Dance 2 - Lesson 5

In Year 4's Dance 2, Lesson 5, pupils embark on a creative journey to learn and rehearse a dance routine that depicts the life cycle of a tree. The learning objectives are clear: to explore and repeat movements with coordination, responding to various stimuli, and to provide feedback using simple dance terms with teacher support. The success criteria ensure that students can explore ideas, link actions, and understand the dance vocabulary, which includes terms like 'germination', 'pollen', 'stamen', and 'branches'. To aid in this immersive experience, gymnastic mats and music, such as Grieg's 'Morning' from the Peer Gynt suite, are used as resources.

The lesson begins with a dynamic warm-up where the class teacher sets out the dance zone and models different travelling steps, including walking and skipping. The 'Beans' activity adds fun to the warm-up, where pupils perform actions related to various bean types, such as 'Jumping Bean' or 'Chilli Bean'. The main part of the lesson is dedicated to rehearsing the dance routine. Pupils improvise movements representing different stages in the life of a tree, from a seed's germination to its growth into a mature tree, and eventually its return to the earth. Pupils work in groups to create a sequence that tells the story of a tree's life cycle, using movements to depict actions like 'Flower opening', 'Seed dispersal', and 'Seedling growing into a Tree'. The lesson concludes with a cool down, repeating the 'Beans' activity, stretching, and controlled breathing exercises to relax after the lively dance session.