The Body as the Instrument of Expression (VELS 2 & 3)

This lesson I was away so I have created a lesson plan on Using the dance space!

Lesson Plan Dance

Topic and Focus :The Arts - Dance

Year Level:  grade 2 & 3

Duration: 1.5 hours

AusVELS Strands Level: 2 & 3

Domain: The Arts

Dimension:  Creating and Making

Learning Focus: Using the Space: spatial awareness  

Key Elements of standards to which lesson focussed:

-       selection of movements and/or actions to enhance expressive qualities of own dance, drama or music works.

-       use of arts language in discussion about why they and others have chosen to arrange aspects of arts works in particular ways

Student background knowledge:

Students have been learning about how to move their bodies into different shapes and sizes. The focus has been on the movement of their bodies. They are aware how their own bodies moves and bends into different shapes.

Resources and materials required:

·         ipads with appropriate playlist songs

·         masking/gaffa tape

·         Colored scarves

·          

Lesson Format

INTRODUCTION:

Warm up: As students enter the classroom have a range of different music on, for the first five minutes students can free dance to how the music makes them feel. The music will range from pop, rock, classical etc.

Introducing the theme:  Discuss with the students the idea of the dance space that we have, our classroom is the dance space, discuss the size, the height etc.

BODY of LESSON

Give all students a coloured scarf, the students are to use the scarf as there personal space, where ever there scarf is they are allowed to go. For example if you have the scarf close to your body, no one else would come able to come to close, the scarf is like the barrier for others to know how far they can come to you.

Put on the same music they were dancing to before, let the students dance with scarfs, creating barriers from other students.

Discuss if this was easier or harder then when they first danced to the music at the beginning of lesson.

ACTIVITY:

In pairs the students will choreograph a dance that uses a taped off space on the floor,

*you will need to tape off different shapes on the floor for the students to work with e.g triangles, squares, circles, hexagon.

Students are not to go outside the taped shape! Students are able to pick the song they wish to dance to, songs are available on a playlist on the iPads.

CONCLUSION:

Students will perform the dance to the rest of the class!

Students will give creative feedback

References

Deakin University, 2013, Teaching the Arts in Primary Schools: Dance and Drama Workshops, Deakin University, Geelong. 

State Government of Victoria 2013, AusVELS, State Government of Victoria, retrieved 3 June 2013, < http://ausvels.vcaa.vic.edu.au/>.