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In this unit, students and teachers will explore the idea of intrapersonal and interpersonal intelligence in relation to dance. Students learn about the elements of dance and the elements of composition; and through this they will create a solo and a duet based on their identity and the fusion of two identities. First, students will focus on their experience with dance and think about dance and their own identity.
As students take their dance experience from intrapersonal to interpersonal, they learn about dance fusion and through their new knowledge, work with their partner to blend and fuse together the two solos and ultimately, create a character duet. Students' overall learning results in greater awareness of themselves, others and how the creation of dance works requires collaboration and teamwork.
This unit would be most effective if it was taught at the beginning of the semester as it provides character building activities, team building experiences, and is a basic introduction to the elements of dance and the choreographic forms and to composition.
Rubric to assess duets and final product of their individual collage.
Lesson 1
Dance to Your Own Beat
Students will participate in a guided improvisation to assess prior knowledge in dance. This will be followed by a collage created by students which will share and highlight their experiences in dance thus far. The collage will be used an on-going assessment tool used to consolidate understanding and reflect on new information.
2 classes
(1 class = ~ 70 minutes)
Lesson 2
Elements of Dance and Identity - SOLO
Students will use the elements of dance to create a solo that is based on a character trait that they feel best represents who they are. Students will present their solo to a peer and use peer feedback to revise and refine their movement phrase. As a consolidation, students will choose one strong movement from their solo that distills the essence of the character trait. The class will complete a character collage that will share everyone's character trait through movement.
4 classes
Lesson 3
Fusion and Collaboration - DUETS
Students will learn about dance fusion and, through watching the dance work Revealed by Fire and analyzing the elements in it, students will learn to fuse their solos together with another partner's solo. Students will blend the solos and make artistic choices to represent both character traits. Pairs will present their duet to the class and afterwards, the teacher will conference with each pair to give feedback and review goals.
3 classes
Lesson 4
Literary Devices and Dance Composition
An exploration of compositional elements will be dissected through the examination of literary devices. Students will learn compositional elements through the use of a children's storybook to help them identify and understand some of the similarities shared between literary devices and choreographic forms in dance. Students will then analyze their duet and look for choreographic forms that may be there. Students will continue to revise and refine duets based on their new learning.
3 classes
Lesson 5
Thinking Critically and Presenting Dance Works
The final lesson will look at the dance work Revealed by Fire again and instead of using it as a tool to highlight dance fusion, students will be asked to critically examine the elements of dance and the choreographic forms in the piece. Students will work with another pair and share their duets, giving and receiving feedback on areas of strength and areas for improvement. Partners will revise and refine their work one more time and then present their character duet to the class.
3 classes
