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

Dance: Body and Space Tell a Story

A1.2 A2.2About 35 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can find the main idea in a poem or story and show it with dance.
  • I can use body parts and body shapes (curved, straight, angular, twisted, wide, narrow) to show meaning.
  • I can use space: levels, directions, pathways, and personal and general space.
  • I can explain how the body and space parts of a dance help tell the story.

Words to know

main idea
What a story or poem is mostly about.
body shape
The shape your body makes, like curved, straight, angular (with corners), twisted, wide or narrow.
personal space
The space all around you that you can reach without moving from your spot, like a bubble.
general space
All the shared space in the room that dancers travel through.
direction
Which way you are facing or going: forward, backward, sideways, up or down.
size
How big or small a movement is.

A dance without words

Can you tell a whole story without saying anything? Dancers do it all the time!

In this lesson, you will read a short poem or story, find its main idea, and show it using two elements of dance: your body and space.

Body: what shape am I?

Your body can make many shapes:

  • curved (round, like a ball or a rainbow)
  • straight (like a pencil or a hockey stick)
  • angular (with corners and sharp bends, like a lightning bolt)
  • twisted (one part turns one way and another part turns the other way, like a pretzel)
  • wide (spread out, like a star) or narrow (thin, like a zipper)

You can also lead with one body part: an elbow, your head, a knee, your fingertips.

A grey striped cat curled up in a tight round ball, sleeping on a fluffy white blanket by a window.
This cat has made a curved body shape, round like a ball. Can you make the same curved shape with your body, then change it to a wide or twisted one? AI-generated image
curvedlike a ballstraightlike a pencilangularsharp cornerswidelike a starnarrowlike a zipper
Five body shapes a dancer can make. A twisted shape mixes them: one part of you turns one way while another part turns the other way.

Space: where am I going?

  • Levels: high, middle, low.
  • Directions: forward, backward, sideways, up, down.
  • Pathways: straight, curved, zigzag, spiral, on the floor or in the air.
  • Size: big moves or small moves.
  • Personal space is your own bubble. General space is the whole room you share with others.
personal spacegeneral spacespiral
Left: your personal space bubble. Middle: travelling through general space. Right: a spiral pathway, new this year.

From words to moves

  1. Read the poem or story.
  2. Find the main idea. What is it mostly about?
  3. Pick key words that are full of action or feeling (melt, grow, crash, hide).
  4. Choose body shapes and space for each key word.
  5. Join them into a dance phrase.
Worked example

Example: Dancing a poem

Read this poem:

A tiny seed sleeps in the ground, All curled up, without a sound. Spring rain falls, the sun shines bright, It stretches up with all its might, Leaves spread wide to touch the sky, A sunflower waving, "Hi!"

  1. Main idea: a seed grows into a tall sunflower.
  2. Key words: curled up, stretches up, spread wide, waving.
  3. curled up → a small, curved shape at a low level, inside your personal space.
  4. stretches up → rise slowly from low to high, body getting straight and narrow.
  5. spread wide → arms and legs open into a wide shape at a high level.
  6. waving → sway your top half gently side to side, then freeze.

The dance goes from small, curved and low to big, wide and high. The change in body shape and level shows the main idea: the seed grows.

Worked example

Example: How space shows feelings in a story

In a story, a shy new student stands alone at recess. Then a friend asks her to play, and they run around the playground together. How can space show this?

  1. Alone and shy: a narrow, curved shape at a middle level, in a corner of the room, with small moves in personal space.
  2. The friend comes: the friend travels in a curved pathway toward her and stops near her.
  3. Playing together: both dancers travel through general space with big moves, side by side, in zigzag and curved pathways.

Using small moves and a small space shows shyness. Big moves through general space show happiness and freedom. Space changes tell the story's main idea: making a new friend.

Just for fun

Why did the dancer bring a ladder to class?

She wanted to get to the high level!

Hands-on activity

Dance a story from your bookshelf

You need: a picture book or a short poem, and a little open space.

  1. Read the book or poem with your grown-up.
  2. Say the main idea in one sentence.
  3. Choose 3 key moments. For each, decide on a body shape (curved, straight, angular, twisted, wide or narrow) and a space choice (level, direction, pathway or size).
  4. Practise the 3 moments as one dance phrase. Use a freeze between each.
  5. Perform it while your grown-up reads the words.
  6. Explain one choice: "I used a twisted shape because the troll was grumpy and mixed up."

Your turn

1

Make a twisted shape.

2

Make an angular shape. What makes it angular?

3

Walk backward slowly in a straight pathway.

4

Show the difference between personal space and general space.

5

What is the main idea of the story Goldilocks and the Three Bears?

6

In a poem, a balloon floats up and pops. Which level would you start at and finish at?

7

Make a spiral pathway with your finger in the air, then walk one on the floor.

More practice: warm-up

1

Make a wide shape.

2

Make a narrow shape.

3

Make a curved shape at a low level.

4

Move sideways across the room.

5

Make a big wave, then a small wave.

More practice: on your own

1

Read: "The wind blew the leaves off the maple tree. They swirled and drifted down to the ground." What is the main idea, and which pathway would you use for swirled?

2

Show an icicle melting. Which body shape and level do you start and end with?

3

Your dance is about a scared kitten. Would you use big moves or small moves? Why?

4

Show a proud king or queen walking. Which body shape and direction fit?

5

Two dancers show two friends meeting. How could their pathways show it?

Challenge

1

Read: "The volcano rumbled, grumbled, then BOOM! Hot lava spread out slowly over the land." Plan a dance using at least two body shapes and two space choices.

2

Why might a dancer use a twisted, angular shape for a grumpy troll but a curved, smooth shape for a gentle bunny?

3

A dancer travels forward with big moves, then backward with small moves. What story idea could this show? Explain.

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

A shape with sharp corners, like a lightning bolt, is ___.

2.

The space all around you that you can reach without moving from your spot is ___.

3.

A poem says a seed grows into a tall tree. Which dance shows the main idea best?

4.

Which is a direction?

5.

A path that circles around and around, like a snail shell, is a ___ pathway.

6.

A dancer shows a shy character. Which choice fits best?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: In Grade 2, students use dance to represent the main ideas of poems and stories, with a focus on the elements of body (body parts, body shapes) and space (levels, directions, pathways, size, personal and general space), and they explain how those choices communicate meaning.

How to help:

  • After reading together, ask: "What was this mostly about?" Then: "How could we show that with our bodies?"
  • Keep a list of shape words on the fridge (curved, straight, angular, twisted, wide, narrow) and call them out during freeze dance.
  • Ask your child to explain one choice: "Why did you go low there?" This links dance to reading comprehension.

Common difficulties:

  • Copying every word of the story. Help them choose just 3 key moments.
  • Staying at one level. Challenge them: "Can you show that same idea low? High?"
  • Bumping into furniture during general space work. Practise travelling slowly and stopping on a signal.