Minds On

Today’s vocabulary

Press the following tabs to access definitions of two concepts.

In dance, a strategy used to translate a sequence of action words into dance.

A choreographic form in which one soloist or group performs, followed by a second soloist or group whose performance responds to the first.

Let’s get started!

Dance can be a powerful way to explore issues of social justice. Through movement, a dancer can explore an issue and possible solutions or outcomes to the issue.

Access this video with a dance piece about young people’s relationship with social media.

Press ‘Description’ to access the description of this video.

Description

The clip begins with a blackout on stage. The sound of a phone ringing is heard. The lights come up on a stage full of dancers. The lights are brightly coloured, with a yellow background, and illuminate the whole stage. They are all wearing brightly coloured shorts and white T-shirts with different social media logos on them (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, etc.).

When the lights come up, the dancers are frozen in various poses looking at their phones. You hear several notification dings in a row. With each ding, several dancers come out of their freeze and stand in a neutral pose (feet shoulder-width apart, arm at side) looking at their phones. By the 10th ding, all dancers are standing in neutral. There is another, lower-sounding ding, and all dancers freeze in different selfie poses. Another ding happens and the dancers return to normal.

The sound of a mouse clicking is heard and all dancers shrug their shoulders. The sound of the mouse-clicking and social media notifications can be heard layered on top of the music. The dancers begin marching, turning in different directions to all face a different way (e.g., some facing front, some facing to the back, some facing to stage right and some facing to stage left). They continue marching, looking at their phones and rotating to face different directions. They finish all facing the audience.

In unison, they all take a step to the left and bring both arms up and in front of their bodies in a punching motion. As the hands come back down in front of them, they step back to centre. They repeat this step to the left again, twice more. Then in canon (one after another, like a wave) starting on the left side they freeze in various poses, looking at their phones.

Then, in unison, they all freeze in a selfie pose, holding their phones up in their right hand and looking right. They then go back to individual frozen poses looking at their phone for a beat. A solo dancer on the left then holds up their phone as if to snap a picture and all the other dancers turn to look as if posing for the photo.

Pause and Reflect

Pause and reflect

How did the dancers convey their message?
What elements of dance did they use (e.g., body shape, use of freeze, etc.)?
What additional tools did they use (e.g., props)?
How can dance be an effective medium for communicating ideas about social issues?

Exploring a choice board

A choice board is a graphic organizer made up of several squares. Each square offers a different activity or choice. Select one issue from the choice board, or another topic of your choice, that you would like to explore further through dance.

gender equity	clean water	employment supports
pollution	energy use	land claims
housing options	natural resource extraction	access to healthcare

Action

Get ready, get set…

Task 1: Brainstorming

Using the following graphic organizer, or a method of your choice, brainstorm what you know about the issue you chose on the left, and possible actions that can be taken or solutions on the right.

Complete the Brainstorming Organizer in your notebook or using the following fillable and printable document. If you would like, you can use speech-to-text or audio recording tools to record your thoughts. Consider adding your work to your portfolio.

My Topic:
What I know about this topic: (who is affected, what is happening currently, how do I feel about this, etc.)	Some actions I could take, or possible solutions to this issue:
Example: Deforestation is being caused by harvesting of palm oil	Example: read labels and consciously choose to buy products that do not contain palm oil
My ideas:	My ideas:

My Topic:

What I know about this topic:

(who is affected, what is happening currently, how do I feel about this, etc.)

Some actions I could take, or possible solutions to this issue:

Example: Deforestation is being caused by harvesting of palm oil

Example: read labels and consciously choose to buy products that do not contain palm oil

My ideas:

Press the ‘Activity’ button to access Brainstorming Organizer.

Activity

Go!

Task 2: Creating dance pieces

Revisit the brainstorming you did in the previous section. Underline the verbs you used to describe the issue and the actions that could be taken.

Description

Two teachers with speech bubbles. Teacher A says: “verbs are easier to translate into dance because they are action words.” Teacher B says: “A verb chain uses a series of verbs as a “recipe” for translating verbs into movement.”

Using the graphic organizer, or a method of your choice, record the verbs you underlined. (If you have underlined many verbs, choose six for each section.)

Tip: Choose interesting verbs that will translate well into movement!

Complete the My Verbs Organizer in your notebook or using the following fillable and printable document. If you would like, you can use speech-to-text or audio recording tools to record your thoughts. Consider adding your work to your portfolio.

My Topic:
Verbs about the Issue:		Verbs about the actions that can be taken:
Example: Harvesting	How this idea can be translated into movement:	Example: Choose	How this idea can be translated into movement:
1.		1.
2.		2.
3.		3.
4.		4.
5.		5.
6.		6.

Press the ‘Activity’ button to access My Verbs Organizer.

