Unit Overview

Context:

This unit provides students with a variety of opportunities to play with the elements of dance by creating movement. The focus is particularly on those elements covered in the primary years (body, space, time, and energy).

Summary:

Beginning with the elements of body and space, which students will be familiar with from grades 1 and 2, students have the opportunity to create dances that begin simply and become more complex as the unit progresses. Touching on nearly every expectation in the grade 3 dance curriculum, students explore the movement of various body parts, personal and general space, patterns, tempo, and energy. The unit culminates in the creation of a dance that expresses thoughts and ideas related to the natural world.

Unit Guiding Questions

How can we use the elements of dance to express our feelings and ideas? // Comment pouvons-nous utiliser les éléments de la danse pour exprimer nos sentiments et nos idées ?

Lesson Guiding Questions

Lesson 1 - Body Parts and Personal/General Space // Parties du corps et espace personnel/général

What movements can I create with each of my body parts? 
Are there movements that I haven't tried?
How can I move throughout the dancing space while maintaining a cushion of personal space around my body?
What strategies can I use to make it clear what I am trying to express with the movement of my body?

Quels mouvements puis-je créer avec chacune des parties de mon corps ?
Y a-t-il des mouvements que je n'ai pas encore essayés ?
Comment puis-je me déplacer dans l'espace de danse tout en conservant un espace personnel autour de mon corps ?
Quelles stratégies puis-je utiliser pour clarifier ce que j'essaie d'exprimer par le mouvement de mon corps ?

Lesson 2 - Body, Space, Pattern // Corps, Espace, Motif

What kinds of shapes can I make with my body?
How does the negative space we create when we make a shape with our bodies look to others?
How do structure and pattern change a dance phrase?

Quelles sortes de formes puis-je créer avec mon corps ?
Comment l'espace négatif que nous créons lorsque nous faisons une forme avec notre corps apparaît-il aux autres ?
Comment la structure et le motif modifient-ils une phrase de danse ?

Lesson 3 – Time // Temps

How does changing the tempo change the the quality of our movements?
How does changing the tempo change how we perceive movement as an audience member?
How does changing the tempo change how we feel while performing movement (the somatic experience)?

Comment le changement de tempo modifie-t-il la qualité de nos mouvements ?
Comment le changement de tempo modifie-t-il la façon dont nous voyons le mouvement en tant que spectateur ?
Comment le changement de tempo modifie-t-il nos sensations pendant le mouvement (l'expérience somatique) ?

Lesson 4 – Nature Dances Too // La nature danse aussi

How can we communicate the meaning of words using movement?
How can we translate the movement that we observe in the natural world into dance?
In what ways can we use the elements of dance that we've studied to make our choreography a more effective tool for communication?

Comment communiquer le sens des mots par le mouvement ?
Comment pouvons-nous traduire en danse le mouvement que nous observons dans le monde naturel ?
De quelle manière pouvons-nous utiliser les éléments de danse que nous avons étudiés pour faire de notre chorégraphie un outil de communication plus efficace ?

Expectations

A1. Creating and Presenting: apply the creative process to the composition of dance phrases, using the elements of dance to communicate feelings and ideas;

A2. Reflecting, Responding, and Analysing: apply the critical analysis process to communicate their feelings, ideas, and understandings in response to a variety of dance pieces and experiences;

A3. Exploring Forms and Cultural Contexts: demonstrate an understanding of a variety of dance forms and styles from the past and present, and their social and/or community contexts.

Unit Lessons: How will assessment and instruction be organized for learning?

 Approx. Duration 1 class = 60 minutes
Lesson 1

Lesson 1 - Body Parts and Personal/General Space

In this lesson students will explore the scope and range of movements that are possible using a variety of body parts. They will also explore moving within their own personal space bubble and will learn to take that bubble with them as they move through general space, so as to ensure safe dancing. In the consolidation phase, students will create a cinquain that describes the qualities and movements of a particular body part and will work in pairs or small groups to create a movement response to that poem.

 1 class
Lesson 2

Lesson 2 - Body, Space, Pattern

In this lesson students will investigate the various types of shapes that they can create with their bodies and will make connections between those shapes and the architectural structures and statues that they observe in their daily lives. They will learn about how negative space is used in dance and will create a dance phrase that uses their new-found knowledge about shapes along with ABA form.

 1-2 classes
Lesson 3

Lesson 3 – Time

In this lesson students will explore the element of time and will investigate the effect that changes in tempo have on the performance and perception of movement. They will work with both locomotor and non-locomotor movements and will experience the effect of music on movement. Students will then compose a dance phrase using both locomotor and non-locomotor movements. This phrase will employ the rondo form which will allow students to learn an additional choreographic form. 

 1-2 classes
Lesson 4

Lesson 4 – Nature Dances Too

In this lesson students will experience the ways that the meanings of texts can be expressed through movement. They will first use pairs of opposed words and will then move on to thinking about short poems that describe natural phenomena such as seasons changing, forest fires, exploding volcanoes, rain falling, etc. Students will use these poems as the inspiration for the creation of dances that will reflect the meaning of the poems through movement and will demonstrate the effective use of the elements that were studied during the previous four lessons.

 1-2 classes

 

Assessment and Evaluation: How will students demonstrate their learning?
Assessment of learning

Culminating Performance Activity

Students' final dance phrase in lesson 5 will be evaluated with a rubric constructed using success criteria that are co-created with the students before and during the choreography. Students will employ their knowledge of the dance elements as outlined in the curriculum and their observations from the preceding lessons in the creation of these criteria.
Assessment for Learning

Check Point #1 for Lesson 1

Creation of success criteria for movement response
Self-assessment and group self-assessment during creation of movement response using success criteria

Check Point #2 for Lesson 2

Creation of success criteria for dance phrase
Individual and group self-assessment during creation of movement response using success criteria
Providing feedback to groups after their performance
Group discussion of the impact of adding ABA form to dance phrase
Reflective journaling after performance

Check Point #3 for Lesson 3

Creation of success criteria for dance phrase
Individual and group self-assessment  using success criteria
Providing feedback to groups after their performance
Group discussion of the impact of changing the tempo of a phrase of movement on how the audience perceives the movements and how it feels to perform it
Reflective journaling after performance

Check Point #5 for Lesson 4

Creation of success criteria for dance creation
Self-assessment and group self-assessment during creation of movement response using success criteria
Providing feedback to groups after their performance
Group discussion of the effectiveness of various choreographic choices in communicating the meaning of the poem
Reflective journaling after performance
Responding to the performance experience by writing poetry
Co-creation of and evaluation with a formal rubric