PE Unit Plan- Grade One Dance

The goals of this unit are to teach the students fundamental dance skills, to create

community among the students, and to celebrate what the students bring to the class. The unit is

organized so it is teacher-led but also has multiple opportunities for students to share their own

knowledge and ideas. Each student brings a uniqueness to the classroom, and our dance unit

offers the opportunity for the class to learn that and to learn about each other.

This unit will be connected to the social studies, science, and math curriculum because

cross-curricular connects allow students to explore concepts in multiple ways. Specifically this

unit connects to My Community (SS), Plants and Animals (Science) and Number Sense (Math).

The outcomes for this unit are in the table below. They have been written as I Can statements that

are easier for the students to understand. Some of the I Can statements can be combined before they are

presented to the students, so that they have less to focus on. These statements will be referred to

throughout the unit and will be used during discussion and assessment. Through discussion of what these

statements mean, the students will have a stronger understanding of the goal and purpose of the unit.

Outcome I Can...
A1-1 - use dance moves to get from place to place
A1-8 - use music or what I see to make up dances
A1-9 - move my body in different ways when I dance (fast/slow, over/under)
B1-6 -explain how dance makes me feel
B1-8 - say why parts of dance make me feel good
C1-1 - work with a partner/group to dance
D1-1 - participate in different class activities
D1-7 - challenge myself to try something new

Throughout each lesson students will be able to share what they know about dance, or

any imaginative and creative ideas they have about dance. They will be working individually and

in groups so that they are able to explore by themselves but still share with each other and

connect. Additionally students will learn about the larger community and the styles of dance that
are most common in the area. This may be incorporated into a larger social project or interview

that students do outside of gym class time.

 Lesson Instructional
Order GLO SLO Learning Activities Assessment Safety Equipment Motivation
Title Strategies
-Dance KWL (movement - KWL - warm-up and -Direct - clips with -teacher excitement
and corners to answer -Feeling Clips cool down Instruction names -sharing knowledge
questions) -music away from - paper scale with classmates
A1-1 - Ways of Moving (which area of feelings
Intro to A, B,
1 B1-6 parts can we move,? how?) -clothing and -simon says
Dance C
C1-1 - Simon Says shoes idea sheet
-Feeling Clips (end activity) -space for all kids
-flat, non-slippery
area
-Octopus game with dance - Observation - warm-up and -TGFU - music -playing an
moves (galloping, leaping, -Questioning cool down -Direct playlist imaginative game
skipping etc) -music away from Instruction -speakers -music that they like
A1-8 -Windy Day (turns/spins area -spelling -teacher excitement
Dancing
2 A, D A1-9 game) -clothing and charts
to Music
D1-1 -Dance spelling (use class shoes
spelling words/names) -space for all kids
-Freeze dance (practice what -flat, non-slippery
we've been learning) area
-Outdoor movements (how -Observation -weather - connect to - cones -exploring a new
do our things outside move- - Discussion -objects in playing Sci (Plants and -hula hoops space
can we move like them) - Trying Line area Animals) -sharing new ideas
A1-8 -Using space/levels (tiny like -allergies/asthma -TGFU -teacher excitement
Outdoor A, B,
3 B1-8 grass, tall like trees etc) -clothing -Direct
Dance D
D1-7 -Squirrel Dive (rolling when Instruction
squirrel comes)
-Our bodies and dance (how
do moves make us feel?)
-Hokey Pokey (warmup, - Observation - warm-up and -Peer -music of -working with a peer
practice ways of moving) - Peer cool down Teach/Group different to share ideas and
A1-9 -Rabbit and Turtle (slow and Feedback -music away from Work speeds celebrate
Partner A, C,
4 C1-1 fast game- music to match) area -TGFU -speakers -teacher excitement
Dances D
D1-7 -Mirror dance (with a -clothing and -cones -playing a game
partner, try tall/short, shoes
fast/slow) -space for all kids
 -flat, non-slippery
area
-Ukrainian - Observation - warm-up and - connect to - Videos -celebrating each
-German - Feelings cool down SS (My (computer or other and what
-British corners -music away from Community) ipad) makes our
A1-1 -First Nations area -Direct -music community unique
Cultural A, B,
5 B1-8 -(add kids from class -clothing and Instruction -speakers
Dances D
D1-1 background/community) shoes -specific
-space for all kids dance props
-flat, non-slippery
area
-Colours game (dance - Observation - warm-up and -Direct -ribbons - performance
movements to spot around -Worksheet cool down Instruction -music
gym) (from -music away from -Peer -speakers
Perform A1-1 -Dance and emotions implementatio area Teach/Group -worksheet
A, B,
6 ance B1-6 (dancing with emotion, how n guide) -clothing and Work -crayons
D
Day D1-7 it makes us feel) shoes -ribbon
-Ribbon Dance (to prompts, -space for all kids dance
perform for small group) -flat, non-slippery prompts
area

Notes:

General Dance Safety

 proper warm-up and cool down

 music working properly and away from playing area
 appropriate clothing and shoes
 space for all kids
 flat, non-slippery playing area
 are students ready for leaping/jumping, can they do it without getting hurt (modifications?)
Resources

https://www.730sagestreet.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/your-name-workout-kids.pdf
(pword: kids)

 Dance and Body Worksheet- from Alberta Physical Implementation guide

 Dance checklists- from Alberta Physical Implementation guide
Assessment Plan

Since this unit would ideally be done at the beginning of the Grade One year, most of the

students will still be learning to read and write, so their assessments will focus on observation,

discussion and visuals.

Formative assessment is a very important part of this unit because as a teacher, you need

to be constantly assessing students ability level. Kids in Grade 1 may not have strong body and

spacial awareness, so assessing their abilities is important to ensure safety. Observation will

allow the teacher to determine if students are ready to move on to more complex moves, or if

they need to focus solely on basic fundamental movement skills. Movements like leaping,

jumping and skipping have potential to injure students if they are pushed too quickly and

observation will allow teachers to know where students are at. As well, the teacher will use

student feedback to tailor lessons to their interests, abilities and community. This encourages the

students to share with each other, build relationships and engage in the material.

The main summative assessment of the students will be anecdotal notes. Each lesson will

have 1-3 points that the teacher will watch for during the lesson, based on the lesson objectives.

For example if the lesson has an objective based on galloping, the teacher may watch to see if the

student can gallop where their back foot does not pass their front foot, and if they can do it

without falling. At the end of the unit, these notes will be compiled as evidence of the students

progress throughout. These notes will be made by observing the activities and during class

discussions. Depending on the class size the teacher will either pick a handful of students to

closely watch that do, or they can do the entire class. This way, each student can be assessed

throughout the unit on their progress and not be marked based on one bad day.
 Anecdotal notes will also be used to assess students observations about their feelings and

how dance impacts their body, however since there are restrictions on what you can record, other

methods will also be used. Due to the students reading and writing skills, this assessment will be

done visual. Throughout the unit they will using their clips to record their feelings on the lesson

or on a question the teacher has asked. For example, if the teacher asked in the intro how they are

feeling about the unit, students will put their clip on the emotion face that matches how they are

feeling. This encourages emotional literacy and the students to think about how their gym class

and emotions connect. This method will also be used to assess how certain dance movements

make the students feel. In the final class students will colour in a worksheet where they can show

how different parts of their body feel during dance, as a student-led assessment.