Activity

Consider what you know about the elements of dance.

Body	What is your body doing? Consider the following questions: What different body bases could you use to create a shape with your body? What different body parts could you move? How many different locomotor and non-locomotor movement could you create? Could you create symmetry in your body? What about asymmetry? What kinds of angular shapes could you make? What kind of curved shapes could you make?
Space	Where is your body moving? Consider the following questions: How could you move at a high, middle, or low level? What different pathways could you travel (in a straight line, in a zigzag, backwards)? If you are dancing with someone else, how is it different when you dance close together vs. far apart?
Time	When is the body moving? (in relation to time) Consider the following questions: How could you move at various speeds (e.g., fast, medium, slow)? How it is different dancing to music vs. dancing without music? Could you add a pause or a moment of stillness into your movements?
Energy	How is the body moving? Consider the following questions: How could you move lightly (e.g., as if you are a balloon floating through the sky, as if you are an astronaut in outer space? How could you move as if your body was heavy (e.g., as if you were pushing a big piece of furniture across the floor, as if you were moving through thick mud)? What is an example of a sudden movement? What is an example of a sustained movement?
Relationship	Who or what is the body moving with? Consider the following questions: How might dancers meet or part in a dance piece? How could emotions or facial expressions be added to movements? How could you move around, under or over a prop?

How might you translate these ideas into movement?

Complete the My Dance Piece in your notebook or using the following fillable and printable document. If you would like, you can use speech-to-text or audio recording tools to record your thoughts. Consider adding your work to your portfolio.

Press the Activity button to access the My Dance Piece.

Activity

If possible, rehearse the movements.

Safety

Before you begin, consider these safety precautions:

Wear comfortable clothing and proper shoes for the activity. Use the appropriate equipment for the activity. Be sure to check your equipment before use. If you are unsure if the equipment you are using is safe, please check in with a teacher and/or parent/guardian. Complete the activity in a safe environment with enough space, so you aren’t bumping into any objects. Listen to your body. Do the modifications, take breaks or stop the activity if you are feeling unwell.

Task 3: Consider choreographic forms

Now that you have created your movements, consider how you might organize the dance. For example, you might keep all the verbs about the issue together to create one sequence. Then, all the verbs that suggest possible actions could become a second sequence.

One teacher with a speach bubble, saying "This would create a call and response dance piece."

Alternatively, you might choose to alternate the verbs, dancing one of the verbs from the first column and then one of the verbs from the second column. Continue alternating between the two columns until you have used all your verbs.

One teacher with a speech bubble, saying "This would create an ABABABAB pattern."

Are there other ways you could sequence your dance piece? If possible, try practising a few different ways to identify which way works best.

Record your ideas using the appropriate graphic organizer or use a method of your choice.

If possible, share your dance piece with a partner!

Option 1: Complete the Graphic Organizer for Binary (‘A B’) Form in your notebook or using the following fillable and printable document. If you would like, you can use speech-to-text or audio recording tools to record your thoughts.

Graphic Organizer for Binary (‘A B’) Form
A Section:	Write or draw your ideas here:
B Section:	Write or draw your ideas here:
A Section:	Write or draw your ideas here:
B Section:	Write or draw your ideas here:
A Section:	Write or draw your ideas here:
B Section:	Write or draw your ideas here:

Press the ‘Activity’ button to access Graphic Organizer for Binary (‘A B’) Form.

Activity

Option 2: Complete the Graphic Organizer for Call and Response Form in your notebook or using the following fillable and printable document. If you would like, you can use speech-to-text or audio recording tools to record your thoughts.

Graphic Organizer for Call and Response Form
Call section:	Write or draw your ideas here:
Response section:	Write or draw your ideas here:

Press the ‘Activity’ button to access Graphic Organizer for Call and Response Form.

Activity

Consolidation

Putting it all together

Portfolio

Review your learning

Use the following questions to reflect on your learning. Consider adding your answers to the reflection questions to your portfolio.

Did changing the order of the movements impact the message of the piece? Explain your thinking.
What was your experience of creating a dance piece to explore an issue of social or environmental justice?
How does playing around with the order of movements help make you a better choreographer?

Record your responses using a method of your choice.

Reflection

As you read the following descriptions, select the one that best describes your current understanding of the learning in this activity. Press the corresponding button once you have made your choice.

I feel…

I have an excellent understanding of the concepts I have a very good understanding of the concepts I have some understanding but need to review some more my understanding of the concepts needs a lot more work

Now, expand on your ideas by recording your thoughts using a voice recorder, speech-to-text, or writing tool.

When you review your notes on this learning activity later, reflect on whether you would select a different description based on your further review of the material in this learning activity.

Learning goals

Success criteria

Minds On

Today’s vocabulary