Colored Floor Tape
5-6 years
The size of the space may depend upon the number of children, although the space should be large enough to enable them to feel the sensations of moving through space.
The left-over tape from the previous lesson, which has been rolled into small baseball-sized balls, one for each student; the picture/words that were chosen in the last class, which should be displayed in sequence order from left to right on a visible wall; chalk and chalk board or markers and newsprint paper; and variety of percussive instruments, either real or home made.
The students will learn that dance steps can be done with different qualities.
Students will explore the textural and spatial properties of a ball of masking tape by feeling, seeing, and moving with their tape.
Students will share their discoveries, verbally, with the rest of the class, which will be written on the board.
Students will explore words from the board, as a class, by creating movements for each word.
Each student will select a word from the board that they, as an individual would like to incorporate into the movements created in the previous lesson.
Students will perform their dance movement pattern with their choice of movement qualities, both in silence, and with percussive sounds selected by the teacher that reflect the movement qualities chosen.
1. The teacher asks the students to sit in a circle with their eyes closed. I'm going to give each of you an object and with your eyes closed I would like you to think about what it might be, but don't say anything out loud yet. The teacher then gives each student a baseball sized roll of tape. When the students cant stand being quiet anymore then the teacher can tell all of them to say what they think it is all at once, on the count of three.
2. Review of Personal and General Space: Today this is our magic ball of tape, and we will use these balls of tape to create our space bubbles.
3. The teacher will then lead them through an exploration of the textural and spatial qualities of their tape (with their eyes open). Questions: How does the ball of tape move? How does it Fall? Roll? Bounce? Can you show me how you would move if you were a ball of tape?
1. The teacher asks the students to sit around the board or newsprint paper and lead a discussion on the properties of the rolls of tape, writing the students' answers on the board. Questions: How does the tape feel? How does it roll? How does it fall?
Bounce? What shape is it?
2. The teacher leads the class through an exploration of the words that have been generated through the discussion. Questions: Can you spread out into space and show me how you would do a sticky movement? A sharp movement? etc...
1. Review the floor pattern and dance sequence that was developed in the last lesson. If the students have trouble remembering point to the picture/words that have been taped to the wall in order from left to right. Question: Do you think you can remember, and show me, the dance we made up last week?
2. Ask the students to choose their favorite movement quality that they have explored today. Questions: Can you do our pathway dance with you movement quality? Sophia, show me how you would do a bumpy version of our pathways dance. Gissele, can you do our pathways slowly? Now find you a partner that you can work with and try your own new version of the pathways dance. (This will probably work better with a small class or in smaller groups, but partnering may again be necessary for a larger group.)
3. Let students perform their version of the dance two of four at a time so that the others can watch.
4. The teacher can add improvised percussive sound that reflect the qualities the students have chosen.
5. Closing Questions: The teacher asks the students to sit in a circle and leads a short discussion on what has been learned through the lesson. Questions: William how did we find out that the ball of tape was bumpy? Sharon why did you decide to do a pointy version of the pathways dance? etc... Depending on the size of the class questions may be asked individually or to the class in general.
Angela McDonnell
Teachers College
Columbia University
October 1992