Pre-Ballet & Creative Movement Sample dance class Plans

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Welcome

Greet each child by name.

Sit in a circle. 

Tell them you have a special book you’ll share later: A Tail of Twirls. 

“There are lots of ways to twirl – let’s take turns twirling with [plushie's name].” Use a stuffed animal to pass around—each child does a twirl.

(You know your class—don't try this without previous sharing success.)

Movement 

Typical Technique and Movements

Ballet Vocabulary

“In this story, there are many ballet posters on the wall. Let’s learn a few of the shapes you might see.”  Demonstrate some ballet positions. (Check back October for images.) 

Choose an Animal (5 minutes)

It’s so fun to act like different animals. Let’s do some exercises like these silly animals. Have each child pick from a bag of stuffies or pictures. Images for use below. 

• Butterfly  – sit in butterfly stretch (flap wings)
• Elephant  – heavy, stomping steps with trunk arms
• Bird  – flap arms 
• Giraffe  – reach tall then bend over for a drink with wide legs
• Cat   – arch back, kitty tails
• Dog  – wag tails
• Bear  – walk on hands and feet with hips high
• Lizard  – belly crawl with arms pulling
• Snake   – slither low on the floor
• Turtle  – move slowly, hide inside a “shell” (curl up)
• Horse/Pony  – gallops 
• Penguin  – waddle with arms at sides
• Flamingo  – balance on one leg
• Monkey  – swing arms
• Alligator  – snap arms like jaws

Story time

Enjoy the story and dance along. 

A Tail of Twirls Obstacle Course 

➡️ Dancers tiptoe along the footprint, tape, or pawprint path.

➡️ Dancers lift knees high to climb in over a low step stool or foam block.

➡️ Balance in relevé like Kit copying the posters.

➡️ Dancers crawl like caterpillars under a tunnel, then flutter like butterflies. 

➡️ Near the studio mirror, dancers twirl like Kit discovering her fabulous spin!

➡️ Provide a play broom or scarf as a mop. Older kids could kick, spin, and dance while sweeping across a short path.

➡️ Dancers pick up a play key, hug it close, and happy dance - twirl or jump.

Dance Party / Freeze Dance 

Freeze like Kit peeking in a window whenever the music stops.

Goodbyes

Bows and cat stickers or stamps. 

Welcome

Tell them you have a special book called Bellyrina to share. "In the book the bunny does a lot of different silly moves. What ways do you think the silly bunny might move?" 

Give kids the option to demonstrate any bunny move.  

Gentle stretches — arms overhead, butterfly feet, side bends.

Movement 

Typical Technique and Movements

 Storytime 

Read and enjoy the story aloud.

Sequencing

Choose 4 movements to make into a short sequence, such as

1. Hop (bunny jumps) 
2. Twirl (Bellyrina tutu magic) 
3. Crawl (escaping the belly) 
4. Friendship bow/curtsy 

Options 

Fairy Sparkle Scarves

Kids improvise magical twirls with scarves.
Daisy Dance

Form a circle, take turns growing tall like daisies. (maybe when you tap them)
Character Parade

Each child chooses their favorite movement from any character (hop, twirl, crawl, wiggle) to perform for the group.

First off, these books are your resource: Feel free to use them in whatever way works best for you and your students. 

While designed as a dancing story for class, teachers have reported using snippets or even one page each week (to gather students & encourage kids to be ready for class on time). 

Age-Appropriate Adaptations

Modify movements for different skill levels. Create harder versions for your older students who may have already experienced the story. 

Create Choreography

Sequence parts of the story to challenge student's memory. 

Creative Expression

Encourage students to add their own movements to stories.

Put students in groups and have them agree on each movement for a page, or the whole story. 

Have students create alternate endings with different choreography.

Use stories as inspiration for original student choreography.

Performance & Sharing

You're always welcome to perform stories, royalty free.

Adapt stories for studio showcases or recitals.

Use for community outreach programs.

Use audio versions for act-along fun. 

Classroom Management

Use familiar story characters to give directions. It's important to work on fundamental skills, just like Kittina.

Create behavioral expectations through character examples. 

("SHHhhh" from Ready Set Dance )

Transition between activities using story themes

Build routine and predictability with repeated story elements, for example, "Try Wobble Smile Repeat" from Not-So-Perfect Pirouette

Educational Integration for Camps Etc

Connect stories to other subjects (science, literature, math)

Teach cultural awareness through diverse characters

Develop listening skills through story comprehension

Practice following multi-step directions

Practice vocabulary

Visit YouTube Channel @OnceUponADance590.

More Videos Coming Soon.

Check out these teacher/therapist resources and Dance-It-Out! story kits. 

Visit www.speechandsmile.com

See skills, topics, and technique list for select Dance-It-Out! stories. Or check Amazon product pages at www.amazon.com/dp/B08X1JNGGP

A fantastic list of resources to enhance your child's learning and development and help kids regulate by Courtney English  @courtneyenglish.ot 

Warm-up classes and more

Enjoy our three spotify playlists (by terreld):

•  Favorite Ballet Music
•  Energetic Dance Music
•  Dramatic Chill Dancing

My favorite resource for checking ballet terminology, from ABT

A fan-in-the-wild suggested we add this Glossary of Dance Terms from @TheaterSeatStore

(   ;) Rylee/Michele)

Podcast answers teaching-littles questions. 

Check out Feb 23rd episode with Teacher Terrel.

Follow @DanceToLearn for freebies and teaching tips. Or enroll in their done-for-you lesson planning. 

Dance educators will love this easy partnering activity and other free printables from Dance Dance HOORAY. 

An awesome list of books that work well for dancing, from our dance educator friend Daria Fitzgerald. 

1200+ badges including a Story Movement Badge perfect for Once Upon a Dance books. 

Contact kerry@curiosityuntamed.com for info.

Dance educators will love the weekly podcast with teaching tips, prop ideas, and more. Check out their playlists, prop shop, and teacher education opportunities. 

Wonderful resource I wish existed when I started teaching dance: all your props on one website, curated by a mother-daughter team selling products made in the US. 

We stopped making videos when we discovered great existing content like this.

Another awesome, free resource: Miss Haley's YouTube Ballet Adventure Classes.

MaiStoryBook: Interactive Read-Alouds including Princess Naomi Helps a Unicorn

Zarely Blog covers a range of topics. 

Here's a recent great article.

Seattleites will enjoy local dance news on Dancewear Center's Newsletter.

Short stories to get kids moving (early-version snippets of the Dance-It-Out! stories)

Quick songs for a dance break

If you're looking for something not here, let us know. We're always happy to help.