Whilst absent this week I looked into the dance session which I missed this week and discovered some interesting benefits.

I learned about our role as teachers in dance and why it is important. It was discovered that as teachers in the future when facilitating a dance session it should be child led to encourage their own unique creativity. I was initially skeptical at the idea of letting children lead the dance session as it could become unorganised and without focus. However, by providing the children with a framework to which they may graft their own ideas with supervision they can gain more benefit than a simple classroom activity. It will allow them to also gain more meaning through active learning. Through reviewing the slides that were available I also discovered that our role as teacher entails valuing the child’s ideas and the process they take. To do this we must create a safe environment for children to feel welcome expressing themselves and assist in giving structure that could encourage further creativity. Further research revealed that to ensure the teachers role in enabling a dance session is successful you require 10 basic dance skills that are being able to perform the following moves; turn; twist; slide; roll; jump; spin; kick; hop; balance and gesture. Whilst my dancing skills are truly subpar even I am able to perform these basic moves for the benefit of using them in future lessons. I was surprised to learn the large amount of benefits that dance can provide to pupils such as increasing their confidence and physical, psychosocial and mental wellbeing. It also improves their interpersonal skills whilst raising their self esteem as it allows them to create something that expresses their own ideas (Cone, 2009). It was also interesting to see the large scope of activities that could be interdisciplinary through dance giving topics a more meaningful and beneficial experience for pupils.

References

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: Taylor & Francis. Accessed 2 January 2017].