Grade by Grade
A. Dance / C. Music · Music and Dance

Dance: My Body Can Dance

A1.1 A1.4 A2.1 A2.2About 30 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can name the five elements of dance: body, space, time, energy and relationship.
  • I can turn everyday movements, like brushing my teeth, into dance moves.
  • I can make body shapes: wide, narrow, curved and angular.
  • I can use different body shapes to show a feeling or an idea.
  • I can tell how a dance move is different from the everyday move it came from.

Words to know

dance
Moving your body in a special way to show a feeling, an idea or a story.
elements of dance
The five parts every dance uses: body, space, time, energy and relationship.
body shape
The shape your whole body makes, like wide, narrow, curved or angular.
wide
Spread out, taking up lots of room side to side, like a star.
narrow
Thin and close together, like a pencil.
curved
Round and bendy, like a ball or the letter C.
angular
Pointy, with sharp bends at the elbows and knees, like the letter Z.
freeze
To stop and hold perfectly still in a shape.

Let's start with a stretch

When you wake up in the morning, what is the first thing you do? Maybe you stretch your arms up high and yawn.

Try it now! Stretch up... and yawn... and flop down.

Guess what? You just made a tiny dance!

What is dance?

Dance is moving your body in a special way. Dancers use movement to show a feeling, an idea or a story.

You do not need fancy shoes or a stage. You can dance in your kitchen, in the snow or at a party. Your body is your dance tool.

Children in colourful snowsuits stand in a snowy backyard with their arms stretched out wide, seen from a distance.
You can dance anywhere, even in the snow! These dancers are making wide shapes with their arms. AI-generated image
ElementQuestion it asksExample
BodyWhat moves?arms, legs, head; wide or narrow shapes
SpaceWhere does it move?high or low, forward or backward
TimeWhen and how fast?fast or slow, freeze
EnergyHow does it move?strong or light, smooth or sharp
RelationshipWho or what do I move with?near or far, alone or together
The five elements of dance. In Grade 1 we focus most on the element of body.

Body shapes

Your body can make lots of shapes. Here are four kinds:

  • Wide: arms and legs spread out, like a big star.
  • Narrow: arms by your sides, tall and thin, like a pencil.
  • Curved: round and bendy, like a ball or a sleeping cat.
  • Angular: pointy bends at your elbows and knees, like a robot.
widenarrowcurvedangular
Four body shapes: wide, narrow, curved and angular.

Shapes can talk

Body shapes can send a message without any words!

  • A wide shape can say "I am big and strong!" or "Hooray!"
  • A narrow shape can say "I am shy" or "I am hiding behind a tree."
  • A curved shape can say "I am sleepy" or "I am cozy."
  • An angular shape can say "I am a robot" or "I am grumpy."

These are contrasting shapes. Contrasting means very different, like wide and narrow.

Everyday moves become dance moves

You move all day long. You walk, reach, brush your teeth and zip your coat. These are everyday moves.

A dancer can take an everyday move and change it:

  • Make it bigger or smaller.
  • Make it faster or slower.
  • Do it high up or low down.
  • Repeat it, or add a freeze at the end.
1. Real move:pull on a toque2. Make it BIGand slowx33. Repeat 3 times,lower each time4. Wide shapeand FREEZE!
An everyday move becomes a dance phrase: make it big and slow, repeat it lower each time, then end in a wide freeze.
Worked example

Example: Turning "putting on my snowsuit" into dance

Let's make a dance move from getting ready to play in the snow.

  1. Do the real move first. Pretend to pull on snow pants, zip your coat and pull on a toque.
  2. Pick one part: pulling on the toque.
  3. Make it big. Reach your arms way up high and pull the toque down slowly, slowly, slowly.
  4. Repeat it 3 times. Each time, go a little lower, until you are crouched down low.
  5. End with a wide shape and a freeze, like you are ready to jump into a snowbank!

Now it is a dance phrase: big slow toque pull, three times, getting lower, then a wide freeze. It is different from the real move because it is bigger, slower, repeated and ends in a shape.

Just for fun

What kind of party do snowmen dance at?

A snow ball, of course!

Worked example

Example: What does this shape say?

Ava curls up in a small, round curved shape. Then she suddenly jumps into a big wide shape. What idea could she be showing?

  1. Look at the first shape: small, round and curved. It could be a seed under the snow, or someone sleeping.
  2. Look at the second shape: big and wide. It could be a flower opening, or someone waking up happy.
  3. The shapes contrast: small and curved, then big and wide.

Ava could be showing a seed growing into a flower in spring, or waking up. The contrast between the curved shape and the wide shape shows a big change.

Hands-on activity

Freeze dance with shapes

You need: some music you like and a grown-up or sibling.

  1. Play music and dance any way you like.
  2. When the grown-up pauses the music, they call out a shape: wide, narrow, curved or angular. Freeze in that shape!
  3. Next time they call out a feeling instead: happy, scared, sleepy, mad. Freeze in a shape that shows the feeling.
  4. Switch jobs. You call the shapes and the grown-up dances.

Talk about it: "Which shape did you use for scared? Why?"

Your turn

1

Make a wide shape. Now make a narrow shape. How are they different?

2

Name the five elements of dance.

3

Show a curved shape. What could it be?

4

Pick an everyday move, like brushing your teeth. Make it big and slow. Then make it small and fast.

5

Which shape would you use to show "I am proud!": a wide shape or a small curved shape?

6

Make an angular shape. Which body parts are bent?

7

Your grown-up waves goodbye. Then they wave goodbye in a dance way. What changed?

More practice: warm-up

1

What is your main tool for dancing?

2

Show me a freeze.

3

Is a pencil shape wide or narrow?

4

Is a star shape wide or narrow?

5

Name one everyday move you did today.

More practice: on your own

1

Show a shape for sleepy. Tell why you chose it.

2

Turn shovelling snow into a dance move. What did you change?

3

What does contrasting mean? Show two contrasting shapes.

4

Your friend is in a tall, narrow shape, hiding behind a door. What message does the shape send?

5

Which elements of dance ask "How fast?" and "Where?"

Challenge

1

Make a mini dance with 3 shapes in a row: one wide, one curved, one angular. Freeze for 3 counts in each. Can you do it twice the same way?

2

Mo jumps and spreads out like a star. Lily curls up small. Which one looks excited? How do you know?

3

Watch your grown-up eat a pretend apple. Then watch them do it as a dance. Tell two things that were different.

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

What is the main tool a dancer uses?

2.

Which shape is narrow?

3.

Which is not one of the elements of dance?

4.

Which shape would best show "I am scared and hiding"?

5.

Sam turns "washing his hands" into a dance. Which change makes it a dance move?

6.

Wide and narrow are ___ shapes.

For parents and teachers

Big idea: In Grade 1, dance focuses on the element of body, especially body shapes, and on turning everyday movements into dance. Children should notice that a shape can send a message.

How to help:

  • Clear a safe space (move the coffee table!) and dance in socks or bare feet, not slippery tights.
  • Play "Freeze in a shape" during chores: "Freeze like you're carrying the laundry basket!"
  • Ask "What did you change?" after your child turns an everyday move into dance. Naming the change (bigger, slower, repeated, freeze) is the thinking part.

Common difficulties:

  • Not freezing fully. Count "1, 2, 3" out loud while they hold still.
  • Shy about moving. Dance together, and keep it silly and private at first. There is no wrong way to make a shape.
  • Mixing up curved and angular. Curved = round like a ball; angular = pointy elbows and knees like a robot.