Lesson Overview:

Focusing on the structure of the earth's atmosphere, this lesson relates the science concepts of layering, air density, and particles directly to dance concepts such as level and shape. Participants use movement skills to learn and communicate information about the structure of the atmosphere. This is the first lesson in a three-part unit on the weather.

Length of Lesson:

One 45-minute period

Notes:

This lesson is particularly suitable for grades 3-4.

Instructional Objectives:

Students will:

• relate their own personal body space to the concept of spheres—specifically the atmosphere.
• identify the three basic levels of space and relate them to the layers of the atmosphere.
• examine and experience the making of body shapes.
• use movement and dance as a means of communicating information.
• identify particles in space and air density.
• explore the basic composition structures of motif and variation—rondo and canon.

Supplies:

• Masking tape

Instructional Plan:

Teacher Preparation

Prepare the activity area by marking off three equal areas of floor space with masking tape. (These areas will be necessary during the second half of the lesson.)

The use of movement in the classroom can be challenging for many teachers. Unstructured movement activities can become chaotic and uncontrollable. The lessons presented in this unit offer a method for managing movement in the classroom. To use movement as a vehicle for instruction, you must acquaint students with movement concepts before integrating or introducing Weather concepts.

These strategies will help you structure the lesson effectively:

Define expectations:
Let the students know that you expect them to work and behave with the discipline of a dancer. Dance class is a time to focus and work with the body. Be clear that you expect the students to use and remember the "space bubble," one's personal space. Be sure to communicate the rewards and consequences for students' behavior.

Prepare the room:
Because a gym or large space may not available, the movement lesson may need to take place in the classroom. Establish a routine for preparing the space (i.e., putting all the desks to the sides of the room and getting the desks back in place at the end of the lesson). Have the children rehearse and memorize the procedure.

Cues:
The more aural and visual cues you can provide for students, the better. Try to use a variety of visual cues and sounds. For example, you can use handclaps, a tambourine, a drum, an electronic keyboard, or any other number of percussive instruments. The word "freeze" is very effective for stopping a student immediately.

Spatial Arrangements:
Use different patterns in class. Have the students arrange themselves in various patterns such as lines, circles, dispersed patterns, groups, sitting, or standing.

Working with Partners:
Either pick partners for students or let them choose their own. (Younger children may have more difficulty picking their own partners.) Tell students that they are expected to work productively with their partners. If students are not working well together, change their partners. Review all of the rules of an activity before the students start working with their partners.

Time limits:
To help keep students on task, set time limits. It is especially important to give time limits when students are working with partners or in a group.

Commenting on students' work:
When you speak about a student's work, use the vocabulary of a dancer. For example, " I see John in a low twisted shape" or "I see Sally in a high curved shape that reminds me of the wind." Be generous with praise and use thoughtful corrections. Remember that dance is a language and a physical skill that requires practice. Be patient. With time and instruction, the students will become adept at using movement to communicate ideas and concepts.

Introductory Activity

Note: Refer to the Weather on the Move Presentation as appropriate throughout this activity.

Draw the Earth and its atmosphere (see Diagram 1 in the Sphere's Density Dance Packet). Explain that Earth's atmosphere is similar to a dancer's personal space, or space bubble. Have the students go into the dance area and lead them in drawing their "atmospheres" (that is, patterns within their space bubbles.)

Let the students experiment with making different shapes, starting at a low level. Give them cue words to help them make various shapes, such as geometric figures, letters, and numbers. Tell the students that you want them to be able to speak with their bodies. They should try to communicate certain ideas to you, such as "medium and twisted" or "high and stretched." Next, let the students pick their own shapes and levels as you cue them to change shapes. Encourage them to make different shapes each time.

Ask the students to come back into a group and sit down. Show them Diagram 2 from the Packet, and explain that you are going to focus on a small portion of the atmosphere. Using Diagram 3, show the students that the atmosphere is divided into three parts. Make the connection between the levels in the atmosphere and levels that students were working with in the previous exercise.

Explain that the ionosphere is like a high level, the stratosphere is like a medium level, and the troposphere is like a low level (see Diagram 4 in the Packet.) Ask the students to go back out into the dance space.

Demonstrate for the students how dancers must use the space bubble to move through the space/room. Explain that they must work with three aspects of space: the other people, the other dancers' "atmospheres" (space bubbles), and the space between the bubbles. Show the students how dancers use the space bubbles to let them know they are getting close.

Ask the students to walk to music or to a beat. When you stop the beat or music, they must make a shape and freeze. The shape can be in any level. Ask them to watch out for each other's "atmospheres" (space bubbles) as they move through the space.

Ask the dancers to change the way they move through the space (i.e., gallop, hop on one foot, jump on two feet, skip, leap, walk). When you stop the beat or music they freeze into a shape.

