Dancing Words Blog

Silly Sally

"Silly Sally went to town, walking backwards, upside down." So begins this playful picture book by well-known children's author Audrey Wood. 

The main character encounters different animals, and does a certain action with each one (a jig with a pig and leapfrog with a dog).

One idea would be to create a whole dance using the entire text, for students in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grades.

Another idea would be to read the book to your students and then play with some of the key concepts, especially ways of moving backwards and upside down. Use the book as a starting to point to explore many ways of moving backwards and upside down (or the concept of "direction" in general).

Red Dancing Shoes

I was thinking about this book today and got it out of the library again. Red Dancing Shoes by Denise Lewis Patrick is a good read with students in kindergarten, first, and second grade.

The main character, a little girl, is about 7 or 8 years old. She receives a gift of a new, shiny pair of red shoes - which she calls "dancing shoes." She goes around town to show off her shoes, but gets them a little dirty in the meantime. All ends well.

Many students have a special pair of shoes, a skirt, a cape, etc. that they associate with dancing. Read this story with a class and talk about their special dancing items. Maybe even have them bring them in for a dance class or a dance party in your classroom! This topic could also be a great starting point for 1st and 2nd graders for a writing activity about their special item and when/where they like to dance (parties, at home, etc).

 

More Autumn Leaves

I was browsing again at the library for inspring books about fall. Here are two to use in preschool, kindergarten, and first grade classes.

Fall Leaves Fall! can be a springboard for improvisation or creating a dance with preschoolers and kindergarteners. You can read the book and use the actions described in the book - changing colors, falling, stomping, kicking, blowing, and catching. The book also describes the shapes and textures of leaves (pointy, smooth, small, large). These words can also be a starting point for movement explorations.

When doing activities like this, I also like to use "fall music" such as Scott Joplin's "Maple Leaf Rag," the jazz standard "Autumn Leaves," and the fall section of Vivaldi's Four Seasons.

With kindergarten and first grade students, you can also explore the book Autumn Leaves by Ken Robbins. This is a more "factual" book on leaves, with nice, clear photos of leaves with a white backdrop on the pages. I would suggest using the book as part of a warm up activity, exploring shape. I like how the book describes various kinds of leaves (gingko, hickory, sweet gum, etc). The book talks about the size of the various leaves and their particular shapes - like stars, like fans, curled, and pointed.

Have fun this fall!

 

Getting Ready for Halloween: Pumpkins and Skeletons

I know - Halloween is 1.5 months away. I am recommending a few titles now, so that you can grab them early from the library or order them now.

Over the years, I have frequently come back to the book Pumpkin Circle as a springboard in preschool, kindergarten, and first grade classes. Through photos and text, the book shares the story of pumpkins from seed to pumpkin (and even back into the garden, decomposing). I love having the students explore size changes, growth and expansion, twisty tendrils, and more. If you have a gardening program at your school, consider teaming up with the instructor on a small project together.

Around Halloween time, I also love using the book Dem Bones by Bob Barner ("foot bone connected to the ankle bone"). "Dem Bones" is one of the most well-known African American spirituals. I love to read the book to the class, and then create a warm up based on the lyrics. 

You can create a whole "skeleton" dance study - using Dem Bones, Bones: Skeletons and How They Work by Steve Jenkins, and the "Fossils" music from The Carnival of the Animals. Dem Bones can be used as a warm up activity. Bones: Skeletons and How They Work can introduce some basic information to the students. You can lead improvisation activities with the students focusing on and isolating different bones/body parts. As a class, you can create a simple "bone dance" and use the music from The Carnival of the Animals.

 

Poetry Series for Dance Classes: The Tree That Time Built

I just pulled off the bookshelf the lovely poetry collection The Tree That Time Built: A Celebration of Nature, Science, and Imagination by Mary Ann Hoberman and Linda Winston. I used several poems for an Earth Day dance project a few years back. 

The poems can be used in 3rd-5th grade classes but also 6th/7th grade classes. Sharing the book with your school's science teacher can be a great way to start a conversation, and possibly do a joint project between dance and science (one of my favorite things to do).

The collection includes poems about trees, the Earth, ocean, animals, "hurt no living thing," and more. It is a well-selected, elegant group of poems. My favorite is the poem "Think Like a Tree."

The Tree That Time Built is one of my favorite collections of nature poetry to use for dance projects.

 

Resources for Teaching Dance

Find out more at: Luna Dance Institute

Occasionally I will highlight on this blog resources for dance teaching artists, and resources helpful for anyone who wants to incorporate movement into your classroom. The children's books recommended on this site are to supplement, enhance, enrich, and inspire your dance curriculum. 

Visual and Performing Arts Standards for PreK-12

There are national, and state specific, sequential dance standards. Here are links to standards from the National Dance Education Organization and the State of California:

NDEO Standards

California VAPA Standards

 

Books on Teaching Dance

There are only a handful of books on teaching dance, and many I have read, used, referenced, and recommended year after year over the past 16 years. I highly recommend purchasing some of these for your own bookshelf.

