Unit Overview

Resource cover image
Varying shades of red, brown, orange, and yellow hands with hearts in the middle of the palm are raised toward the title as if volunteering to support the community around them.

In this unit, the foundational layer is the act of kindness. Students will explore the exchange of these empowering acts through reflection on a personal level, within the workplace and at a societal level. The importance of this unit is that it provides students with the opportunity to experience the power of giving to others (e.g., each other, the audience, a not-for-profit organization, and the community in its entirety) through the medium of dance. It is recommended that this unit entitled "A Cause for Applause" be situated within the course midway or close to the end of the semester. By this point in the course, students will have gained the background knowledge related to safety principles, established trust within the class community and invested in the exploration phase of a variety of techniques, choreographic forms and presentational opportunities, which will be infused and developed in this unit.

By the end of this unit, students will understand their ability to affect change within the various facets of their lives.  They will also gain further experience with creating dance from the basis of a stimulus (in this case, via an article) and they will further explore the concept of performing for purpose. At the end of "A Cause for Applause", students will recognize that their actions (e.g.: the act of connecting with charities and the act of creating dance) affect change in themselves and those around them.

Guiding Questions
  • How can dance be utilized as a medium through which the facets of life can be positively affected?
  • How can the actions of giving, sharing and receiving on a personal and an artistic level connect to experiences within the workplace?

Assessment and Evaluation: How will students demonstrate their learning?

Assessment for Learning (AfL)
  • Teacher feedback throughout improvisational study and action-word movement sequences
  • Teacher feedback during the partner studies and contact improvisational tasks
  • Teacher feedback evident both in written form (the process rubric) and verbally throughout the article exploration
  • Teacher feedback via group and individual conferences throughout the continued rehearsal process, related to the roles of production and the connection with charities
  • Written feedback based on portfolio responses
Assessment as Learning (AaL)
  • Self-reflection via the ripple effect maps
  • Self assessment upon the completion of the process rubric related to the rehearsal of the article-based compositions
  • Self-assessment via videotaping of the "Works in Progress"
  • Self assessment related to the ways in which this unit and its accompanying experiences have affected change
Assessment of Learning (AoL)

Culminating Performance Activity

Students will be evaluated using co-constructed criteria when they present their article-inspired creations at the event entitled "A Cause for Applause".  The scale of the venue is to be determined by the teacher and the students (i.e. in-class showing, school gymnasium, theatre). 

Unit Lessons: How will assessment and instruction be organized for learning?

Lesson

Focus

Anticipated Duration

Lesson 1

The Ripple Effect

Students will explore positive contributions that they have made in their daily lives through class discussions, individual improvisation, collaborative movement studies and self-reflection.  They will use the concept of the "ripple effect" to guide small group movement creations.

2 classes

1 class = ~70 minutes

Lesson 2

Giving, Sharing and Receiving

Students will experience how the foundational elements in personal relationships such as giving, sharing and receiving can be reflected in dance forms such as contact improvisation.

2 classes

Lesson 3

Finding the Source

In this lesson, students will have the opportunity to work collaboratively in both the rehearsal and the negotiating processes. They will explore a literary source (e.g.: an article) and then use it as a stimulus to create a choreographic work.

3 classes

Lesson 4

Community Outreach

Students will connect with a chosen not-for-profit organization that will benefit from the upcoming performance of the article-based composition. Within this unit, students will continue to rehearse their creations, to acquire and act upon production roles and to make connections to their act of creation positively affecting those around them such as the audience and the chosen not-for-profit at an event such as "A Cause for Applause."

4 classes

Lesson 5

Final Performance

Within the chosen venue, students will showcase their article-based creations for evaluation and follow through with their assigned roles of production. In this lesson, students will also learn that closure to an experience can occur in a variety of ways, including movement-based activities and verbal forums.  Students' on-going portfolio responses will also be collected for evaluation.

2 classes