Children must create, perform and appreciate dance as a requirement within Curriculum for Excellence. Dance can be a useful way to engage pupils that may have difficulty learning through other forms of learning. Children can convey what they may need, want or hope for through dance (Cone, 2009).
The warm up games such as follow the leader, showed us how dance can be fun and creative, as we had to form a conga line and when the song changed the person at the front of the line performed a dance move and the class followed.
Some of the warm up games I participated in today were able to display this, with every time the music stopped we had to form groups and make the shape of the answer of the numeracy question that was given. Another game exercise that fulfilled the performance aspect of the criteria was the name game, every person had to go in to the centre of the circle, make a pose and state their name. A task as simple as this may be difficult for some children as they may feel fear or anxiety, but participating means that they have successfully performed in front of their peers.
The aim by the end of this block of inputs is to for us to be able to feel confident enough and not being afraid to teach dance. Zara explained that we do not have to dedicate a 4-6 week block on it, but integrate it into IDL topic work. Once we know the 10 basic steps of dance (shown below), we will be able to successfully teach dance to our own classes.
Our music workshop had a similar theme of not being afraid or forgetting about the subject as we had the pupils from Bellsbank Primary School in teaching us about what they learn as part of the String Project. Their teacher told us not to forget about music as it can be integrated into nearly every subject and although the focus is on attainment, we need to be aware that music can help with this challenge.
The String Project starts in primary 4 and carries on up to primary 7. The children learn to play the instruments as whole class for 45 – 60 minutes a week, this means they do not get to take the instruments home with them.
The project teaches a range of different skills including collaborative skills, as the children work together helping one another in practices. The project also teaches the children about discipline. Teachers participate alongside the pupils, which is great for their own Continuous Professional Development.
The children got to be the teachers for the session and taught us how to hold the instruments properly building up to learning and playing the different chords.
The pupils enjoyed being the teachers as they got to put beanie babies on our heads if we did not have the correct posture and teaching us the rhymes they use when learning about the chords.
I really enjoyed both inputs today and feel more confident about teaching these subjects. I am eager to learn and build my knowledge around these subjects, as I would not want to place my own fears onto the children I am teaching.
Reference List
Cone, T.P. (2009) Following Their Lead: Supporting Children’s Ideas for Creating Dances Journal of Dance Education [Online] Vol.9(3) pp. 81-89 Available: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15290824.2009.10387390
