Name: Miss Bhobauny Sarasatee Course: Teachers Diploma Pre-Vocational

Year: 2010 -2012 PT

Module Title: Music, Dance & Drama

Module Code: 2420

Lecturer: Mrs. Ramdoo

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Dance: The Universal Language

Dance compliments people with different tastes, emotions, needs and backgrounds because there is so much variety. As a result, dancing has not only become a universal art form, but a universal language. Dance is by its nature the expression of emotions, feelings and opinions through the movement and manipulation of the body. Dance very often finds itself in the form of telling a story or conveying emotion through choreography, set to a corresponding music score. Dance is therefore a vital form of expression; a medium which can be used to convey a message effectively and powerfully. There is something about the beauty of seeing a highly trained and skilled body moving with ease and grace through choreography that causes us to watch and take note. Combined with an emotive music score, dance is a powerful tool.
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DANCE IN MAURITIUS

The activities of the School of Music and Dance created as a joint venture of the Governments of India and Mauritius in 1964 and incorporated with the Mahatma Gandhi Institute in 1971, as well as those of the Department of Fine Arts, the Department of Extra Mural Studies (1982) and the Department of Bhojpuri, Folklore & Oral Traditions (1983), have had a definite impact on the cultural life of the country at large. The Department of Fine Arts through workshops and non-award courses has made the Fine Arts accessible to the youth of Mauritius and Rodrigues. The Salon de Mai, held annually and regrouping the works of Mauritian artists, is now a landmark in the national calendar of artistic activities. The four departments have also had an impact regionally through exchange programmes with neighbouring countries.

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IMPORTANCE OF DANCE IN EDUCATION OF STUDENTS AT SCHOOL

Dancing benefits a student's education. Through dance, students not only learn the benefits of exercising, but they also learn coordination, flexibility, stamina, stability, memory and discipline. Dancing has many benefits for students. Through dance students can learn other subjects like English, Mathematics, French etc. For example, teacher can teach students vocabulary, shapes, counting and moral values through dance. Like sports, dance can provides students with an entire array of abilities and can make them physically and mentally stronger as well. Dance can also include competition, which some parents and educators feel is important for a student's development, expression and creativity. But dance isn't solely about competition or winning awards. Many students dance simply for enjoyment and exercise. There are many benefits of dancing, including fitness, developing balance, losing weight, understanding the importance of being active, building confidence and developing expressive skills. Others benefits of dancing are: Dancing Boosts Self Esteem Research shows dancing boosts a student's self esteem. Dancing makes students feel good and help them gain confidence in their own abilities. And eventually they will be confident in other subjects too. As students adjust to the movements
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and postures required in dance, they begin to get a better sense of their bodies. As they become more comfortable in their own skin, their confidence and self-esteem also improve. Dance lessons can encourage students to foster a more positive attitude and explore their own selfexpression. This can be particularly beneficial for students who are physically or mentally impaired or those who are attempting to deal with significant emotional problems. Dancing Improves Memory Dancing requires memorization. Students improve their overall memory when trying to remember steps and if a student memory is good, he/she will learn better. Learn How to Listen Dancing teaches students how to listen, whether it be instruction or for the beat. When students are listening, they are not talking. Creative Expression Dance allows students to creatively express themselves, even through the confines of a particular type of dance steps or process. Like art and music, dance lets kids be themselves and express ideas with their bodies. Concentrated Learning Dance is the study of a concentrated area, which translates to an opportunity for students to learn about something in a specific manner.

