Critical Learning

Guiding Questions

Each tap step has its own unique sound. These tap sounds can be used to convey a mood or emotion.

 How can you help yourself to focus on listening and interpreting the sounds of the various tap steps and not just the technique of executing the step as you tap?
How does tap tell a story?

Curriculum Expectations

Learning Goals

Creating, Presenting, Performing

A1. The Creative Process: use the creative process, the elements of dance (body, space, time, energy, and relationship), and a variety of sources to develop movement vocabulary; 

A1.1 use the elements of dance to develop and perform a series of connected dance phrases inspired by a source 

A3. Dance Techniques: demonstrate an understanding of the dance techniques and movement vocabularies of a variety of global dance forms; 

A3.1 demonstrate an increased knowledge of the movement vocabularies of a variety of global dance forms 

A3.2 accurately reproduce timing and phrasing patterns found in a variety of global dance forms 
Learning Goals
(Unpacked Expectations)

At the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

  • identify how single steps can be linked together together to create a final composition or a "Tap Story"
  • collaborate with peers to create original Tap choreography
  • make connections - how tap sounds can reflect human emotions?

Instructional Components

Readiness

Students will have completed their initial lessons learning and developing their technical tap skills.
Students will have rehearsed choreographed routines.
Evaluation of skills and performance qualities will have occurred during previous units.
Students will have participated in discussion regarding the history of tap.
Students will be able to recognize the variety of beat structures associated with Tap Dance.
 

Terminology 

Paraddidle
Canon

Materials

Music player 
CD – drum beats
Video access and screen -  to show visual demonstrations of the intended culminating activity.
Tap shoes (extras for students who may not have them)
 

 

Approximately 15 minutes

Minds On 

Pause and Ponder

Whole Class > Watching Video

Share this video with the class.  It clearly shows how dance communicates a mood while working with music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjOiakroo0o&NR=1

Whole Class > Warm Up

Lead the class in the following warm up:
  • Ankle rolls
  • Pliés
  • Skill Sets - ball taps, shuffles etc.
  • Simple tap combinations 

Whole Class > Paradiddles

Assemble students in lines and spaces. With little discussion, demonstrate that the front row imitates you doing slow quiet ball taps. They continue this motion, then the second row joins in doing stamps or stomps loudly but at slow intervals. As the front two rows continue their movement, the third row begins bright sounding parradidles. 

After the rows have worked together they share their sounds one row at a time.

Engage the students in a brief discussion about how their tap sounds reflect certain emotions.

Assessment for Learning (AfL)

Observation of the students' creative process in this lesson will assist you in identifying students who are experiencing difficulty understanding the link between tap and mood as these students, regardless of technical ability in tap, will require scaffolding throughout the unit. 
You may have to adjust the instructional strategies depending on the students' understandings.

Side-coach students in pairs and later in groups

 

Quick Tip
You may want to document the progress of the students' understanding of the connections between sound and choreography by videotaping throughout the unit. This video can be used as a source for reflection during critical thinking and the creation of the soundscapes for the Culminating Activity. 
 
Differentiation (DI)
Some students may wish to write the tap stories and to submit this writing as part of their assessment for creative process.
 

Link and Layer

Have students watch a clip from the group, "Stomp" to examine how everyday sounds can be perceived as music (see Resources)
Examine the link between rap and choreography in a variety of urban dance videos/performances.

 

Hyperlinks in the Lesson

Terminology

https://www.thepreparedperformer.com/dancing/tap-terminology/

Drums vs. tap dancing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCKwz0sOSqA

Tap Battle - Irish vs. African American Style
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMD_f02gelM
Approximately 40 minutes

Action! 

Pairs > Tap Stories

Organize the students into pairs. Explain that they are going to create a "mood" sequence with their feet.  Tell each pair to select the mood first and then to create the step or very short combination to reflect their chosen mood. In pairs, students improvise to develop a tap step or short combination that reflects the mood. (e.g.: Paradiddle=happiness; series of cramp rolls and stamps=militaristic authority, etc.) Give them about five minutes to do this. As the students are working, make a sequence list on a chart or the board of the various moods selected by the students (i.e.: 1. happiness, 2. anger, 3. boredom, 4. reflection, etc.)

Ask student pairs to form a circle so that all students working with the same mood form a segment of the circle in the order of the list on the board.

  • Pair #1 shares their step
  • The class echoes the step
  • Pair #2 shares their step
  • The class echoes the step.
  • The class then repeats the first and second step in sequence.
  • The process continues until all steps have been taught and the sequence is put together.

Teacher Note: Feedback and side-coaching may need to be given to direct weight bearing feet and the speed at which the step occurs.

Small Group > Choreographic Manipulations

Once the group has learned the sequence, organize the class into groups of five or six (with no one working with original partners). Each group will manipulate the sequence to reflect a short "tap story", using canon and levels, and adding in arm movements.  
Ask groups to share these short choreographed sequences with the class. Provide feedback to the groups and allow students to give peer feedback as a form of assessment for this activity.
Approximately 15 minutes

Consolidation 

Whole Class > Analyzing Video

Have students watch the video at the link below as this is an example of tapping a mood of happiness: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_adKnDd8_AY&NR=1

Prompt: How does changing the order of the sequence of steps change the "tap story"?
How does the use of arms, facial expressions and varying the compositional elements affect the story?

Homework: What sounds do we have in the world around us that sound similar to the sounds your tap shoes can create? (e.g.: slamming doors, opening a pop can, ticking clocks, etc.) Ask students will listen to sounds and choose everyday sounds that could be represented by a tap step, e.g.: a cramp roll, a pick-up, a shuffle, etc. Make a list of these sounds and bring it to the next class.