Creative Dance for All Ages by Anne Green Gilbert

Body, Mind, and Spirit: A Teacher's Guide to Creative Dance by Patricia Reedy

Dance for Young Children: Finding the Magic in Movement by Sue Stinson

Step by Step: A Complete Movement Education Curriculum by Sheila Kogan

Wonderplay by Fretta Reitzes and Beth Teitelman

Wonderplay, Too by Fretta Reitzes and Beth Teitelman

 

Books on Arts Education

Framing Education as Art: The Octopus Has a Good Day by Jessica Hoffmann Davis

Why Our Schools Need the Arts by Jessica Hoffmann Davis

Variations on a Blue Guitar: The Lincoln Center Institute Lectures on Aesthetic Education by Maxine Greene

Here's to a great start of the new school year, and more dancing!

Coffee Table Books in Middle School Dance Classes

Indeed, there is not a wealth of dance books for the middle school age range. But, I want to encourage all of us to use books (and magazines and articles) whenever possible. By middle school, students are so tech-savvy and do most research on the web. I believe that whenever possible let's still share resources in books.

Over the summer I highlighted several visual art books I use in dance classes as springboards. My students love looking at beautiful "coffee table" books with the artwork of Dale Chihuly, Andy Goldsworthy, and more.

To add to our unit this spring about Alvin Ailey, I just purchased the photography book Ailey Ascending: A Portrait in Motion. Many major dance companies have published large size coffee table books - Ailey, Mark Morris, San Francisco Ballet, New York City Ballet, etc. Whenever possible, I recommend purchasing and collecting these books.

Whether you actively reference a book in a class or have books on hand for students to browse in your studio, I find that teens still love looking at these kinds of books. I selectively display a few by my classroom's door, and I love seeing which of my student sits down and starts to explore. Invite the students in.

Seek out dance specific books, but also consider coffee table/folio books at your library to use in dance classes - art, geography, photography, graphic art, and more. I love having a few books on hand at a time so that I can do group work, with each group having one book to explore. Another teaching tip - give the students Post-It Notes so they can "mark" the images they are exploring. 

Magic and Whimsy Series: The Conductor

Chronicle Books is known as a publisher of beautiful books - beautiful in content and the quality of the images, paper, and binding of the books. Today let's talk about The Conductor by Laeticia Devernay. This is a magical book for dance teaching artists who love creating new projects with their 3rd-5th graders.

On this blog, I rarely quote book covers and jackets, but the description on the back of this book describes it so well:

Pairing two seemingly disparate elements - an orchestra conductor and a grove of trees - award-winning artist and children's book author Laeticia Devernay has created a beautiful and compelling wordless narrative. Her spare yet intricate illustrations take flight as the conductor prompts the tree's leaves to rustle, whirl, and swirl into soaring, unexpected life. A celebration of creativity, imagination, storytelling, and the renewing power of nature, this is a volume for readers and art lovers of all ages to treasure.

Yes, indeed!

From the very first presentation of this beautifully designed book to your students, you are heading on a magical journey. "Read" the book with your students. What is the story? Who is the conductor? What kind of music do you hear to accompany this tale? To me, the book is a great inspiration, to explore in movement, shape shifting, part/whole, ensemble work, flocking, following a leader, and the actions of floating, soaring, traveling, flocking, and gliding. 

 

Poetry Series for Dance Classes: Autumnblings

I am a big fan of author/illustrator Douglas Florian. Many of his poetry books are great for dance classes.

Today I want to highlight Autumnblings. The poems can be used in a variety of ways in PreK-2nd grade dance classes. Teachers can use the poems to create new warm ups. Multiple poems talk about the "colors of autumn" - so bring out a variety of scarves for dancing. Improvise and explore the action of falling through multiple poems and imagery in the book. Other poems are about baseball, pumpkins, the wind, weather, animals, and what we love and hate about fall. Autumnblings can be a great new way to explore the season in your classes. I find it to be a fresh take on the theme.

What to Do with Autumn Leaves

By Douglas Florian

 

Kick them.

Catch them.

Pick them.

Snatch them.

Romp them.

Stomp them.

Hurl them.

Heave them.

If you want to,

Even leave them.

 

 

Poetry Series for Dance Classes: Falling Down the Page

I love the libary! I just found another great poetry book this morning.

Falling Down the Page, edited by Georgia Heard, is a fun compilation of "list poems." As a dance teacher who loves using word lists as starting points for shorter creative projects, I was excited to find this book.

The poems vary in subject matter - school, stars in the sky, hands, and good-byes. I think this book is ideal for use in 2nd, 3rd, and 4th grade dance classes.

And, as we also explore the theme of autumn, here's a playful poem to try out. I love the imagery and the measurements used (which could translate into groups of varying sizes):

Recipe for Writing an Autumn Poem

By Georgia Heard

 

One teaspoon wild geese.

One tablespoon red kite.

One cup wind song.

One pint trembling leaves.

One quart darkening sky.

One gallon north wind.

 

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