be focusing on the term retrograde  and discuss what it means, why it is relevant to dance and explore some different ways it could be used in the classroom. What Does "Retrograde" Even Mean? Try this riddle: What does the term retrograde have in common with this gif? You probably noticed something slightly off in this gif and it could be related to the fact that it is showing an action in reverse . This is relevant to dance in the classroom because the Ontario Curriculum  defines the term retrograde as "A choreographic form in which a dance or movement sequence is performed in reverse order (e.g., a dance phrase performed back to front)" (164). Hence, the above gif and retrograding are similar in the sense that they are showing a sequence from back to front. How Retrograde Could Look in a Classroom I couldn't help but think back to a previous post where I ...

 Hello everyone and welcome back for another exciting installment exploring how dance strategies can be used in the classroom. Last week we explored Body Storming and Improvisation so make sure to check that out if you haven't already! What is Call and Response? Let's start with a video to get an idea of what call and response can look like and sound like: As shown in the video, Call and Response can be a great group activity where different people take turns contributing a dance move or gesture. The video above depicts students from Maasai Mara in Kenya and is a great informal introduction to Call and Response. The Ontario Curriculum  defines Call and Response as "A choreographic form in which one soloist or group performs, followed by a second soloist or group whose performance responds to the first" (160).   Reading this definition makes me realize that call and response has to be an early precursor to dance battles. As a matter of fact, the definition reminded me...

 Thank you to everyone tuning in for another exciting addition to my dance multimodal portfolio. This week, we will be taking a closer look at different dance styles and how we could incorporate them into the classroom. What are Dance Styles? Looking for a crash course on different dancing styles? There is no better place to start than with a YouTube search using the keywords "evolution" and "dance". There is a multitude of different versions of this video, but I have selected the one that is just under three and a half minutes in order to save more time for an in-class activity. I encourage anyone looking for a longer video to browse YouTube since there are so many great examples of this video. Without further ado, here is a crash course on different dance styles using the history of dance: This video can act as a great introduction to different dance styles. My only suggestion for improvement would be to find a video that includes more diversity . One example in p...

 Hello everyone, I just want to welcome everyone to my dance blog. If you have read other posts by me then thank you for your patronage. This blog will explore the topic of dance in relation to teaching. I hope to provide readers with explanations of different dance strategies, how they relate to the Ontario curriculum, how you can use them in class, and some resources, and finally some insights which are hopefully helpful to any readers.  Without further ado, let's discuss body storming and improvisation . What is Body Storming? The Ontario Arts Curriculum  defines body storming as "A strategy, analogous to brainstorming, that uses the body as a means of trying out movement possibilities linked to themes, issues, and ideas that students may be exploring. Students work together in a whole group, in small groups, or individually to generate ideas before shaping their work. The teacher suggests different elements of movement to encourage students to try out a range of vari...