When reflecting on Eilidh’s Dance workshop, it was a much different experience than I had initially imagined. Fortunately for me, I really enjoyed it as I found it very intriguing and sparked many developing ideas for me to take with me on placement.

Honestly, being a Highland Dancer myself, I had certain expectations going into this workshop and believed I was reasonably familiar with the art of dance and would be fairly comfortable and at ease. However, I found myself experiencing the opposite in which I felt very challenged and, at times, uncomfortable. This engaged me further as I am used to the strict structure of Highland and the freedom given was exciting, so I can only imagine what it would be like for the children. This made me want to know more about how I can corporate dance further within and out with the classroom.

Dance, I believe, creates a natural curiosity, especially in children, which can be explored through many different forms and styles and to allow children to experience this seems unquestionable. It also allows the mind to wander and sometimes, for some people, this is extremely beneficial or even necessary in enhancing their academic work, it certainly was the case for me. However, this is a much more productive way of letting the mind wander while still developing other skills and having fun.

There are many things I would like to take with me from this experience, but to highlight only 3, they would be:

• If you are enthusiastic about something, it will only encourage the pupils to be enthusiastic too;
• Allow the children to explore their own creativity by taking the lead and encourage sharing their ideas with one another;
• To appreciate the importance of the art of dance and the fact it encourages us to think more creatively and move freely.