Light the Fire Within | Curriculum | Fine Arts - Dance

Complex Thinking uses creative, critical problem-solving, decision-making, and innovative thinking processes; puts information together in new and unique ways; balances reason and emotion in decision making; considers new ideas and various perspectives to broaden insight and increase understanding.

Effective Communication successfully interacts with others using a variety of mediums; expresses ideas, feelings, and beliefs aesthetically; evaluates the effectiveness of communication; receives and understands ideas communicated through a variety of modes; adapts and adjusts communication to suit the needs of the intended audience.

Collaboration works effectively with others to identify and achieve specified results; values differences and similarities among groups members; respects cultural and ethnic differences and builds on them in positive ways; treats others with compassion; resolves conflicts positively.

Responsible Citizenship acknowledges that all people have innate worth; demonstrates respect for human dignity, needs, and rights; works towards improvement in society.

Learning Outcomes
Students Will:

	Recognize the Olympic value of respect
	Compose a dance which represents the Olympic ideal of respect

Activity: Respect through Dance

60 Minutes

Assemble information about the process of abstraction. Present lessons, prior to this, on the process of abstraction.

Assemble information about the Olympic value of respect from multiple points of view (e.g. respect for the body, other individuals, races, cultures, individuals with disabilities, school, property).

Assemble information about what occurs in society when disrespect is the norm.

Handout - Modern Olympics
Video and audio resources of dances that demonstrate either the ideal of respect of the effects of disrespect.
Information or video footage of an idea abstracted through dance

Read the following quote to the students:

"Many of the conflicts destructive to peace emerge from two main sources. One is our inability to deal with anger positively, and the other is our inability to build good relationships, meaningful relationships. If we could learn these two things, we would be able to reduce violence in human society by as much as 90 percent."
Reflections of Peace, by Arun Gandhi

Discuss the quote with the students and ask them what they think it means. How might anger management and good relationships reduce violence?

Read the Modern Olympics handout.

Ask students, In what ways does the modern Olympics promote the value of respect? In what ways might the Olympic Games encourage respect in 2002?

Discuss the effects upon the individual, the community and the nation when this value is utilized.

If respect reduces violence then disrespect must increase it. Ask students to list ways in which they see disrespect interfering with peace and harmony in their lives.

View a choreographic work or visualize with an audio recording, which demonstrates the Olympic ideal of respect.

Teach students to perform an improvisation using counter balance. Clasp hands and slowly pull away from a partner keeping the energy force equal at all times. Take responsibility for the partner's safety. Explore multiple ways of moving. Attempt to use a different body part from that used by the partner. Focus on the symbolism of working with the different abilities that a body part allows for.

Discuss the above improvisation and its possible symbolism in terms of the Olympic goal of respect.

Perform improvisations based on moving through space. This may be in the form of processions, special pathways or freely moving through space. Perform, observe and respond from the viewpoint of the Olympic value of respect.

Explore gestures of respect (eg. handshake). Create a simple motif based upon that gesture. Manipulate that gesture through time, space or energy. Teach the motif to a partner and then to a group. Share these with the class and discuss.

Assign students to create, perform and record a group composition based on the Olympic value of respect. Determine which point of view to explore. Utilize the activities previously performed to guide the development of the movement. Each composition should have 1) a clear beginning and ending, 2) motifs developed from gestures and 3) spatial transitions which are symbolic of respect.

Assessment

Students will:

	Describe how dance can contribute to one's sense of respect from multiple points of view
	Perform a dance composition which reflects the concept of respect
	Include abstraction in the composition
	Articulate ways in which their perspective of respect has been affected after participation in this lesson

Extensions

Once students have examined the concept of respect, list a number of behaviors that you can do in your life to be an example of this Olympic value.