Shrinking Wall Exercise

Tell the students that you represent an imaginary moving wall. As you cross the room toward the students, the space available for the students shrinks. As the space shrinks, the students must move their bodies closer together. Open the space back up (by walking away from the students). As the space expands, the students can move further apart from each other. Repeat this exercise several times.

Next, show Diagram 5, which illustrates the difference in the distance between the particles of air in the various layers of the atmosphere.

Tell the class that in the next exercise, their bodies will represent the particles of air. Go out to the activity space and repeat the shrinking wall exercise, this time telling the students that at first, they are like the ionosphere particles, with lots of space between each other. As the space shrinks, they will become the stratosphere particles, and then the troposphere particles. As you repeat the exercise, ask the students to tell you which sphere they represent.

Atmosphere Movement Activity

Point out the tape marks you have placed on the floor. Explain that the three areas represent the ionosphere, stratosphere, and troposphere.

Divide the students into three groups, which will represent each level of the atmosphere. The largest number of students should be in the troposphere, the next largest in the stratosphere, and the fewest in the ionosphere. For example, a class of thirty students would breakdown to:

1. Troposphere - 15 students
2. Stratosphere - 10 students
3. Ionosphere - 5 students

Tell the students in the troposphere to start moving. Point out that because there are more dancers in this area, thy must move within a very limited space. The students in the stratosphere go next. They will also need to work within limited space, but because there are fewer dancers, their awareness of that space needs to be different. Finally, the dancers in the ionosphere move. Give each group a chance to get used to moving through the restricted space.

Integrated Rondo/Canon Activity

Next, lead the class in a structured improvisation exercise.

First, familiarize the students with the "stop-and-go technique," explaining that they will move for eight counts and freeze for eight counts. Clap your hands or beat a drum while counting to eight so that students can stay aware of the beats. Demonstrate a 32-beat phrase: moving for eight counts, freezing for eight counts, moving for eight, and freezing for eight.

Now the students will create a sphere dance using the classical composition form of a rondo. Explain that a rondo form consists of ABACA. Each letter represents a motif. In the following exercise, the different motifs are distinguished by the different ways the dancers must move, depending on which sphere they are in.

Have the students move according to the rondo chart progression in the Packet. (Tables 1 - 3) In the first progression (Table 1), the troposphere dancers are the "A" group.

Create a variation on the original rondo by assigning different motif letters to different spheres. Follow the progression in Table 2, with the stratosphere dancers acting as the "A" group. Finally, follow the progression in Table 3, with the ionosphere dancers representing the "A" group.

To make the dance even more interesting and intricate, change the time element. Use the canon form in combination with the rondo. A musical canon incorporates the concept of a round (e.g., "Row, Row, Row Your Boat"). The class will be performing a rondo that uses movement instead of music. Follow the progression in Table A on the Packet.

The students in the "A" group start moving first. After they finish just eight counts of their 16-count phrase, the "B" group starts. This creates an overlapping effect to the movement. Notice that the "A" group never stops moving. As soon as they finish their 16-count phrase it is time for them to start again.

You or your students can create more variations by manipulating the elements of dance. For example, if you continue to work with the time element, you could:

• change the length of the phrase to 4 counts instead of 8 counts.
• change the length of time when the motifs start in the cannon. For example, the motifs could start after only 4 counts instead of 8.
• change the length of time that the dancers go and stop. For example, the students could move for 6 counts and hold for 4, or go for 10 counts and hold for 12.

Assessment:

To assess student performance, use the Spheres Rubric/Checklist, located in the Sphere's Density Dance Packet packet.

Extensions:

Have students create shapes that represent the various gases in the atmosphere. For example, ask each student to create a body shape that represents nitrogen. Then have them make a different shape for oxygen. How are the two shapes different? Why?

Challenge the students further by using the composition or ratio of gases in the atmosphere or in a particular sphere. If you have 30 students in the class and the composition of the atmosphere is 20 percent oxygen, 20 percent carbon dioxide, and 60 percent nitrogen, then six of the students would be in the oxygen shapes, six of the students would be in the carbon dioxide shapes and 18 students would be in the nitrogen shape.

Another way to extend the lesson is to create shapes representing precipitation. Each type of precipitation can have its own particular shape and students can re-create with motion the process involved in making rain or any other type of precipitation.

Sources:

Print:

• Landalf, Helen. Teaching Earth Science through Movement 3-6 (Young Actors Series). Mary Gerke (ill.). New York: Smith & Kraus, 1987.
• Joyce, Mary. First Steps in Teaching Creative Dance to Children. New York: Mayfield Publishing, 1980.

Authors:

• Harlan Brownlee, Teacher
  KCM
  Kansas City, MO