Dance Reflection

Think about the reading and the activities we did in class, as well as your own experience with dance in elementary school. Think about how this approach to childrens' creative dance might be different than studio dance (jazz, ballet, hip hop, etc.) or social dance - why do you think children's dance specialists might focus more on childrens' creative dance for education? How do you think you might use dance in your own teaching?

From my own personal dance experience, which consists of all of the previous dance forms named, and from my children's creative dance class that I took my sophomore year of college, I can truly say that there is a huge difference in the cognitive process behind creative dance and all the other forms of dance. I never had experience in creative danced, or modern dance, until I was a sophomore in high school, but it is where I truly gained my passion for dance. I always liked to dance, but after learning modern dance in high school I never look at dance in the same way. Dance moved from just memorizing steps, moves, and techniques into a way of expression, learning, and communicating feeling.

Apart from that I took a childrens creative movement class a couple years ago in college, and it was a whole semester dedicated to teaching me how to take this concept of creative movement into an elementary classroom. I love the freedom, confidence, and out let of energy it provides kids with. One thing I especially love about using this in the classroom is that it does not focus on the child who has the best form, or technique, but the child who is willing to think outside their comfort zone and really stretch their creativity. I will most definitely use this in my classroom because I feel it is beneficial in so many ways! Not only is it a good gym activity but it is also a good way to integrate arts into a variety of lessons.