SENIOR DANCE ELECTIVE
Fall Semester
Dance Activities
Dance days will be on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays
Unit 1=Fitness Conditioning/Fitness Testing, Unit 2=Ballet, Unit 3=Modern, Unit 4=Choreography Project, Unit
5=Breakdance (5-Day Introductory Unit)
Fitness Activities:
Fitness days will be on Tuesdays and Thursdays
Some of the group fitness formats that will be taught include (but are not limited to) the following: Yoga, Core
Conditioning, Mat Pilates, Kickboxing, Boot Camp, Interval Training, and Strength Conditioning
*There will be no fitness days during the choreography and the mini breakdance unit.
Attire:
PE uniform or PE shirt and slim fitting black dance pants (black fitted Capri pants or black fitted dance shorts are
acceptable). Footwear is as follows: during the ballet unit, ballet shoes are recommended, during the modern unit,
bare feet or dance paws/lyrical sandals are recommended, during the choreography unit (to be determined based on
style of dance and location of class), and during the breakdance unit, athletic shoes or hard soled jazz shoes are
recommended. However, please wear hard-soled shoes to class on dance days and do not come from the locker
room in socks, bare feet, or soft-soled dance shoes. In addition, please make sure to wear athletic shoes to class on
any and all fitness days.
Absences/Tardiness/Participation:
Attendance, participation, and being appropriately dressed make up more than half of the grade in this class.
Therefore, poor attendance, poor participation, improper attire, and tardiness will affect your grade. In cases of
excused absences, attendance points may be made up through 30 or 60-minute monitored workouts at school (For
excused absences only and prior arrangements must be made). Every 30-minute session will make up one class.
In order for the exercise session to count, a make-up slip must be turned in and must be signed by the fitness room
supervisor or a PE staff member. In extreme cases (such as injury or severe illness), students may also make up
excused absences by doing written work to earn points. This will be by a case by case basis. However, the
assignment (s) must be turned in on the assigned due date in order to receive full credit. Students are allowed 5
excused absences without penalty of losing any points. After that, in order to receive full points, the excused
absences will need to be made up during the unit of the absence. For each excused absence past 5 that are not made
up, 3 points are deducted from your daily attendance/participation points each day that you are not in class. Points
that are deducted for tardiness, unexcused absences, poor participation, improper dress, and not bringing required
materials to class are not allowed to be made up. Therefore, being on time to the locker room and to class, having
good attendance, maintaining good participation, being dressed properly, and having your folder and pencil when
required will allow you to receive the most possible points.
Skills/Performance Tests/Written Work/Written Tests:
In addition to the above grading criteria, there will be the following: skills/performance test and a written test for
each unit, a final written exam, a final group choreography project and occasional written work that will also be
worth points towards the grade (Late work will be accepted for half credit no later than one day late). If written
work is assigned on a day of an excused absence, students will receive one day for each day of an excused absence to
turn in any missed assignments in order to receive full credit.
If missed assignments are not turned in within the previous guidelines, full credit will not be given (Late work policy
will be the same as if you were in class). Students will also need to have a folder and a pencil for this class (If
students don’t have these materials when they are needed in class, points will also be deducted).
Grading Points:
Attendance and Daily Participation-50 points possible for each unit
Skills/Performance Tests-20 points possible for each unit
Written Tests-20 points possible for each unit
Written Assignments/Projects-30-40 Points
Fitness assessments-20 points possible
Choreography Project-40 points possible
Final Exam-40 Points Possible
Deduction of Points Policy:
Points will be deducted for the following:
1
2
3
4
5
Failure to have appropriate dress- (This includes not wearing your required P.E. uniform or your PE shirt
and black dance bottoms, wearing your street clothes under your uniform, and/or not having appropriate
shoes). Students will receive one no dress without penalty of points as long as active attire is worn and the
student is able to participate. After that, 5 points will be deducted for the next offense, 7 for the following, 9
for the next one and so on.
Poor participation/Insubordination (Not participating to the best of your ability or not giving your best
effort and/or not following directions/instructions from teacher)
Not having required materials (This includes folder and pencil on selected days)
Truancies (This includes any unexcused absences to school or to class or an unexcused tardy that is more
than 5 minutes late to class). Students will lose 5 participation points for the first offense, 7 for the second, 9
for the third and so on.
Tardiness to Girl's Locker Room and/or to Class (1 point for each tardy-Detention on 4th and referral on 5th
and every one after the 5th is a referral)*Any points that are deducted for any of the above situations cannot
be made up.
*If a student feels sick and is unable to participate fully or participate through modifications, he/she must
communicate to the teacher first and then get a note from the nurse or already have a note from home excusing the
student from participating in class. If a student sits out for more than 3 consecutive days, a doctor’s note will need
to be obtained. Otherwise, points will be deducted for sitting out of class past three consecutive days. All written
and/or skills dance work is still expected to be completed on time and the student is expected to stay with the pace of
the class upon return to full or modified participation.
**This syllabus is subject to change without notice.
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