Grade level: 3rd-5th
Content Area: Dance
Title of Unit: My Fishing Dance
Essential Questions or Driving Questions:
What do dances look/sound/feel like in different parts of the world?
What can dance teach me about another culture?
How can I use dance to communicate about my world?
How can I share my creations responsibly?
Essential Question(s) that allow learners to explore significant questions about themselves and/or their world:
What style of dance interests me?
What does fishing look like where I live?
When we fish: What do we wear? What kinds of equipment do we use?
What do we fish for? What are the steps to catching a fish? etc.
How can I communicate information about fishing to others through movement?
Content Area: Dance
Title of Unit: My Fishing Dance
Essential Questions or Driving Questions:
What do dances look/sound/feel like in different parts of the world?
What can dance teach me about another culture?
How can I use dance to communicate about my world?
How can I share my creations responsibly?
Essential Question(s) that allow learners to explore significant questions about themselves and/or their world:
What style of dance interests me?
What does fishing look like where I live?
When we fish: What do we wear? What kinds of equipment do we use?
What do we fish for? What are the steps to catching a fish? etc.
How can I communicate information about fishing to others through movement?
Standards
Statement of Purpose:
Learners will understand that dance varies across cultures/geography.
Learners will digitally explore various forms of dance around the world, using information gathered to make and submit observations.
Learners will be introduced to the Japanese fishing dance “Soran Bushi," and be able to perform an excerpt from the dance.
Learners will begin to view dance as a language of personal/cultural expression.
Learners will create and practice a short dance about fishing in their village.
Learners will be introduced to the concept of copyright.
Learners will understand the importance of gaining permission from content creators before using music for a public performance or online video.
Content Standards:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.8
Recall information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question.
ISTE*S Standards:
1. Empowered Learner
6. Creative Communicator
Statement of Purpose:
Learners will understand that dance varies across cultures/geography.
Learners will digitally explore various forms of dance around the world, using information gathered to make and submit observations.
Learners will be introduced to the Japanese fishing dance “Soran Bushi," and be able to perform an excerpt from the dance.
Learners will begin to view dance as a language of personal/cultural expression.
Learners will create and practice a short dance about fishing in their village.
Learners will be introduced to the concept of copyright.
Learners will understand the importance of gaining permission from content creators before using music for a public performance or online video.
Content Standards:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.8
Recall information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question.
ISTE*S Standards:
1. Empowered Learner
6. Creative Communicator
Overview and Timeline:
Section 1: Background Knowledge (30 minutes)
Additional supplies needed: Blank paper and pencils/crayons.
Students will explore different forms of dance from around the world using the digital tool, Thinglink. Working in partners, students will click through related background content, answering guided questions and submitting them electronically as part of a scavenger hunt activity. Students will select a favorite dance from the videos they observed and draw a picture, which they will turn into the site facilitators. An optional "Creative Booster" activity can be incorporated to extend the lesson.
Section 2: Cultural Dance: Soran Bushi (15 minutes)
This element of the lesson will introduce students to Soran Bushi, a Japanese fishing dance. Digital content will provide students with a historical/cultural context for the Japanese folk dance. Students will follow an online tutorial to learn Soran Bushi.
Section 3: My Fishing Dance (60 minutes)
This final element of the lesson will guide students through a collaborative process, working in pairs to create a dance about fishing in their village. Facilitators may choose to use this dance as a bridge towards writing an informative/explanatory text describing key elements of fishing in their village as described through their dances. A series of video tutorials will help guide this activity, while a checklist will help students self-assess their progress.
(See "Closure and Reflection" section at the end of this outline for information about leading a discussion to conclude this activity).
Assessment
Assessment will take on a variety of forms. In the first activity, students will answer and submit guided questions about initial digital content via a scavenger hunt. For the Soran Bushi activity, site facilitators can assess student progress based on student participation and engagement. Students will have access to a checklist as a means of self-assessment for the Create Your Own Fishing Dance activity.
Section 1: Background Knowledge (30 minutes)
Additional supplies needed: Blank paper and pencils/crayons.
Students will explore different forms of dance from around the world using the digital tool, Thinglink. Working in partners, students will click through related background content, answering guided questions and submitting them electronically as part of a scavenger hunt activity. Students will select a favorite dance from the videos they observed and draw a picture, which they will turn into the site facilitators. An optional "Creative Booster" activity can be incorporated to extend the lesson.
Section 2: Cultural Dance: Soran Bushi (15 minutes)
This element of the lesson will introduce students to Soran Bushi, a Japanese fishing dance. Digital content will provide students with a historical/cultural context for the Japanese folk dance. Students will follow an online tutorial to learn Soran Bushi.
Section 3: My Fishing Dance (60 minutes)
This final element of the lesson will guide students through a collaborative process, working in pairs to create a dance about fishing in their village. Facilitators may choose to use this dance as a bridge towards writing an informative/explanatory text describing key elements of fishing in their village as described through their dances. A series of video tutorials will help guide this activity, while a checklist will help students self-assess their progress.
(See "Closure and Reflection" section at the end of this outline for information about leading a discussion to conclude this activity).
Assessment
Assessment will take on a variety of forms. In the first activity, students will answer and submit guided questions about initial digital content via a scavenger hunt. For the Soran Bushi activity, site facilitators can assess student progress based on student participation and engagement. Students will have access to a checklist as a means of self-assessment for the Create Your Own Fishing Dance activity.
Resources
Educator Preparation:
Essential questions suggest tasks where technology is used mainly to gather data/receive instruction, although optional elements will provide site facilitators with information for digitally-responsible sharing of student work. Technology supports student learning by providing access to culturally-responsive arts-based content to a region where resources for such programs are limited. Mini-lessons on fair use and introduction to music copyright licensing encourage 21st century skills. Creative elements not only call for higher order thinking and differentiation, but also provide a culturally-responsive scaffold for written work.
