Dancing Words Blog

Blue by Laura Vaccaro Seeger

Colors are an ever popular theme in dance classes. I was excited to see Laura Vaccaro Seeger's latest creation, Blue. You might be familiar with her book Green already.

Explore this book with elementary age students. Start off with a group brainstorm - what do you think of that is blue? Capture ideas on chart paper. Then, pull out a variety of scarves, pieces of fabric, and ribbons of varying shades of blue. Improvise, trade, and dance some more. 

The book Blue offers delightful text to try out through small group sections, taking inspiration from the words and the images. "Very blue" relates to blue butterflies...."midnight blue" refers to nighttime...."new blue" shows the ebb and flow of the ocean. Consider using the props within your dance as well.

For music, check out "Into the Sea" or "Broken Arrow" by The Album Leaf. And, to find more dancing books about colors, click here.

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I am the Rain

I am writing today's post on a very rainy day in the SF Bay Area.

Rain, water, forms of water, and the water cycle - these are all favorite springboards in my dance classes. Whether we are talking about a 1st grade dance class or a 6th grade science project, I find that there is endless movement potential here.

I was delighted to find a new book to add to my list the other day at the library - I am the Rain, written and illustrated by John Paterson. It just came out in 2018.

Sometimes I'm the rain cloud

and sometimes I'm the rain.

Sometimes I'm a roadside rapid

roaring down a drain. 

I can show you rainbows

in mist or morning dew. 

I can be a muddy flood

or a pool of aqua blue.

This is just some of the opening text for this picture book. 

The beautiful text inspires us to change shape, speed, level, and quality multiple times throughout the book. Use it for a structured improv in your class or compose a whole dance. Use the book with a wide range of students - from preschoolers through second graders.

As for music, consider using the piano sound of "Hope" by Michael Wall. You can download it from Michael's site here.

And, find more books for water dances here on the site. Let's dance!

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