Holly Arbon

Dance 276
Pam Musil
10/21/2013
Final Paper
Throughout our experience in Dance 276, we had a wonderful opportunity to
make several visits to school in the surrounding valley. I greatly value the great
examples that we were able to observe and hope that I can remember and apply much
of what was demonstrated.
In the elementary schools that we observed, there were good examples of
incorporating the core content from other classes into movement learning and
exploration. Jana Shumway was a great example of this, we were able to observe two
different grade levels and see different materials and applications taught through
movement. One idea that I particularly enjoyed was the fact that in addition to exploring
and learning, the students were also preparing for a performance for their parents that
would allow them to present the material that they were working so hard to master.
Another technique demonstrated by Jana was an effective way to communicate
and expect a certain level of commitment, participation and understanding. At one point
during the lesson the students were asked to travel along a longitudinal line. Some of
the students followed paths that were not along that line. Jana then told the students
that it was not quite what she was looking for and she called upon several of the
students to explain the characteristics of a longitudinal line so that the students
understood why it wasnt correct. Jana had them repeat it perhaps 10-12 times.

However, the students werent frustrated or bored to do it again. Jana was positive and
encouraging and her energy kept the kids excited. This is a key to remember as a
teacher, your energy level and attitude will influence the energy and attitude of your
students.
In observing Chelsea Alley in the elementary school setting, we saw a great
example of using the BEST principles to teach young children. Chelsea also
incorporated some material that would be covered in their other subjects. One thing
that especially stands out in my memory is the way that she involved and validated all of
the students through her questions. For example, she would say, if your favorite
season is fall, wiggle your fingers. If your favorite season is summer, roll your
shoulders. In this format, she was involving each of the students without taking the
time to go around the room and ask each child individually about their input.
The thing that stood out to me most about the junior high and middle school
settings was the ability of the teachers to involve familiar movement to help them feel
comfortable and then push them a little bit further. In several of the schools, the
teachers would use genres or movement styles that the students thought were cool.
This kept the students focus and energy at a high level. The teachers would then add
in aspects of the creative process and challenging movement, interspersed with the
familiar, to keep pushing the students. I thought that this approach was wise so that the
students were still engaged but were gradually learning to be more open-minded in their
thinking.
Sydnee Shumway had a wonderful program for middle school students. As she
taught, she expected and received a high level of performance. Another thing that I

realized through these observations is that the popularity of the program influences the
quality of the program. In the school where the students thought that it was cool to be
in the dance program, there were more boys, more total students and a great energy
and sense of participation. In Sydnees class each of the students on her company had
received a sweats outfit and backpack with the dance company logo and theme. This
was great advertisement and also helps to unify and excite the group of students. As
the students already had a great relationship with Sydnee, they were able to explore
and improvise without thinking it was funny or weird. The students were focused and
excited about the challenge of contact improvisation.
In the high school observations, I was impressed by the application of real life
experiences to the content in the classroom. One example that stands out in my mind
is the Westlake High School observation. Kelli was introducing a new unit on the day
that we observed and it gave me a lot of ideas and excitement to create my own course
content. In addition to introducing the concepts of dance and choreography that they
would be exploring, the unit also focused on identity. Kelli used youtube clips to
introduce the concepts they would be working on and I feel that this helped to engage
the students and stimulate a good discussion. I was excited by the discussions and
topics that were present in the booklets of information that she passed out. It made the
class seem well organized and showed how the students were going to apply real-life
situations and issues to their in-class experiences.
Another captivating high school class observation was at Provo High School.
Annie had a great student-teacher relationship in that she was obviously a friend to her
students but was also able to take on the teacher in charge role at the same time. Her

teaching process made me want to get up and dance right along with the class. She
kept the class going at a pretty quick pace but she wouldnt through too much info at
them at once. Annie would teach small chunks of choreography and then have them
add on. She wouldnt spend much time discussing the how to steps but would
demonstrate and expect them to try and mimic her movement. It was a good example
of being challenging enough to keep her students interested without pushing them too
far too fast and overwhelming the students.
As we observed all of these great teachers, with different background stories and
levels of experience, we were given a lot to think about to influence our own personal
teaching philosophies.
Statements of Belief: One thing that stood out to me that I hadnt considered in
great detail before was regarding the aspect of discipline. The book Teaching with
Love and Logic written by Jim Fay and David Funk is one that I discovered in this class
and then went to the library to check out and study in greater depth. I am still making
my way through reading the book but I value the general philosophies presented. The
idea is to involve the students a little bit more in the discipline process. To ask
questions, discipline on your own time and help them come to the conclusion by
themselves of why the particular task is wrong. The book includes many sample
dialogues that help to clarify and model the idea. It is a concept that I have been
applying in my work as a Spanish teacher. One the rare occasion that I have a student
who loses their cool, I have seen first hand that waiting for them to calm down a little bit
and then addressing the issue one on one has several benefits. One of those being
that the teacher has less need to raise her voice and feel so demanding and exhausted

because the student plays a part in the decisions and the discipline and if you wait until
the moment of rebellion has past then you will both be in a clearer thinking mind.
One thing that I feel that I gained from the McCutcheon text was the fact that
each student that we teach is an individual with different needs, desires and talents.
The book teaches that we should base our curriculum and teaching around the needs of
the student. This student centered learning will help the students to develop and
progress more rapidly as dancers and as people. I want my students to leave my class
with a better appreciation for dance, a greater love and understanding of other cultures
and a greater connection to who they are and their own divine identity.
Dance Education is valuable in the schools because it helps the students to
connect to their spirits. as well as engage intellectually and physically. I want my
students to strengthen in their technique, understanding of, and love for the art of
dance. I also want my students to engage with their mind, body and spirit as they are
improvising and creating. As they are able to do this it will show that they understand
and connect to the content and I can assess my teaching through their participation and
performance.
I know that I wont be able to preach the gospel in my classroom but I feel that I
can still have a positive impact on the spirituality of my students through setting a good
example and fostering a safe but challenging environment in the classroom.

I believe that the gospel of Jesus Christ is essential and that acting on those
principles will bring peace, guidance and assurance. I believe that as people we are all
more alike than we are different. We all have desires, needs and heartbreaks. We all
have infinite value, worth and potential. I believe that cultivating an enthusiasm for

learning/education is essential for progression. Nothing is more fulfilling than helping

someone catch that vision and move forward.
Works Cited
Fay, Jim, and David Funk. Teaching with Love and Logic. Golden, CO: The Love and
Logic Press, Inc., 1995. Print.
McCutchen, Brenda. Teaching Dance as Art in Education. 2006. Print.