Using Improv in the Classroom #ade2013

My moment of notoriety at the Apple Institute so it seemed fitting that the first new thing I would implement in the classroom was improv. I had fun during the sessions and decided that most of my kids would enjoy it too so decided to give it a go.

We started in pairs with the 1,2,3 game followed by the actions. Because there was an odd number of kids in the class, I ended up buddying up with a student which made it hard to record moments but was great to use bonding with the class.

Next up we tried the yes, and game. I put myself right into the firing line by modelling this improv line with one of my students dying a gruesome death over the course of the story.

We had a go at yes, but as a try at shutting down conversations before finally hitting the story time.

The students were thrilled and even my shy kids were having fun taking risks and playing the games. What impressed me most was how quickly the students wanted to adapt the number of players and even the spine of the story to make up a new game.

As part of the reflection on the activity I had the kids think about how improv could be used to help with their learning. Immediately could link it through to literacy and that they could tell better stories. It was disappointing how many of the students didn’t recognise that we were in the Arts and that creative expression was a valid learning area in and of itself moreover the activity helped develop their team skills through working with different members of the class.

It’s amazing how trying something new can shine a light on the shortcomings of previous practices.

Incorporating dance into classroom learning

Unlike most six year old girls this ballerina was not at all thrilled with the prospect of appearing in public in pink tulle. (photo by author's father)

One of the tasks I was assigned last week was to write an internal blog entry on dance resources. We were to choose one and identify how dance could be used to support other areas in the curriculum. In an effort to make my learning visible to others I’m reposting my entry here.

Dance resources I explored

Arts online has some great resources for all levels of the schooling. I looked specifically at the resources for junior primary as I’m about teach Year 1/2. The internet also has some great stuff to find and adapt to your students.

I found myself memorised by this Junior high lip dub which was a great advertisement for both the clubs and the school and I’ve already proclaimed my love of the anti-bullying flashmob  by the Vancouver students that went viral.

Which dance resource did I choose?

I chose the pairs and prepositions from the Dance Across the Curriculum.

How would you use this resource to enhance other learning?

Literacy –  Students are using vocabulary and prepositions as texts to communicate through movement.

Social Science – impact of groups and spaces on relationships.

Language learning- this activity could be adapted for language learning by changing from English to the target language (in fact I’ve used something similar with language learners).

Science – this activity gives students an opportunity to explore everyday examples of physical phenomena such as movement.

Apart from being fun, dance also said the development of concepts in other areas of the curriculum.  Although activities like DDR might be useful in developing physical fitness, dance also gives teachers the oppurtunty to incorporate different styles of learning into our classroom programme.

I’m already in planning stages for series of music lessons I need to teach for my arts assignment however I think I’ll incorporate some movement into the unit as well.

For classroom teachers out there how do you incorporate dance into your class programme?