Why We Do What We Do

Why We Do What We Do
My teaching philosophy is best described by using the following analogy. A building does not stand tall for years on end without a good foundation. Weather its building a house, an apartment, a church, or a skyscraper, the foundation is the most important element for the building to stand tall for years. If a child can start out with the right knowledge to live a physically active lifestyle they have more of a chance to continue to live while being physically active. Pouring the concrete on a foundation is a lot like being a physical educator, most people don’t see what all is happening during that foundation process but in the long run that building is standing tall because of the right person doing their part correctly.
Chapter 1: How do you think creative dance is different from creative movement? How are they similar?
I’ve always thought that creative movement and dance are both an enjoyable way for young children to develop their physical skills, channel their energy, stimulate their imagination and promote their creativity. Creative dance, unlike creative movement, involves using body actions to communicate an image (the wind), an idea (a journey) or a feeling (strength). Many early childhood educators recognize young children's primary need to express themselves through movement. Some teachers include creative movement exploration to enhance other curriculum areas such as language and literature, science, art and outdoor play.
Chapter 1: Throughout children’s education,…… What unique contributions does dance make to a child’s development?
Dance gives children a physical way to express their thoughts, understandings, ideas, and feelings. Many young students have different amounts of stress in their home/school lives and dance could provide a release that the child needs. This is very important to teach children to channel emotion into a safe controlled state that will not harm them or others.
Chapter 1: How would I get students to participate without being self-conscious?
Chapter 2: how would you prioritize the content you will teach for a yearlong plan in dance?
Personally I would try to ease the children into the idea that dance is a good thing and to make the children feel safe and not self-conscious around each other. Once they are comfortable with the idea and open to different forms I would start off with basic dance moves and then work to more advanced forms. I would make sure that the students understood the present content before I move to the next portion of my lesson plan.
Chapter 2: What do you see as the significance of……..What other curricular areas can you integrate with dance?
I think that integrating movement/dance is a very important part of teaching. More times than not now days, students get stuck in a desk all day and are expected to learn subjects that they might not even care about. I think that if the students were to be consumed in the activity or subject of the class they might be more prompted to actually learn the material. Even now I remember my 3rd grade teacher that had us always be physically active while teaching us basic math. I think that teachers need to switch up the way they teach so students don’t have to be forced to just sit in their desks all day. This method of teaching can be used to teach almost any subject in school. I think if the teachers are creative enough they can integrate movement into any lesson they teach.
Chapter 2: What is the best way to progress through dances? What would be some easier ones they medium hard, then actual hard ones?