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Students who study dance are able to focus on what they need to learn, take instruction and progress as time goes on. Team Work and Individual Work Depending on the dance class and type of dance, students get a chance to work in a team, such as ballet, as well as by themselves. In all types of dance, students can learn about being with a partner, relying on others, and working as a team. They can also learn about relying on themselves and being the best individual that they can be. Competition Dance classes can also promote healthy competition to students of all ages. As students try to accomplish steps, participate in dance recitals, and even compete for solos or special dance routines, they learn that practice is important and you need to practice and move forward in order to succeed, no matter what you choose to do in life. It increases in students a better ability to creatively problem solving and think through challenges. Improved Physical Health Dancing is a highly physical activity. It is an aerobic form of exercise. Regular dance practice can increase the student's flexibility, range of motion, physical strength and stamina. The repetitive movements involved in dance can correct poor posture, increase balance and coordination and improve overall cardiovascular health. For students who are overweight, it can potentially help them to lose weight and improve their eating habits. Dance helps student achieve both fine and gross motor skills, build their muscles, and strengthen and tone their bodies. No matter what type of
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dance a student is doing, their bodies will benefit from the exercise. If the student is healthy, his/her attendance to school will be regular and he/she will be able to concentrate in his/her studies well. Socialization Benefits In addition to being a physical activity, dancing is also a highly social activity. Dance lessons can help students improve their social and Dance can also help to alleviate fears related to communication skills, develop a greater sense of trust and cooperation and make new friends. performing in front of an audience. It also improves bonding with parents, friends and schoolmates. Educational Benefits Becoming a skilled dancer requires practice, discipline and focus, skills that can be useful in other areas of the student's life. Dance can help to spark creativity in young students and help them to develop an appreciation for the arts. Students who regularly participate in dance lessons typically tend to perform better academically than their nonparticipating peers. "FamilyTalk Magazine" estimates that students who have a background in dance tend to achieve significantly higher SAT scores and do better in math and science competitions.

HOW TO TEACH DANCE

Teaching a dance class for students is very different from teaching a dance class for adults. Some students may be shy, some may not want to be there at all and some may want to kid around the entire time. To keep the

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attention of your dance students, you must hold their interest with creative and fun ideas. Treat your students like artists.

THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN TEACHING DANCE:

Above all, make sure class is fun. If concepts or exercises are overwhelming students, try a simpler approach, or put the exercise on hold and engage them in some free dance. Be sure your dance area is clear of obstructions, and the floor isnt too slippery. Choose appropriate music for the age group you are teaching. Kids' songs are great for a younger group, and popular music works well for older students. Select a variety of songs with different tempos and moods for different parts of the class. Always begin with warm-ups, such as yoga positions. You can also instruct students to move their bodies to imitate different objects in nature, such as a tree bending with the wind.

Once the class has warmed up, begin an activity that encourages students to move around. Running, hopping, jumping and skipping will all get your students' heart rates up. Similar to the warm-ups, you may want to encourage your students to "gallop like a horse" or "hop like a bunny".

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 Put on a piece of music with a rhythmic beat. Encourage students to move to the music. This is one of the basics of dance, and students will have to gain this skill before they are able to dance at a higher level. Challenge students to follow a sequence of movements. For example, you might tell them to reach for the sky, bend at the waist, take two steps to the right and then spin around. Young students may have difficulty with this task, so slowly build up the number of directions you expect them to follow. Help students cool down at the end of the class with a piece of music that gets slower and slower. Encourage students to dance quickly at the beginning of the song and to slow down along with the music.

Students have a short attention span, which is why it's best to limit dance class time to less than an hour.

GENERAL GUIDELINES
When leading dance games for a group of students, teacher should create an environment of acceptance. Stress the effort, rather than praising the product. Encourage each student to learn and participate to his own level of ability, and focus on the emotional safety of the group. Do not allow students to mock or taunt each other's participation or abilities during or after the game. Students respond to the sense of fun that comes from playacting while they dance, even as they are learning concepts and coordination that lay a good foundation for future training. When dance class is a game, the lessons stick. When a new skill builds on something
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they know well, they tackle it with confidence. Additionally, emphasize physical safety by setting clear boundaries in the classroom. Warm students up to the dancing games by introducing group participation games first, followed by those that highlight the individual, then move into performance-style games if students progress with enthusiasm. Steer away from giving direction and criticism at each step--simply back away into lessadvanced activities when games fail, then bring them up again at a later time.

