Leaving
Certificate
Applied
Dance
The Dance Task
Literacy through Dance
Dance – An Interdisciplinary Approach
Teamwork
Active Learning Methodologies
Community Links
Creativity: Improvisation
Sharon Phelan
1
The Student Task
• Key Points to Remember
– Definition
•The development of a product
•The investigation of an issue
•The provision of a service
– Integration
• Originates in dance & integrates with at
least one other area
– Identifiable contribution from every
student
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Task Ideas…
Research the life of a Professional
Dancer
To create and perform a dance
pieceindividually or as part of a
group
A questionnaire on the interest of
students in dance, the different
dance styles preferred etc
To organise a ceili
To organise a professional dance
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group to visit the school
Ctd.
• Current Dance courses available in Ireland – a
brochure
• To compare and contrast two different dance
performances using structured methods of
appreciation
• A project on the folk dances of different countries
• My favourite dance form-ballet, Jazz etc
• To teach dance to a local Primary School Group
• To create a piece using a special prop
• A survey on local dance classes/facilities
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Leaving
Certificate
Applied
Key points to
remember
Literacy through Dance
An Interdisciplinary Approach
Community Links
Teamwork
Creativity
Sharon Phelan
5
Literacy through Dance
• Encourage students to use basic dance
terminology [e.g. rhythm, set dance,
space, waltz etc] when describing a piece
• Teaching methodologies, which encourage
literacy
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Survey
Questioning
Recall
Reading
Writing
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Ctd.
• Students can compliment oral/written
critiques of dances through demonstrating
parts of the piece themselves
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Dance – An Interdisciplinary
Approach
• Integrating Dance with other areas of Leaving
Certificate Applied
– Vocational Preparation & Guidance
– English & Communication
– Mathematical Applications
– Social Education
– Technology
– Gaeilge
– Leisure & Recreation
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Ctd.
Modern Language
Religious Education
Science
Sign Language
Arts Education: Drama, Music, Dance & Visual
Art – 2 modules
– Vocational Specialisms
• Hair & Beauty, Childcare/Community Care,
Active Leisure Care, Agriculture/
Horticulture…
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Ctd.
• The student can choose a stimulus from a
variety of starting points
– story, poem, word, and song, custom …
– visual, aural & verbal starting points
– other art forms
–literature, visual art, music &
sound, drama…
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Community Links
• Community Links
– Visitors
– Research
• Students can research Dance styles specific to their
own locality
– Molyneaux
– Oral interviews with local dance
specialists
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Ctd.
• Work Shadowing / Experience
• Community Shows / Performances
– Encourage students to attend local dance
shows and to provide oral / written reports of
their evaluations
– Encourage students to perform for their own
community
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Teamwork
• Students can criticise dance work in large
and small group situations and through
oral/written work
• Students can compose dance sequences in
pairs and small groups
• Students can criticise each other’s work
•E.g. Did Group A use similar or
different floor patterns than your
group?
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Improvisation
• Improvisation
– To prepare or provide offhand/ hastily
– To compose [verse, music, etc] on the spur of
the moment
– To convey concepts or ideas
– To mimic actions
– Social gestures
– Social chores
– To respond to a sound, a rhythm, an emotion
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Ctd.
• Types
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Random; jumping over a puddle, patting a dog
Reflexive; recoiling
Absent minded; doodling
Intentional; dance sequence, cooking
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Improvisation is dependent
on…
• ‘the relationship of the people in the
group to the group as a whole. This
relationship is derived from a diversity
of tempos, rhythms and moods’
»[Schneer:1994;5]
• A stimulus
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Types of Stimuli
• Kinaesthetic
– A single piece if movement [a shape, phrase,
gesture] becomes the kinaesthetic stimulus from
which the movement piece is derived
• ‘Using the word ‘Dodge’ create a variety of shapes
• Auditory
– Music, percussion, sound, silence, words, songs
etc
– Auditory stimuli may accompany & / or inspire
dance pieces
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Ctd
• Visual
– Movement is created from observation
• Pictures, sculptures, artefacts
• Visual stimuli can be a response from nature
/ man made objects
• Ideational
– A specific idea, an unfolding story,
poem…
• Tactile
– The movements are inspired by touch
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Is improvisation dependent
on sound & music?
• Is the body an instrument in its own right?
• Is moving to one’s own individual rhythms
expressive?
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