Tools and Resources Provided to Learners/Tutorials and Templates Provided to Learners:
Using Weebly to organize the unit, students/site facilitators will have access to visual elements such as pictures, digital posters, and video tutorials to provide rich content. Available tutorials/checklists will support movement creation. Video tutorials for delivering instruction will be created via iOS, edited via iMovie, uploaded onto unlisted YouTube links, and embedded into the site.
Briefly explain how the resources, tools, and tutorials may be used to differentiate content or process for learners:
Through the use of the Weebly platform, site facilitators and students will be able to navigate through content in their own time, breaking the lesson up into segments that best serve their learning population. As one example, in the first section, where students are asked to navigate through a Thinglink to explore different dance forms around the world and answer key questions, facilitators could choose to allow students to explore independently, in stations/teams, or as a group. Additional creative components are provided for quick finishers.
In the second and third sections, video tutorials, with their ability to be stopped, started, and reviewed, provide differentiation for learners. Learners can choose, for example, to repeat complex material, or fast forward to a final run through as a means of content review.
Reason(s) for chosen technology(s):
I’ve chosen Weebly as my main platform for hosting content due to the ease of organizing lessons into tabbed sections. I also am interested in this platform for its ability to host multiple forms of digital media. Templates, checklists, tutorials, digital posters, etc. can all be uploaded and organized into the desired order of progression for the unit. My goal is to leverage technology mainly as a means of bridging an arts resource gap, while providing culturally-responsive dance/21st century content, with minimal tech navigational skills/equipment needs for students and site facilitators.
Educator Preparation:
Essential questions suggest tasks where technology is used mainly to gather data/receive instruction, although optional elements will provide site facilitators with information for digitally-responsible sharing of student work. Technology supports student learning by providing access to culturally-responsive arts-based content to a region where resources for such programs are limited. Mini-lessons on fair use and introduction to music copyright licensing encourage 21st century skills. Creative elements not only call for higher order thinking and differentiation, but also provide a culturally-responsive scaffold for written work.
Tools and Resources Provided to Learners/Tutorials and Templates Provided to Learners:
Using Weebly to organize the unit, students/site facilitators will have access to visual elements such as pictures, digital posters, and video tutorials to provide rich content. Available tutorials/checklists will support movement creation. Video tutorials for delivering instruction will be created via iOS, edited via iMovie, uploaded onto unlisted YouTube links, and embedded into the site.
Briefly explain how the resources, tools, and tutorials may be used to differentiate content or process for learners:
Through the use of the Weebly platform, site facilitators and students will be able to navigate through content in their own time, breaking the lesson up into segments that best serve their learning population. As one example, in the first section, where students are asked to navigate through a Thinglink to explore different dance forms around the world and answer key questions, facilitators could choose to allow students to explore independently, in stations/teams, or as a group. Additional creative components are provided for quick finishers.
In the second and third sections, video tutorials, with their ability to be stopped, started, and reviewed, provide differentiation for learners. Learners can choose, for example, to repeat complex material, or fast forward to a final run through as a means of content review.
Reason(s) for chosen technology(s):
I’ve chosen Weebly as my main platform for hosting content due to the ease of organizing lessons into tabbed sections. I also am interested in this platform for its ability to host multiple forms of digital media. Templates, checklists, tutorials, digital posters, etc. can all be uploaded and organized into the desired order of progression for the unit. My goal is to leverage technology mainly as a means of bridging an arts resource gap, while providing culturally-responsive dance/21st century content, with minimal tech navigational skills/equipment needs for students and site facilitators.
Instructional Plan
Management:
Learners will be working after school, in classroom settings, guided by site facilitators. The first section of the unit can be approached individually, in partners/small groups (stations), or navigated as a whole group, depending on technology/facilitation available at the site. Learners will work as a whole group during the second section of the unit, utilizing a video tutorial to learn/review the Soran Bushi dance. The third section of the unit will be divided into a series of mini-lessons designed to guide students through the process of creating a dance, collaborating in partners or working individually. Collaborations will be facilitated through online tutorials, and guidelines/checklists will be provided to learners/site facilitators to aid in assessment of student progress. Guidelines for creative elements will be provided in video mini-lessons to assist in productive collaborations.
Closure and Reflection:
It is highly encouraged that site facilitators allow time at the end of the 3rd "Create Your Own Fishing Dance" lesson for students to share their creations. Prior to sharing, a mini-lesson about respectful feedback is encouraged.
An additional resource is provided here with reflection points to consider and potential sentence stems to encourage students' thoughtful feedback.
Management:
Learners will be working after school, in classroom settings, guided by site facilitators. The first section of the unit can be approached individually, in partners/small groups (stations), or navigated as a whole group, depending on technology/facilitation available at the site. Learners will work as a whole group during the second section of the unit, utilizing a video tutorial to learn/review the Soran Bushi dance. The third section of the unit will be divided into a series of mini-lessons designed to guide students through the process of creating a dance, collaborating in partners or working individually. Collaborations will be facilitated through online tutorials, and guidelines/checklists will be provided to learners/site facilitators to aid in assessment of student progress. Guidelines for creative elements will be provided in video mini-lessons to assist in productive collaborations.
Closure and Reflection:
It is highly encouraged that site facilitators allow time at the end of the 3rd "Create Your Own Fishing Dance" lesson for students to share their creations. Prior to sharing, a mini-lesson about respectful feedback is encouraged.
An additional resource is provided here with reflection points to consider and potential sentence stems to encourage students' thoughtful feedback.