HERE ARE SOME DANCE ACTIVITIES THAT CAN BE DONE WITH STUDENTS
1. Mirror Me This activity is a fun way for students to practice leading others and following the directives of others as well. Choose one student to come to the front of the classroom. Play some lively music and instruct the student to move to the music. Encourage the student to perform repetitive movements with his head, arms, hands, body, legs or feet so the rest of the class can easily imitate his movements. After a minute or so, allow the student to choose the next person to come to the front. Sometimes students can get in a rut with this activity by only performing motions that they saw the last student do. You can encourage originality by offering an incentive. For instance, you might give a sticker to each student who comes up with her own unique movement. Mirror me works well as an opening dance activity because it gets all students engaged in the activity, and it gives each student the space and time to decide when to take the lead from the previous leader. Students are empowered from the ability to lead all the
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students, and allowing students to create their own dances encourages creativity and confidence. 2. Character Dance This activity helps to reinforce students' understanding about various people and animals. Have your students stand in various locations around the classroom, with each student far enough from the others to have space to move. You might want to remind your students not to talk or touch during this dance activity. Let your students know that you will be playing music and calling out various characters. When they hear the name of a character, they should move as if they were that character. Call out a character such as "wood cutter" or an animal like a "monkey." Use characters that fit with what your class has been studying. Vary the music so that the kids get to move to different genres and tempos. Emphasize that there is no absolutely "correct" way to interpret a character and that students should use express their individuality in their movements. Later ask different students to explain why they chose certain steps to represent certain characters. 3. Dance Composition This is a very creative activity for students who have been exposed to a few kinds of dances already. Divide your group up into groups of three to five students. Tell the students that they will be composing a performance. Give each group a list of elements that must be present within the performance. Examples of these components might include a leap, a skip, a movement with a prop, a low level movement (near the ground), a high level movement, a medium level movement, an imitation of an animal, a
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movement performed by the group as a whole and a movement performed by an individual. Give each group a set of props that they can use. Examples include ribbons, hoops, balls and instruments. Encourage the groups to create their own accompanying music with the instruments. Allow the groups about an hour to come up with their routine, as well as a brief outline of what will happen. Return as a whole group and allow each small group to perform their routine in front of the class. 4. Musical Chairs: Dance Style Playing musical chairs with a fun dancing twist gives students the chance to enjoy a high-energy game while performing and dancing in the classroom. Set one fewer chairs than the number of students in a back-to-back line and ask students to circle them while walking. Stress safety. When the music stops, the one left without a chair gets to compete in the "side game" by dancing his way out to a 15- to 30-second piece of upbeat music. Show recognition for all participants by giving awards like "Most Acrobatic," "Most Energetic," "Arm Movement Award," and any other appropriate choices. Limit awards to observable behavior, rather than using judgment words like "prettiest" or "best." 5. Dance, Freeze It is highly important that you gain control of your class early on by utilizing listening games. One fun and simple game is the dance and freeze game. Have your dancers move all around the room jumping and turning until you yell, "Freeze!" Students should stop on a dime and hold until you call out, "Dance." Keep going until every dancer is listening. After playing this game

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you can use the term "Freeze" to regain control every time your students are going wild.

DANCE AS A TEACHING TOOL

Dance can

improves concentration of students improves memory of students brings a sense of community to a group motivates learning among students relaxes students who are overwhelmed or stressed makes learning fun helps students absorb material

There are other varieties of different ways to use dance in the classroom. Dance can be used to: break the ice in a class where students don't know each other or are having difficulty communicating teach other subjects (topics). After explaining the topic on shapes, teacher can put on the music and ask students to create shapes by using their body. This can be done also for numbers and alphabets. we can even teach pattern for the subject Art & Craft. After explaining the topic pattern, students are asked to create different patterns by using their body. introduce a new theme or topic (Christmas/animals/feelings). Before starting a lesson also, we can use dance to make the students interested in the topic, e.g. before starting the topic on gardening, the teacher can

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divide the class in 2/3 groups and ask each group to do a cadence on the theme gardening. This can be done for other themes also. change the mood (liven things up or calm things down) teach and build vocabulary and idioms review material (dance improves memory) teach reading comprehension

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