Dance - Sarah

by Sarah Friday, August 07, 2015 2 comments Week 4 Dance

What unique contribution does dance make to a child’s development?

Dance is a great medium to teach with as children do not have the reticence that teenagers and adults have about their perceived public image.  Movement is crucial for healthy development and to coordinate both gross and fine motor development (Hoffnung et al, 2013)  It can also abate the increasing obesity epidemic we are facing in today’s Western society. (World Health Organisation [WHO], 2013 & WHO, 2015)  

Reflect upon and discuss what you have seen, done or read about and add any further ideas you have for creative movement and dance in primary school.

I loved the idea of writing your name with your body parts, so simple and so effective.  I have uploaded a video of me writing my name.

Dance, for me, comes hand in hand with PE, movement and activity.  As the Western world struggles with an increasing weight issue, movement is becoming much more important.  Not every child likes competitive sport and so dance should be another avenue to explore increasing activity and movement in our everyday life.  Cheong-Clinch (as cited in Pullen & Carroll, 2013) discusses music and the relevance to adolescents. Music and dance are interwoven as music makes you want to move.  If we could channel that desire to move when we hear music from our early childhood, limit our inhibitions and allow our adolescents to have the technical knowledge to create dance for pleasure, then this would surely help the obesity epidemic we are facing today.   

References

Cheong-Clinch, C. Music for engaging young people in education. In Pullen, D. & Carroll, A.

            (ed.). (2013) Adolescent wellbeing: Trends, issues and prospects. Hobart, Tasmania:

            ACYS Publishing.

Hoffnung, M., Hoffnung, R. J., Seifert, K.L., Burton Smith, R., Hine, A., Ward, L., Pause, C. &

            Swaby K. (2013). Lifespan development: A topical approach. Milton, QLD: John Wiley

            & Sons.

World Health Organisation. [WHO]. (2013). Childhood overweight and obesity. Retrieved

            from: http://www.who.int/dietphysicalactivity/childhood/en/

World Health Organisation. [WHO]. (2015). Global strategy on diet, physical activity and

            health. Retrieved from: http://www.who.int/dietphysicalactivity/pa/en/