Curated OER
Santa Claus is Coming to Town
Take a look at this simple, easy line dance. Forward steps, backward steps, jumps, and grapevines. Shake arms, shake hands, and clap! Put this all together and dance to "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" by Mariah Carey. A nice little...
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Fun Dance
"Fun Dance" is a 32-count dance of some very basic dance moves. Walking forward, walking backward, grapevines left, grapevines right, some punching arm moves, and some swimming arm moves. Put on some upbeat music and get movin'.
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Rock This Party
Watch this video to learn the line dance steps that are performed to the song "Rock This Party" by Bob Sinclair. The written directions are a little confusing but after watching the video it all makes sense. This is a 32-count dance that...
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Contra Dance
Contra dance was brought to America by French Soldiers after the Revolutionary War. Contra dancing is done in lines, but with partners facing each other. Some moves one partner is moving forward while the other moves backwards. Some...
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Dancing Polygons and Non-Polygons with Patterns
Second graders study movements. In this dance lesson, 2nd graders draw patterns selecting one to represent through movement with their body.
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Basic Waltz Steps
Learn the five basic waltz steps: box step, under arm turn, walt left box or waltz right box, hesitation step, and progressive waltz step. Teach a little about the history of the waltz and the countries from which it came: Germany and...
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Crazy Frog Dance
Teach your young learners some basic line dance steps. Get them moving to increase their heart rates and to have fun. This dance consists of a few steps and there is a part that is for free-style moves. While the written description is...
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Let's Dance
One of the best ways to explore other cultures is through experiencing their dances. That's exactly what happens in this sweet lesson on cultural dance. In it, learners dance to The Mexican Hat Dance, Skip to My Lou, and other classic...
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Swing Your Partner
Students work together to paint a square set on a piece of asphalt. In pairs, they use the square set to participate in a variety of square dances. To end the lesson, they decorate the squares to help them remember the correct steps to...
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Heritage: Line Dance is a Pattern!
Line dancing is the repeating of a pattern of steps, done to music. Teach youngsters how to line dance and they won't feel so awkward when they grow up. Let them experiment with creating their own patterns and teaching their classmates....
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Creating a Landscape Through Art, Music, Dance, and Poetry
A brightly-colored David Hockney landscape painting inspires poetry, dance, music, and paper sculpture in this multi-faceted activity. After brainstorming words inspired by the painting, the whole class collaborates on a cinquain poem,...
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Square Dances
If you are teaching square dancing, this word search puzzle provides 30 related terms to locate. Definitions are not included.
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Modern & Contemporary
An informative study of the masters of modern and contemporary dance, including Ailey, Fokine, Balanchine, Baryshnikov, and Graham, this presentation offers students some key moments in the development of 20th century dance. Great in a...
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Nureyev: The Unconquerable Will
Students consider the development of dance across cultures. In this dance genre lesson, students study the history of Russia and the Mongol Tatars. Students research how classical ballet made its way to Russia and create collaborative...
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Navajo Weaving
Students explore the Navajo culture. In this Navajo Indians instructional activity, students gain information about their weaving and dancing. Students note the patterns in the weaving. Students create a dance that corresponds with the...
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Swing your Partner: The Basics of Square Dancing
Students perform square dancing steps. In this square dancing lesson, students view a video to learn the basic steps. Students discuss the history of the dance and perform with partners.
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Appreciating the Men of Ballet from Dance in America: Born to be Wild: The Leading Men of the American Ballet Theatre
Students examine the role of men in the American Ballet Theatre. For this ballet lesson, students watch segments of the Great Performances video "Dance in America: Born to be Wild: The Leading Men of the American Ballet Theatre."...
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Folk Music Word Puzzle
In this music worksheet, students locate twelve terms about folk music in a word puzzle. They also investigate and list local folk songs.
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Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Young scholars identify what Tchaikovsky's personality was like and what kind of school he attended first. Then they identify and research what was happening in Russian politics during his lifetime. Students also identify who the...
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Cha-Cha Dribble
Students work on dribbling with either hand. They follow directions and the rhythm of the music. Students dance to the Cha-Cha slide according to its directions and they add the dribble of the bbasketball with the number of "stomps."
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Appreciating the Men of Ballet from Dance in America: Born To Be Wild: The Leading Men of American Ballet Theatre
Students watch a video highlighting men in ballet. They complete further research on the topic using online and print resources. They create a short skit with the basic elements of dance.
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From Vienna: The New Year's Celebration
Students research the history, art, music, and architecture of Vienna and make an oral presentation based on their findings. They listen to segments of the Vienna Philharmonic New Year's celebration and design a musical extravaganza in...
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"The Nutcracker" From the Royal Ballet
Middle schoolers explore "The Nutcracker" ballet. They conduct Internet research, watch "The Nutcracker" performed by the Royal Ballet, tell the story to a younger child, and write a letter to the person who first reviewed "The...
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Look, Listen and Learn
Young scholars brainstorm what they know about the performing arts and research an artist or song and its related genre. Students work in groups to create an online banner to attract peers to their performing arts genre.