Young Fours
The dance session should take place in an open, multi-purpose room with a clean floor or a large carpeted area of the classroom.
Name tags made with colored felt, taped music and tape recorder.
The students will learn that they are unique individuals who have strong bodies which they can manipulate to move through space.
Students will review the rights and responsibilities of the dance class by removing their shoes and socks, arranging themselves in a circle, creating their personal space bubbles, and freezing on cue.
Students will acknowledge themselves and each other by singing a name song.
Students will explore the movement and isolation of their body parts.
Students will explore how their body parts can lead them through space.
1. The students are asked to gather in a designated area and sit on the floor to take off their shoes and socks. They are instructed to put their socks inside their shoes and place their shoes against the wall. (Many of the students will not want to take their shoes off. The teacher might try to sing a song about taking shoes off to make it more of a game. Any student who refuses to take off his of her shoes should not be forced to do so, but should be invited to watch the other students in the dance class.)
2. The students are asked to form a circle in the space by joining hands, then sitting down where they are.
3. The students are taught the "Swinging" name song and each of them is given a chance to "stand up" and "sit down" when it is their turn.
4. The students are asked to shake one leg and then the other, and then asked what other body parts they can shake. The students are then asked which body parts they can stretch.
1. The students are lead through a discussion of what it means to be a leader, and how we can each be our own leader by leading our bodies with certain body parts.
2. The students are asked to spread out in the space so that they have enough room to extend their arms out to the side without hitting any other students. The students are asked to take out their imaginary magic crayon, and make an imaginary space bubble with their crayon by drawing all around themselves. The teacher tells the students that when they are inside their magic space bubbles they cannot touch any on, and no one can touch them, which means no hitting or bumping into each other.
3. The students are given time to lead themselves through space with different body parts to taped music. The teacher should stop the music and give the freeze cue periodically in order to reinforce the concept of motion and stillness.
1. The students are asked to return to the circle and then the teacher leads a reflection by asking if any of them can tell her what they did in dance class that day.
2. The students are asked individually to return to their shoes by leading themselves with a certain body part.
Angela McDonnell
Teachers College
Columbia University
March 1993